Every year at the end of August, Monaco's Grimaldi Forum became the focus of football fans around the world.
The annual Champions League Group Stage draw ceremony was held there, along with the UEFA annual awards ceremony.
For the past few years, Yang Yang had always been the star of the Grimaldi Forum, and this year was no exception.
With that long solo run that had defeated Atletico Madrid two days earlier, Yang Yang had completely conquered European Football's notoriously demanding audience, earning praise from everyone. As a result, when he appeared at the Grimaldi Forum, not only did the fans outside chant his name, but the football figures inside the conference center discussed him as well.
Those who knew him came over to greet him, while those who were unfamiliar with him offered distant greetings and nods.
With his glorious achievements over the past few years, Yang Yang had long since earned a special status in European Football.
Of course, some extreme fans would still view him through the lens of racial prejudice, but they were not the mainstream. Most fans and football figures still admired the strong.
That was the reality of professional football: the strong were king!
However, Yang Yang was definitely out of the running for this year's European Player of the Year award. In last season's Champions League Final, Barcelona had defeated Bayern Munich 2–1 with Messi's Brace, finally lifting the Champions League trophy after years of waiting.
It was the first Champions League title of Messi's career, so the Argentine was especially excited and thrilled.
It was easy to predict that he would be the star of the night.
UEFA had been worried that Yang Yang might be absent, and Platini had even called Yang Yang privately. To his surprise, Yang Yang had laughingly