Taylor's Analysis, Mother Far Greater Than the World Cup

After the team doctor left, Taylor gazed at Li Yufei and spoke slowly:

"Darling, make your own decision. Don't change your mind because of me."

"The national team is tied to your future achievements. I don't understand football, but I do know one thing—the World Cup at the national team level is incredibly important to every footballer."

"I know your goal in football, darling. You want to become the Best Player in football history. I think the World Cup is indispensable for that."

"I have a clear idea of what American football is like. If you play for the United States, darling, you might never see the World Cup in your lifetime."

"I don't want to see you end your career with regrets. That's something I can't bear to witness. It would hurt me, really..."

Hearing Taylor's heartfelt words, Li Yufei fell silent.

He had to admit, his girlfriend was spot on.

If Li Yufei truly played for the U.S. national football team, he'd never touch the World Cup in his life.

Because football is a sport of eleven men. No matter how talented one person is, they can't carry a team to a championship alone.

To be honest, given the state of American football and the strength of its national players, leading them to a title wouldn't be much easier than leading the Chinese National Team to win the World Cup.

On the surface, the United States is a regular at the World Cup, often making it to the knockout stages.

But those in the know understand—in both the 2010 and 2022 World Cups, the U.S. was grouped with England.

Both matches ended in dull draws. Who actually believes that?

In plain terms, the only reason the U.S. made the round of 16 in those two World Cups was because their group included "a former father, now a son."

The mighty British Empire, when facing the shining beacon of the world, the United States, always cowers with heartfelt submission.

Though they talk down and belittle what they see as the nouveau riche of North America, their actions tell a different story—full of concessions.

Even in a competition like the World Cup, England always goes easy on the U.S.

If England hadn't thrown those matches in 2010 and 2022, the U.S. would never have reached the knockout stage.

And even when England let them through, the U.S. reliably bowed out in the first round.

They couldn't beat anyone!

With a national team like that, how could they possibly win the World Cup?

Unless they ran into England, Japan, and South Korea back-to-back in the knockout rounds.

Otherwise, no chance!

But clearly, given the strength of Japan and South Korea, you wouldn't face them after the quarterfinals.

So that theoretical path to victory isn't realistic either!

Still, Li Yufei had to consider the implications. His mother's maiden name was Adams, and his English surname was also Adams.

That meant Li Yufei couldn't freely choose which national team to play for, unlike ordinary players.

"But darling, you know my surname. It's Adams. I'm worried I can't get past my mother on this..."

Li Yufei voiced his concerns to his beloved.

Unexpectedly, Taylor burst into laughter upon hearing his worries:

"Hahaha, darling, you're worrying too much."

"You're afraid Mom won't agree, aren't you?"

Li Yufei didn't see what was so funny about his girlfriend's reaction and nodded in confusion.

"Darling, I can only say you're overthinking it. Setting aside the fact that you were born in the United Kingdom and have British citizenship from birth—there's nothing objectionable about playing for England's national team."

"Take Mom's side—do you really think she cares whether you play for the U.S. national team?"

"Come on, it's just football. Why would the Adams family care about that?"

"Besides, English Football is a niche sport in the United States. You can't become a national icon like Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods."

"Even if your global influence surpasses theirs through football's popularity, it's hard to achieve that on American soil."

"So then, does it really matter which country you play for?"

"Americans care about Olympic men's basketball results, track and field, and swimming—but never football results."

"Look at the U.S. men's national team. No matter what they achieve at the World Cup, the country barely pays attention."

"To put it bluntly, darling, your fame right now is almost entirely in England and Europe. Back in America, hardly anyone knows you..."

At this point, Taylor paused, gave Li Yufei a strange look, and added softly:

"No, that's not quite right either. Quite a few people in America do know you—just in a different capacity."

Hearing this, Li Yufei couldn't help but roll his eyes and picked up the thread, mocking himself:

"They all know me as the boyfriend of the big star, the country pop princess, the Grammy winner Taylor Swift, right?"

Taylor nodded with a smile, putting on a haughty air. "That's right, exactly. In America, the public sees you as Taylor Swift's boyfriend."

"So, how about that, Sister? I've never stopped showing off our love in public, and your name keeps popping up in American entertainment news."

Seeing Taylor's expression that practically screamed 'praise me,' Li Yufei was at a complete loss for words.

But he had to admit, his girlfriend's analysis just now hit the nail on the head.

He'd been measuring this whole thing with the mindset of a Chinese person from his past life, completely overlooking how Americans think and soccer's cold reception in the US.

If the same situation happened in China, it would likely cause an uproar.

But in America, people would probably just treat it as a joke or not pay attention at all.

After all, even though the Chinese National Team is rock bottom, the soccer atmosphere there is still blazing hot.

Over in the US, there's basically no talk about soccer at all.

In fact, even with a genius player like Li Yufei emerging from America, the vast majority of Americans have no clue who he is.

To put it bluntly, even in the distant Eastern Great Nation, more people know Li Yufei as a soccer player than in America!

Under these circumstances, why would Americans care whether Li Yufei plays for England or America?

Of course, for a life-defining decision like this, Li Yufei had to be cautious, cautious, and then cautious again.

"Sister makes a good point, but I need to call Mom and ask. Choosing a National Team is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, so I have to be careful."

Taylor nodded without objection.

Her boyfriend was right—this kind of thing had to be run by their mom. After all, the analysis just now was just personal guesswork; the final say needed an elder's approval.

"Darling, if Mom says no, what will you do?" Taylor asked the question that weighed heaviest on Li Yufei's mind.

Without a second's hesitation, Li Yufei said bluntly, "Then I'll play for the US National Team. I desperately want the World Cup, but if the price is my mother, then I'd rather not have it."

"Mom is one of the people who loves me most in this world. I don't want to let her down."

Faced with this choice, Li Yufei didn't need even a second to think.

The World Cup, no matter how great, is nothing compared to his own mother!

Li Yufei knew full well how much his mother in this life had silently sacrificed behind the scenes.

His father had been able to expand the fortune his grandfather left behind only because his mother had put in so much effort behind the scenes.

Not to mention anything else, his father's business in America had never faced political obstacles.

That was because his mother used the political power of her family to shield it.

Li Yufei had a clear picture of all this, so there was no way he would ever put his mother in a dilemma.