Chapter Summaries

Su Dong weighed his transfer options while training in China, uncertain whether he would remain at Valencia or join another club. The chapter ended with news that Benítez would leave Valencia when his contract expired in June, shocking Su Dong.

• Su Dong returned to his parents’ new home in China and endured their elaborate decorating while enjoying their family life and cooking.
• Su Dong considered Real Madrid, Barcelona, Chelsea, Manchester United, and staying at Valencia, weighing each club’s fit and uncertainty over his role.
• Su Dong joined Valencia’s Double Crown celebration, then returned to China and trained with Nuno Cruz, Vito Scala, and Grant Downing while awaiting transfer news.
• Su Dong learned that Benítez had announced he would not renew his Valencia contract and would leave when it expired in June.

Benítez left Valencia for Liverpool, while Yesterdan advised Su Dong to prioritize joining a powerhouse that could advance his career and raise his profile. Real Madrid and Barcelona intensified their pursuit of Su Dong, but Valencia remained unwilling to sell and the transfer battle continued.

• Benítez informed Su Dong that he was leaving Valencia for Liverpool, and Yesterdan explained that Benítez had long wanted a new challenge.
• Yesterdan told Su Dong that Liverpool could not afford his high transfer fee and urged him to choose a club where he could play regularly and gain recognition.
• Su Dong considered which clubs could best support his ambitions and weighed the competition for the 2004 Ballon d'Or and World Footballer of the Year awards.
• Real Madrid signed Gravesen, Samuel, and Woodgate, then pursued Su Dong, but Valencia rejected even Florentino's proposed eighty million euros and prepared Michael Owen as an alternative.
• Barcelona signed Deco and Edmílson and continued pursuing Su Dong as Laporta sought to strengthen the club and reduce Rosell's influence.
• Valencia general manager Subirats stated that the club had reached no transfer agreement, while Su Dong retained final approval over any move and a share of the transfer fee.

Laporta moved to secure Su Dong’s transfer from Valencia, hoping the Chinese star would strengthen Barcelona and revive interest in its Asian tour. Su Dong remained cautious about the move and asked Mendes to request that Barcelona promote Leo Messi to the First Team.

• Sara Martin told Laporta that Barcelona’s Asian tour was drawing little interest and that Valencia wanted a record-breaking fee for Su Dong.
• Laporta agreed to renew Ronaldinho’s contract and instructed the club to raise money, restructure wages, and pursue Su Dong before the Asian tour.
• Mendes told Su Dong that Laporta planned to meet him and that Valencia had agreed to negotiate a transfer likely to exceed Zidane’s fee.
• Su Dong asked Mendes to arrange calls with Rijkaard and Ronaldinho before he committed to Barcelona.
• Su Dong asked Mendes to tell Laporta to promote Leo Messi from the Youth Team to the First Team.

Messi felt isolated and frustrated by his stalled progress at Barcelona, his friends’ departures, and a humiliating experience with a psychologist. Su Dong called from China to say he would arrive in Barcelona the next day, giving Messi something to look forward to.

• Messi worried that Barcelona would not promote him to the First Team despite his strong performances and improved strength.
• Messi stormed out of a psychology session after discovering students were observing and discussing him, then faced criticism from Colomer and his parents.
• Messi’s mother answered a call from Su Dong, and Messi rushed to speak with him.
• Su Dong told Messi he would arrive in Barcelona the next day and asked him to meet him at the airport.
• Messi confirmed the reports that Su Dong planned to join Barcelona, and Su Dong promised him a good-luck gift.

Su Dong reunited with Messi in Barcelona and gave him the news that he could train with the First Team and earn chances to play. The chapter left Messi determined to seize the opportunity, while Su Dong and Messi continued exploring the city together.

• Messi and his father, Jorge, picked up Su Dong at Barcelona Airport and drove him around the city, where Messi discussed the new Sports City and nearby housing.
• At Cuarteto, Su Dong gave Messi a Chinese knot and revealed that Rijkaard had agreed to let him train with the First Team and consider him for matches.
• Su Dong offered to help Messi improve his physical condition with support from Nuno Cruz and Vitor Scala, and Messi vowed to earn a place in the First Team.
• Jorge thanked Su Dong profusely and treated him as an honored guest before Su Dong suggested that Jorge leave them to explore Barcelona alone.
• After Jorge left, Su Dong repeatedly rubbed Messi's head while the two friends wandered around together.

Barcelona completed Su Dong’s record-breaking transfer from Valencia for eighty million euros, setting off a wave of major moves and worldwide attention. The chapter ended with questions over whether Su Dong could thrive under the pressure as Barcelona and Real Madrid prepared to battle for La Liga.

