Continued Attention

The next morning, Chen Anno met his agent, Wagner. Seeing the travel-worn look on his face, along with the pair of dark circles under his eyes, he knew the guy must have flown over from Brazil overnight.

However, this time, Wagner had not come alone. With him was Sao Paulo's sporting director, Sergio Suarez.

"Haha... Anno, I watched yesterday's match live. Your performance was truly fantastic!" Suarez said with a happy laugh the moment they met.

"Thank you for the praise, Mr. Suarez." Chen Anno greeted both of them, then looked at Wagner. "Do you... want to rest for a day? Or should we wait until after tomorrow's final?"

Wagner waved a hand. "No need to rest. Before your match even ended yesterday, Bayern had already arranged a time with us, so we can head straight over."

Chen Anno nodded when he heard that. Then he looked at Suarez beside him again, somewhat puzzled. He had not even decided whether to transfer to Bayern yet, so why had the club's sporting director come over already?

As if he had seen through Chen Anno's confusion, Suarez smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Heh... I'm just preparing for every possibility. If you really do reach an agreement, I'd have to make a special trip anyway. Besides, this is a rare chance for a publicly funded vacation."

Wagner, standing beside them, curled his lip when he heard that. If he was worried, then he was worried. Why drag publicly funded vacations into it?

But honest Chen Anno actually believed him.

"Are you sure you don't need to rest?" Chen Anno asked Wagner again. "We really don't need to be in such a hurry. After all, the team will be staying here for almost another week."

Wagner shook his head. "It's not that I'm in a hurry. The main thing is that we already agreed on a time with Bayern. Those guys are even more anxious than I am, like they're afraid some other club will snatch you away."

Säbener Straße 51–57, the location of Bayern Munich's headquarters.

It was in the Harlaching District on the outskirts of Munich, covered a total area of 70,000 square meters, and was also where Bayern's training base was located.

Chen Anno and Wagner arrived there in the special car Bayern had arranged. Led by staff, they made their way to the office of sporting director Sammer.

"Anno, Mr. Ribery, welcome to Bayern." The moment they entered, Sammer's face filled with a smile.

After the greetings, Sammer looked at Chen Anno. "Anno, your performance yesterday amazed all of us."

"Thank you, Mr. Sammer."

In yesterday's match, the Sao Paulo side represented by Chen Anno had eliminated Bayern, but Sammer did not seem to take it to heart.

After inviting the two of them to sit, Sammer spoke again. "Anno, Bayern is one of the best clubs in the world. We not only have the best facilities and team in the world, but also the best players and head coach. If you can come to Bayern, I believe you'll develop even better. In the future, even competing for the Ballon d'Or would be a very real possibility."

Chen Anno nodded. "Thank you for your recognition, Mr. Sammer. Bayern is a great team, and everyone understands that deeply. But... I want to know, if I come here, can I be guaranteed playing time?"

Sammer had long been prepared for Chen Anno's question. He looked at Chen Anno seriously, his tone sincere.

"I can understand your thinking, Anno. I can't give you a clear guarantee, but we can promise you this: as long as you perform well enough to convince the head coach, Pep will absolutely give you enough opportunities.

"You know, Pep is a head coach who is good at discovering and developing young players. Messi back then is one example."

Of course Chen Anno understood as well. At a club like Bayern, for a newcomer like him to get playing opportunities, he would have to prove himself through strength and time, and fight for them.

As for mentioning Messi at the end, the meaning was obvious. Messi had walked this path step by step back then too. It was a kind of goad.

If it were some other young player, hearing those words might really have drawn him in. After all, Bayern's appeal and influence were right there.

Of course, Chen Anno also had that confidence. He was also certain he could stand out in the competition at Bayern.

But he could not control how long that would take. After all, Guardiola had only just taken over the team. It was impossible for him to take a risk and use a newcomer like him right from the start.

So how long would he need before he could fight his way into the starting lineup, or at least get enough playing time? Half a year? A year?

Chen Anno did not want to gamble, because his goal was next year's World Cup. Without enough playing time, there would be no chance to perform. And without a chance to show himself, how could he win the approval of Brazil's head coach?

So Chen Anno shook his head. "Thank you again for your and Bayern's recognition of me, but I really need stable playing time."

Sammer frowned. He could not quite understand it. Chen Anno had only just turned seventeen, so why was he so fixated on playing time?

"Anno, as a world-class club, Bayern naturally has fierce internal competition. Every player needs to fight for playing time on his own. That is fair to every player.

"If... you're afraid even of this kind of healthy competition, then how will you become a world-class star in the future?

"Mm... Also, don't you want to hear what salary we're offering you?"

There was still a hint of stubbornness on Chen Anno's face. "Mr. Sammer, I am absolutely not afraid of any healthy competition, and I fully understand your thinking.

"As for salary, to be honest, I really haven't thought about it. After all, I'm still young.

"I'll be frank with you. I want to use my performances in matches to make it to next year's World Cup. If I can't get chances to play here, then I might as well stay at Sao Paulo. At the very least, I'm an undisputed starter there, aren't I?"

After Chen Anno finished speaking, Sammer finally understood. He finally knew why this kid was so fixated on playing time. So that was the reason.

He carefully sized up the stubborn young man in front of him again, and instead felt a little admiration.

Even Wagner, standing to the side, was somewhat surprised. This was also the first time he had learned why Chen Anno was so insistent on playing time.

Admiration was admiration, but Bayern was a professional football club. It was impossible for them to change because of one player.

So, for the time being, the two sides did not reach an agreement.

When they left Bayern, Sammer patted Chen Anno on the shoulder. "Anno, I hope that at next year's World Cup, I can see you on Brazil's squad list. Bayern Munich's doors are always open to you. As long as you're willing to come, you can contact me at any time."

At this point, Sammer actually knew clearly in his heart that Chen Anno probably would not leave Sao Paulo for the time being.

After all, at seventeen years old, Chen Anno could not possibly find a club in Europe that could promise him enough playing time.

Next, what Bayern needed to do was wait for an opportunity, then bring Chen Anno to Bayern in next summer's transfer window.

Of course, the prerequisite was that Chen Anno had to maintain such stable performances after returning to Sao Paulo for the coming year.

"Mm... I need to make a call to Brazil. We'll have to keep tracking this kid's development."