Childhood Dreams

On the plane.

Manchester United staff member Tom was explaining Wolfsburg's situation to Li Luo.

"Wolfsburg's head coach is Dieter Hecking."

"He's different from Van Gaal."

"Hecking's tactics are extremely simple—or rather, streamlined."

Li Luo nodded seriously. Van Gaal's tactical plans and personnel arrangements were so complicated that... after writing them out the night before, he sometimes could not even understand them himself when he woke up the next morning. He had even said he wanted to try thirteen different defensive combinations in the new season, leaving goalkeeper De Gea looking utterly helpless.

Tom thought for a moment, trying to summarize Wolfsburg's style in the simplest terms possible.

"Hecking is very pragmatic. In his first season with Wolfsburg, he came in as a firefighter coach. The moment he took over, he abandoned the complicated system and had the players use a stripped-down 4-4-2, helping the club climb from the relegation zone to eleventh in the league."

"In the second season, the club bought several players according to his requests, and Wolfsburg became a flexible side that bullied the weak and feared the strong—4-3-3 against weaker teams, 4-5-1 against stronger ones."

"In the second half of last season, Tuchel figured out his flexible 4-3-3 system."

"So Hecking went back to a pragmatic 4-5-1."

"Li, do you know why Wolfsburg plays defensive counterattacks, yet in the highlights, they seem to be trading attacks with everyone?"

"I know. Because of De Bruyne. Hecking's tactical core is: get the ball to De Bruyne. De Bruyne guarantees the quality of their transition attacks, which is why Wolfsburg seems to have so many attacking moves in the highlights."

Li Luo was no longer the clueless rookie he had been at the beginning. Over the past few days, he had studied hard, constantly reviewing matches in his mind through the Spatial Awareness module.

By now, he could fully understand what Tom was saying.

Tom did not stop, continuing to explain the traits and preferred feet of Wolfsburg's key players.

After only a few exchanges, he discovered in surprise that Li Luo had already done his homework.

Right after that, the Manchester United assistant pulled a stack of color-printed documents from his folder. "Mr. Van Gaal asked me to go over this with you—the macro-level statistical comparison between the Premier League and the Bundesliga last season..."

The plane pierced through thick clouds and slowly descended at Braunschweig Airport.

Li Luo carefully summarized the information Tom had given him.

"Wolfsburg's main tactical framework this season is a 4-5-1 defensive counterattacking system."

"De Bruyne is the team's core. He has a great deal of freedom, and while his preferred foot is his right, his left-footed technique is equally exquisite."

"In 2014, the pace and intensity of the Bundesliga's top sides were no weaker than the Premier League's."

After getting off the plane, Wolfsburg staff and Volkswagen executives came forward warmly, politely introducing themselves.

Li Luo could not remember so many names all at once, so he maintained a smile throughout.

Camera flashes kept going off.

No one lingered for long. They soon boarded business vehicles and left the airport.

Through the windows, they could still see plenty of supporters in Red Devils and Wolfsburg shirts holding up welcome banners.

Li Luo had no way to respond to them at the moment, so he could only wave in greeting.

The convoy rolled grandly down the empty road.

In the last vehicle, two Wolfsburg staff members sighed with emotion.

"Manchester United brought so many people with them."

"Chefs, fitness coaches, medical staff, assistants... all of them are here to serve Li alone."

"After all, this is the Crown Prince going to war."

"Hecking hesitated for a long time. He told the club and Volkswagen Group that he wanted to observe Li's condition in training before deciding how much playing time to give him."

"There was no way the club and Volkswagen Group would agree to that. Li is a Manchester United prodigy—he scored on his Premier League debut. There's no doubting his ability!"

They arrived at Volkswagen Arena.

German reporters stood ready, their cameras and lenses set up.

Several thousand Wolfsburg fans sat scattered across the stands.

Li Luo put on Wolfsburg's number 10 shirt.

He did a few keepy-uppies.

Cheers immediately erupted around him!

Someone shouted, "Batistuta can't do keepy-uppies, but our Chinese genius can!"

The shout startled Li Luo so badly that he messed up his rainbow flick.

...the football that had lifted off the ground struck him on the butt...

The cheers remained as enthusiastic as ever.

The German reporters and fans at the scene wore kindly smiles, thinking: The super prodigy was so humorous. He was joking with us, lightening the mood.

A moment later.

Accompanied by staff, Li Luo headed to the grand hall.

Hans, the Volkswagen Group representative, leaned in mysteriously. "Li, remember what you need to say... We'll raise your endorsement fee by another two million euros!"

The Chinese teenager nodded earnestly.

He was more than willing to earn money just by saying a few words.

He still had not fully adjusted to it. The money in his bank account felt like a dream...

Amid gentle applause.

The Manchester United prodigy walked into the grand hall and took a seat in the chair at the center of the stage. The huge backdrop behind him was covered in sponsor logos.

Everyone below the stage looked full of anticipation.

After slightly adjusting the microphone, Li Luo said with a serious expression, "I didn't come to the Bundesliga on loan for a vacation. I want to win a championship for Volkswagen Group's Wolfsburg. Since I was very young, Wolfsburg's matches and Volkswagen Group's emblem have left a deep impression on me."

With the added words "Volkswagen Group," the two million euros were in the bag.

Hans beamed as he clapped excitedly. All of China... and many countries across Asia would see Li Luo's remarks. What an incredible ad placement!

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The Wolfsburg reporters and fan representatives were deeply moved. To their ears, Li Luo's words had become: "Ever since I was a child, I dreamed of winning a championship for Wolfsburg."

Thunderous applause erupted through the grand hall and continued for a long while.

CCTV-5 broadcast the entire loan signing ceremony live.

Comment section.

-[I've never seen a loan ceremony this grand.]

-[Wolfsburg even gave Li Luo the number 10 shirt. You can tell the club values him greatly.]

-[Why do I feel like Wolfsburg's fighting strength... is a little stronger than Manchester United's now? But there are so many strong Bundesliga teams. Bayern Munich is an insurmountable mountain.]

-[It's already a good thing for a Chinese player to play in one of the top five leagues. He can grow gradually.]

-[I hope Manchester United spends its money where it counts next season. Once the Crown Prince returns, they'll have a top-tier squad.]

-[If Li Luo gets bullied at Wolfsburg, we'll boycott Volkswagen.]

-[Li Luo is 173 cm tall. There won't be a female co-star when he films Volkswagen ads, right? Most European actresses and models are taller than him.]

-[Yeah, at that height, he'll probably have trouble finding a girlfriend over there.]

Night fell.

Li Luo moved into the house arranged by Volkswagen Group.

The house was very close to the training base.

The yard was spacious and had a small football pitch.

The surrounding landscaping was nice as well.

Tom said, "We'll be living next door. If anything comes up, you can call... or just shout, and I'll come right over."

"Alright."

After saying goodbye to everyone.

Li Luo had no mood to look around the interior. He found a well-ventilated room, quickly opened his laptop, and began watching Wolfsburg footage.

The Spatial Awareness module in his mind swiftly generated countless geometric patterns.

Two days later.

He would report to Wolfsburg's first team and begin training.

<Rakitic Teaches You How to Handle Locker Room Relationships>:

When you join a team, don't try to become friends with everyone. Remember, you are colleagues. Playing smooth combinations with your teammates on the pitch is part of the job.

If you do your job poorly, then even if all your teammates are your biological brothers and the head coach is your father, it will be useless.