• Diario AS and Mundo Deportivo reported that Barcelona had agreed to sign Su Dong from Valencia for a record eighty million euros, with Su Dong set to wear number nine.
• Mundo Deportivo revealed that Nike had helped steer Su Dong toward Barcelona and that sponsor Audi had secured limited rights to use his image in team promotions.
• After missing out on Su Dong, Real Madrid signed Michael Owen from Liverpool, while Manchester United bought Wayne Rooney from Everton for forty-four million euros.
• Spanish legend Luis Suárez argued that Su Dong was worth at least one hundred million euros and urged Barcelona fans to give him time to adapt.
• Barcelona offered Su Dong the same five-million-euro after-tax salary as Ronaldinho, while Valencia planned to use the initial transfer payment to recruit players for Ranieri.
• Media outlets predicted a title race between Barcelona and Real Madrid and questioned whether Su Dong could handle the pressure of his record transfer fee.

Su Dong watched Portugal lose the European Cup final and comforted Rony, who blamed himself for the defeat. Later, the friends gathered at Pepe’s home, where they discovered Pepe and Messi both had girls they liked, leaving Su Dong lamenting his own single status.

• Greece beat Portugal in a penalty shootout after the final ended 1–1, and Rony cried over his missed chances.
• Su Dong reassured Rony that he had done his best, then joked that Jose Semedo could advise him about pursuing girls.
• Su Dong, Rony, Pepe, Jose Semedo, and Messi went to Pepe’s home and reflected on how much their lives had changed.
• Rony and Jose Semedo teased Pepe until he admitted he had a secret crush on a girl.
• Su Dong advised Messi to be brave about love, and Messi bashfully admitted he already had a girl he liked.
• Su Dong realized that he was the only one without a romantic prospect and complained about being single.

Su Dong officially joined Barcelona, met his new teammates, and confidently described how he would lead the attack. The chapter ended with Barcelona fans welcoming him and hoping he and Ronaldinho would help the club rise again.

• Su Dong completed his medical examination, signed with Barcelona, and posed in the number nine jersey at Camp Nou.
• Rijkaard, Puyol, and Xavi met Su Dong, and Ronaldinho arrived from Brazil to welcome him as a friend and discuss playing together.
• Su Dong and Ronaldinho discussed housing and agreed to play football together, while Su Dong thought of having Messi challenge Ronaldinho on a small pitch.
• At his press conference, Su Dong praised Barcelona's players and said he would take responsibility for scoring in the penalty area.
• Barcelona fans sang a song they had written for Su Dong as he left Camp Nou, expressing their hopes for him and Ronaldinho to revive the club.

Su Dong settled into Barcelona by buying a secluded villa and arranging a private training program for Messi. At Barcelona’s Peralada training camp, he kept up his extra workouts while Ronaldinho’s Brazilian F4 shaped the lively team atmosphere and the squad elected its captains.

• Su Dong rejected Ronaldinho’s neighboring mansion and bought a villa in Castelldefels, where his private coaching staff established an office.
• Su Dong arranged a customized physical-strengthening program for Messi, who promised to help him score when he reached the First Team.
• Barcelona began its summer training camp in Peralada, where Su Dong continued training after regular sessions while Messi joined him.
• Ronaldinho brought Deco, Silvinho, Belletti, and Tiago Motta together as Barcelona’s Brazilian F4, enlivening the team’s training camp and social life.
• Barcelona unanimously re-elected Puyol as captain, then Rijkaard broke a tie between Ronaldinho and Xavi by naming Ronaldinho vice captain and Xavi third captain.

Barcelona completed three preseason warm-up matches without using Su Dong, while Rijkaard developed attacking patterns around him and Ronaldinho in training. The team then prepared to leave for an Asian tour intended to grow the club’s commercial reach, with Su Dong positioned as its leading star.

• Barcelona drew 1–1 with Banyoles and then beat Figueres 2–1, while Su Dong, Deco, and Giuly remained unused.
• Barcelona drew its third warm-up match 1–1, and Su Dong judged that Messi’s fragile physique limited his performances.
• Rijkaard encouraged Su Dong to hold the ball and carry it into dangerous areas, and Su Dong built attacking combinations with Ronaldinho, Deco, and Giuly in training.
• Su Dong impressed Barcelona’s players in training, where his presence as a powerful center forward created space and helped organize the attack.
• Barcelona returned from Peralada and selected twenty-two players for its Asian tour, leaving out Messi and several others.
• Barcelona executives emphasized the tour’s commercial importance, and Sara Martin said Su Dong would lead the club’s effort to attract Asian fans and sponsors.

Su Dong arrived in Korea with Barcelona to an enormous welcome from Korean fans and announced that he would play against Suwon Samsung. After Korean players challenged him and the press asked about China's fear of Korea, Su Dong vowed to score and break through their defense in the friendly.

