The Invitation from Bayern Munich

Germany, Bavaria, Bayern Munich Club.

The German Telekom Cup inviting them to participate was just a minor matter for Bayern.

They weren't particularly concerned about it; compared to the Telekom Cup, the team's performance next season was what truly mattered to them.

The Bundesliga giant's results over the past few seasons had been quite poor—they had gone two years without a title.

Last season, they were first swept by direct rivals Dortmund in the league, then suffered a humiliating 2:5 defeat in the German Cup final, getting completely dominated by Dortmund.

For Bayern Munich, this was an utter disgrace!

If their league disappointments could have been traded for a Champions League trophy, that might have been acceptable.

But sadly, the team came up empty-handed in the Champions League as well.

In the 2010-2011 season, they fell in the Round of 16; in the 2011-2012 season, they lost in the final...

Bayern really wanted to write a giant "tragedy" on the ground...

Fortunately, under the guidance of veteran coach Heynckes, the team's form was steadily improving.

Reaching the Champions League final last season was solid proof; surely, given more time, he could lead Bayern back to the peak.

But just as things were looking up, Heynckes suddenly entertained thoughts of retiring, catching the entire Bayern organization off guard.

Bayern Munich knew all too well how crucial a good coach was.

The famous coach Van Gaal they had previously brought in led the team to the worst start in club history, collapsing across the league, cup, and Champions League.

This so enraged the club that they fired him before the season ended and brought back veteran coach Heynckes.

As it turned out, the old coach was a better fit for Bayern.

After Heynckes took over, he not only stopped the decline but led Bayern to the Champions League final.

If not for a bit of bad luck, losing to Chelsea on penalties, the team would have already claimed the Champions League trophy last year.

This season, Bayern's young players had grown further, and the team's tactical system had become more mature.

They were determined to win both the league title and even the Champions League; securing those two major trophies would mark Bayern's return to Europe's elite.

But just as they were brimming with ambition, planning to rebuild the Bayern dynasty, Heynckes decided to retire.

This left the entire Bayern organization at a loss!

Heynckes was born in 1945, and at 67, he was indeed getting on in years.

But Sir Ferguson, four years older and still managing Manchester United, hadn't retired yet—the old coach could surely stick around for a few more years!

Facing club chairman Rummenigge, who had come to persuade him, the old coach shook his head:

"Chairman Rummenigge, thank you for your insistence and your strong support over the years.

But I've already made my decision. You know I'm not someone who enjoys living in the spotlight.

At 68, I feel it's a bit too much for me. If I keep leading the team, I'm afraid this old body of mine won't hold up.

Besides, I want to retire while I can still move around, go home, plant some flowers and grass, and enjoy a pastoral life.

So please, don't try to keep me. I promise you, I'll finish this season in full, and I won't leave the team until after the last game of the season.

During this time, you'll have plenty of opportunity to contact other excellent coaches, listen to their coaching philosophies, and find the most suitable person for Bayern.

Of course, if needed, I can offer you some references and advice."

Heynckes was just giving the club a heads-up so they could prepare in advance.

Otherwise, if he suddenly announced his retirement next year without the club finding a suitable successor, Bayern would surely fall into chaos.

Hearing Heynckes' words, Rummenigge was deeply disappointed.

Good coaches weren't so easy to find!

In today's football world, the best coaches were mostly already taken, and poaching them wouldn't be easy.

Bayern might dominate the Bundesliga, but among the Top Five Leagues, their financial power couldn't compare to those top Giant Clubs.

So, as soon as he heard Heynckes wanted to retire, Rummenigge felt a massive headache.

He even considered bringing back the team's legendary coach Hitzfeld, who was managing the Swiss National Team, but quickly dismissed the idea.

The team's poor results earlier had proven that Hitzfeld's methods were outdated and no longer suited the current squad.

He needed to find a coach with outstanding tactical skills, especially a unique understanding of the latest tactics, particularly Tiki-taka.

"Chairman, there's someone who seems to fit our requirements, and he's currently free, without a job. Why don't we send him an invitation and try to make contact?"

Club manager Uli Hoeneß, upon hearing Rummenigge's needs, immediately thought of someone.

He had also heard a rumor that this person had been in Germany a few months ago, possibly receiving a coaching offer from a Bundesliga team.

If that were true, it meant the guy might be open to coaching in the Bundesliga.

Apart from Dortmund, Bayern feared no one in the Bundesliga, and Dortmund's Klopp wasn't about to pack his bags anytime soon.

So the club inviting that person wouldn't be Dortmund, and as long as it wasn't Dortmund, Bayern was confident they could snatch him away.

"Who?"

Rummenigge asked curiously.

"Former Barcelona head coach, Guardiola!"

"Him?!"

Hearing that name, Rummenigge's eyes lit up at once!

There were plenty of top coaches in today's football world, but only two commanded the biggest spotlight: Guardiola and Mourinho!

Both men were at the absolute peak of the sport in terms of ability and reputation, especially the former.

The possession-based system Guardiola had pioneered had taken the entire football world by storm in recent years, becoming a model for imitation worldwide.

If they could bring him in to coach Bayern Munich and transplant Barcelona's system to Bayern, wouldn't the club take off immediately?

Just thinking about it made it hard for Rummenigge to contain his excitement.

Now there was only one question left: "Will Guardiola agree to our invitation?"

He wasn't very confident—if the man had turned down even Barcelona, could he really accept Bayern's offer?

The competitiveness of the Bundesliga lagged far behind La Liga, and its commercial development wasn't up to par either, so it had never been particularly attractive to top-tier coaches.

"How will we know if we don't try? I heard his foster son plays in the Bundesliga, and that team just happens to be our opponent in next month's Telekom Cup.

I think we can invite him under the pretext of watching the Telekom Cup match. Once he's here, you, as chairman, can meet with him in person and show him our sincerity. Whether it works out or not will depend on the outcome of that face-to-face talk."

Hoeness had clearly done his homework thoroughly, even investigating Lin Quan's relationship with Guardiola and the fact that he played in the Bundesliga well in advance.

Obviously, the idea of inviting Guardiola to coach wasn't a spur-of-the-moment whim but something long planned.

Rummenigge stared at Hoeness for a few seconds, then the two exchanged a knowing smile.

"Leave this to you—don't mess it up!"

Let me address the update issue.

Many readers are urging me to update faster, and I admit I haven't been posting much—only two chapters a day.

Even though I'm not a fast writer, I do have some backlog saved up.

But unfortunately, this is still the new-book period, so I don't dare release too much. I haven't even gotten on the trial promotion yet, and normally that should happen around thirty to forty thousand words. I'm already at eighty thousand, a full week behind schedule.

If I update too much now, I might not finish the recommended promotion slots before hitting the word count for going paid.

So I have to hold onto the backlog and only release a burst when the book goes paid. Please bear with me.

In the meantime, I'll stockpile more chapters and explode with updates at launch—at least ten chapters guaranteed on release day.

Of course, you can also urge me on: every 5,000 starting coins in tips earns an extra chapter, and every 100 monthly votes earns another.

Enough said—I'm off to write. I'll aim to stockpile dozens or even hundreds of chapters!