Host Family

Klaus Fischer was a seasoned veteran who could tell that Guardiola thought highly of Lin Quan and recognized his abilities.

He believed that given Guardiola's character, he probably wasn't lying.

So Lin Quan's skills were likely decent, but being decent didn't necessarily mean he was a good fit.

Werder Bremen's poor results were mainly due to their attacking philosophy.

Head Coach Thomas Schaaf's 4-4-2 formation saw both full-backs push forward in attack, and even the center-backs joined in.

This led to too many players crowding the front, leaving the backline exposed.

Once the opponent launched a counterattack, it was easy to break through their defense and create a one-on-one chance.

In last season's Bundesliga, Werder Bremen ranked first in the league for one-on-one chances conceded.

That wasn't something to be proud of!

To solve this problem, Werder Bremen needed a strong defensive midfielder with excellent interception skills.

Ideally someone like Makelele or Vieira, but of course that was impossible—players of that caliber would never join Werder Bremen.

So they had to search among young players from Giant Clubs and bring them in on loan.

But Barca sent them a deep-lying playmaker, leaving everyone at Bremen unsure what to do.

Since they'd already loaned De Bruyne from Chelsea, the team's playmaker was the attacking midfielder, and the defensive midfielder just needed to focus on defending without getting too involved in offense.

Therefore, Klaus and the others felt Lin Quan would struggle to fit into Werder Bremen's tactical system.

So he didn't bring up Lin Quan's tactical role or playing time after joining the team—anything related to tactics.

He only assured Guardiola that the club would take good care of Lin Quan, telling them not to worry.

Small and mid-tier clubs like Werder Bremen, which were short on funds, often relied on loaned players to carry the team. If they ruined their reputation, no one would cooperate with them in the future.

So Guardiola had no doubt about Klaus's guarantee.

Thus, he discussed with the club the arrangements for Lin Quan's accommodation.

The club offered two options: first, let Lin Quan live with the club's young players.

Second, place him with a die-hard fan family.

Guardiola respected Lin Quan's choice and agreed to the second option.

So Klaus had sports director Essien drive them to the host family near the stadium.

The family of four consisted of a couple in their late thirties.

The husband, William Victor, was a distributor for a local beer brand.

The wife, Anna Victor, was a civil servant working at the city hall.

This was a typical upper-middle-class family in Germany, with a combined annual income of around 100,000 euros—decent earnings with some social standing.

The couple had two adorable children with blonde hair and blue eyes. Their daughter Angel was 12, about the same age as Guardiola's eldest, and their son Greene was 10, still in elementary school.

All four were die-hard Werder Bremen fans. They almost never missed a home game and went as a family.

The couple was about the same age as Guardiola, and since Lin Quan was now a Werder Bremen player, they hit it off right away. Guardiola and Sera were very satisfied with the host family.

Before leaving, Guardiola warmly gave Greene a signed football.

The Williams family, in turn, gifted Guardiola a barrel of their treasured pure-grain beer.

To fit in with the team as quickly as possible, Lin Quan chose not to go skiing with Guardiola and the others in Switzerland. Instead, he stayed in Bremen to train on his own before the team's training camp began.

The intensity of youth matches was far from that of the Bundesliga. If he went into the Bundesliga with a youth-team mindset, he'd get crushed and lose his way.

So before the league started, he had a lot of work to do.

For example, improving his stamina to have enough energy to handle the Bundesliga's intensity.

He also needed to strengthen his physicality so he wouldn't get knocked over at the slightest contact.

Additionally, he had to watch match footage from the team's past few seasons and study their tactics to better integrate into the system.

Klaus's concerns didn't bother Lin Quan much.

He had played as a defensive midfielder in Barca's youth team, but after replicating peak Messi's attributes, he could play many positions.

Including winger, shadow striker, attacking midfielder, and even fill in as a center-forward.

Of course, returning to his old role as a deep-lying playmaker was also fine.

After joining PSG, an older Messi mostly played as the core playmaker.

So his role didn't conflict with De Bruyne's—the organizing and linking tasks could be left to De Bruyne.

And Lin Quan would take on the role of the finisher for the final strike.

If De Bruyne was specifically targeted and neutralized, Lin Quan could drop back to take over the playmaking duties, forming a dual attacking-midfielder setup.

Of course, none of this was up to him. What he needed to do was prove to the Head Coach that he was capable of playing these positions.

The host family's home was close to the team's Training Base, less than two kilometers away.

He was still too young to get a driver's license, and the distance was so short that driving wasn't necessary anyway.

So Lin Quan spent 200 euros on a bicycle as his means of commuting to and from work.

That evening, Mrs. Anna prepared a lavish dinner at home to welcome Lin Quan's arrival.

"Lin, don't be shy here—just treat this place like your own home!"

Mrs. Anna smiled as she poured Lin Quan a glass of juice. Since he was still a minor, he couldn't drink alcohol.

Besides, for professional players, drinking was also improper behavior that could affect their competitive form.

"Thank you, Mrs. Anna!"

Lin Quan politely expressed his thanks and accepted the juice.

Willian poured himself a glass of beer and picked up the conversation:

"Werder Bremen has always been very welcoming to young players. Our captain, Fritz, is a very upright guy—with him around, you won't get bullied on the team."

As he said this, Willian's eyes dimmed a little, and he sighed:

"It's a shame that Wiese guy left."

The Wiese Willian mentioned, full name Tim Wiese, was Werder Bremen's starting goalkeeper last season.

He was hailed as the heir to Lion King Kahn, a goalkeeper who was both unruly and fiercely passionate.

Someone like that easily becomes the spiritual leader of a team, and that was the role Wiese played at Bremen.

With his outstanding skills and long-term service to Werder Bremen, Wiese had made significant contributions to the club, earning deep affection from the fans.

His departure left many fans deeply regretful.

Willian realized his mood was affecting everyone, so he dropped the topic and raised his glass to offer Lin Quan a toast:

"Lin, I wish you a quick foothold on the team, and may you soon become our pride!"