• Su Dong and Barcelona arrived at Incheon Airport, where thousands of mostly female fans and more than a hundred media outlets greeted them.
• Deco and Ronaldinho teased Su Dong about his popularity, and Su Dong told his teammates they should show Korea Barcelona's full strength.
• Su Dong attended a sponsor event, praised his Barcelona teammates, and confirmed he would play against Suwon Samsung the next day.
• After Lee Woon-jae and Park Gun-ha said they would stop him, Su Dong said he respected them but would break through their defense and score.
• Su Dong rejected the idea that he feared Korea and promised to shatter the so-called fear of Korea in the match.
• Korean and Chinese media and fans reacted strongly to Su Dong's remarks, while sponsors praised the attention they brought to Barcelona's Asian tour.

Su Dong scored a hat-trick as Barcelona overwhelmed Suwon Samsung 6–1 in a friendly, silencing the home crowd after an even opening spell. His performance won over Korean players, media, and fans before Barcelona departed for Japan.

• Suwon Samsung pressed Barcelona early, but Barcelona's patient passing wore down the home side.
• Ronaldinho assisted Su Dong's opening goal in the thirty-second minute, and Su Dong scored again four minutes later from Giuly's cross.
• Ronaldinho set up Giuly's goal before halftime, giving Barcelona a 3–0 lead.
• Su Dong asked Rijkaard to keep him on so he could pursue a hat-trick, and Barcelona continued attacking after making four halftime substitutions.
• Iniesta combined with Su Dong in the seventy-fourth minute, and Su Dong scored his third goal to make it 5–0.
• Iniesta added another goal and Suwon Samsung scored late in Barcelona's 6–1 win, after which Korean players and fans praised Su Dong as Barcelona left for Japan.

Barcelona completed its Asian tour with three wins, while Su Dong’s goals and popularity in Japan made him a major sporting and commercial success. The chapter ended with European media praising Barcelona’s signing and Manchester United’s David Gill admitting his club had missed a valuable opportunity.

• After Valencia lost 5–2 to Albirex Niigata, David Silva told Su Dong that his former teammates missed him, and Su Dong regretted Valencia’s struggles despite believing he had made the right choice to leave.
• Barcelona beat Kashima Antlers 6–0, with Su Dong and Giuly scoring braces and Su Dong setting up both of Messi’s goals.
• Barcelona defeated Júbilo Iwata 3–0, as Su Dong scored twice and Ronaldinho assisted Luis Garcia’s goal.
• Mendes negotiated three Japanese endorsement deals for Su Dong, increasing his annual income by more than ten million euros.
• European media praised Su Dong’s impact, while David Gill said Manchester United had hesitated in the transfer market and missed a chance to compete commercially with Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Su Dong returned to China with Barcelona amid intense scrutiny over his absence from the national team, and he explained publicly that no one had ever invited or consulted him. Against Shanghai United, he scored four goals and assisted another before being substituted, leaving the story with Barcelona on course for a 6–0 victory.

• Su Dong met the fans at the Shanghai airport and told them the national team had never contacted him, though he wanted to represent China and sought an apology.
• Su Dong attended a youth training camp and commercial events before joining Barcelona's recovery training in Shanghai.
• General Fan urged Su Dong to give his all against Shanghai United, and Su Dong decided to show his full ability.
• Su Dong scored twice in the opening thirteen minutes, then assisted Ronaldinho's goal to put Barcelona ahead 3–0.
• Su Dong scored twice more by the thirtieth minute to complete four goals and an assist, then Rijkaard substituted him for Messi.
• Luis Garcia scored in the second half as Barcelona defeated Shanghai United 6–0.

Su Dong’s Asian-tour performances drew acclaim and boosted Barcelona’s commercial profile, while the club continued preparing for the new season. Barcelona won its preseason trophies, but its defensive shortcomings and thin squad left it trailing Real Madrid in bookmakers’ title predictions.

• After Su Dong scored four goals and assisted another against Shanghai City, General Fan and others praised him and renewed calls for his selection to China’s national team.
• Barcelona traveled to the United Kingdom, where Iniesta scored the winner against Parma and new striker Larsson joined the squad.
• Deloitte ranked Barcelona third among football’s most commercially attractive clubs, crediting Su Dong’s appeal in Asia and saying the club’s potential depended on his success.
• Barcelona won the Catalonia Cup and Gamper Trophy; Su Dong assisted Giuly and Iniesta against AC Milan before Barcelona secured a two-one victory.
• Rijkaard prepared to rely on an attacking 4-3-3 despite problems at center back and a shallow squad, while Real Madrid’s signings made it the bookmakers’ favorite for La Liga.

Barcelona opened their league season away to Racing Santander, with Su Dong leading the attack in Ronaldinho’s absence. After an early save denied Su Dong, Barcelona settled into the match and began to control the game.

• Rijkaard and Ten Cate anxiously waited for Barcelona’s season opener at Sardine Stadium, where the visiting coaches had to sit in deck chairs because of the sunken technical area.
• Su Dong reassured the nervous Iniesta, telling him to pass the ball whenever he was unsure and promising to explain how he buried his fear if Iniesta gave him an assist.
• In the seventh minute, Iniesta beat two defenders and passed into the box, where Su Dong shoved aside Casa and forced Avat to tip his powerful shot behind for a corner.
• Su Dong praised Iniesta for the pass, helping him grow more confident as Barcelona’s players steadied themselves.
• A minute later, Su Dong laid the ball off for Deco, whose long-range shot narrowly missed as Barcelona began to control possession and push Racing Santander back.

Su Dong scored twice in Barcelona’s 4–0 opening-match victory over Racing Santander, with Giuly and Deco also scoring. As praise for Barcelona’s performance spread, Cruyff published a column criticizing several new signings.

• Su Dong scored his first Barcelona goal in the seventeenth minute after combining with Iniesta and beating defenders with a series of chips and a powerful shot.
• Su Dong scored again four minutes later, finishing Giuly’s cross to put Barcelona two goals ahead.
• At halftime, Su Dong joked that Giuly was missing chances because he was too ugly, making the dressing room laugh.
• Su Dong headed the ball back for Giuly to score in the sixty-second minute, and Deco later scored Barcelona’s fourth goal.
• Barcelona defeated Racing Santander 4–0 away, and the media praised Su Dong’s two goals and assist as well as the team’s attacking play.
• While Barcelona received widespread praise, Cruyff published a column in Vanguard Newspaper criticizing several of the club’s new signings.

Su Dong and Messi trained during Barcelona’s break while Cruyff’s criticism of the club’s Brazilian players triggered a public dispute over the dressing room. Su Dong avoided taking sides and focused on keeping his place in the team through his performances.

• Su Dong invited Messi to live with him once his villa renovation was finished, and Messi and Jorge agreed.
• Su Dong discussed Cruyff’s criticism of Barcelona’s Brazilian contingent with Messi and urged him to focus on football.
• Su Dong, Messi, and Iniesta joined Nuno Cruz for extra training at Barcelona’s Sports City.
• Rijkaard, Deco, Belletti, and Laporta responded to Cruyff’s remarks as Barcelona’s management tried to calm the dispute.
• The media alleged that the Brazilian signings were part of a power struggle between Rosell and Laporta, and claimed Su Dong’s awards campaign could be used against Ronaldinho’s faction.
• Su Dong declined interviews about the dispute and resolved to stay focused on training and matches.

Su Dong attended UEFA’s awards ceremony and Champions League draw in Monaco, where he received the Season’s Best Forward Award. Barcelona drew Juventus, Ajax, and Donetsk Miner, while the ceremony’s final Most Valuable Player award remained undecided.

• Su Dong traveled to Monaco with Cañizares, David Silva, and Messi, where he met Deco, Carvalho, and Rehhagel.
• Su Dong joked with Carvalho about drawing Chelsea and told him to pass along a challenge to Drogba; Deco explained that Ibrahimovic had also publicly challenged Su Dong.
• Su Dong and Deco discussed Barcelona’s difficult Champions League draw, and Barcelona was placed in a group with Juventus, Ajax, and Donetsk Miner.
• Su Dong received the Season’s Best Forward Award from Prince Albert.
• The ceremony’s Most Valuable Player award came down to Su Dong and Deco, with the winner expected to become a leading contender for the European Golden Ball and World Footballer of the Year.

Su Dong won UEFA Season’s Best Player, while Messi and David Silva watched with admiration and mixed emotions. As Barcelona celebrated his achievement, Ronaldinho’s injury and the absence of several Brazilian internationals left the club short-handed before its home match against Sevilla.

• Platini announced Su Dong as Season’s Best Player, and Su Dong accepted the trophy amid a standing ovation.
• Messi and David Silva watched Su Dong receive the award, and David Silva resolved to work toward playing beside him again.
• Su Dong told Messi, David Silva, and Cañizares that winning the trophy left him feeling unexpectedly empty, then invited them to dinner.
• News of Su Dong’s victory spread worldwide, while debate continued over whether he, Deco, Shevchenko, or other stars would win the Ballon d’Or and World Footballer of the Year awards.
• Ronaldinho suffered another injury after playing two full matches for Brazil, prompting Barcelona officials and Rijkaard to protest the national team’s use of its players.
• Barcelona prepared to host Sevilla without Ronaldinho and with Brazilian internationals Edmílson and Belletti unlikely to return in time.