◎[35 hours, 17 minutes, 45 seconds!]◎
After the call with Sir Alex Ferguson ended, Tang Moumou was still immersed in excitement.
But the phone still had to be returned.
When he handed the phone back to the CEO, he saw Gill smiling at him.
That knowing smile made Tang Moumou blush slightly; it seemed he had been too obvious just now.
“You really like Fergie?” the CEO asked, knowing full well the answer.
This young man from the distant East clearly liked Modrić so much, yet the moment he realized Ferguson might favor other players, his first consideration was Ferguson’s needs rather than his own preferences.
If this wasn’t respect, what was?
Tang Moumou said decisively, “Yes. Since I started liking Manchester United, Sir Alex has always been the manager of this team. To me, he is Manchester United, and Manchester United is him.”
Wow!
If this weren’t their first meeting, the CEO would have whistled, but he couldn’t help teasing, “Tang, you’re far too shy. I mean, if I were you, I would definitely say those words to Fergie.”
Say them to Sir Alex?
In the past, how could Tang Moumou have said such sentimental things to the man himself?
If he could have done that, he wouldn’t have been a “single dog” for so long.
But with only 35 hours left in his life, what was there left that couldn’t be said?
He said cheerfully, “When I see Sir Alex, I will definitely tell him that.”
“Fergie will be here soon. Let me take you on a tour of Old Trafford,” Gill said, winking at him. “I believe you must have visited this stadium countless times before, but trust me, this time is different. Because you are inspecting the team that belongs to you.”
The team that belongs to me…
Tang Moumou’s heart fluttered at those alluring words.
However, he still corrected him: “This is a team that belongs to all Manchester United fans.”
It belonged to all the fans, and it also belonged to him.
Because he was one of them.
The CEO hadn’t expected him to keep the fans in mind even when it was just the two of them talking.
This made the CEO wonder: just how much of this mysterious youth’s words were sincere?
Whatever the answer, it didn’t affect their next move.
Tang had become the actual controller of the club; that much would not change.
Gill personally led Tang Moumou on a tour of Old Trafford.
Tang Moumou had indeed been to Old Trafford before, but back then, he was there on a “pilgrimage.”
And now?
Between the lines, the CEO was reminding him—
This is the Theater of Dreams, but it is also your asset.
What Manchester United fan could withstand such a temptation?
Even the most beautiful dream wouldn’t dare to imagine such a scene.
This forced Tang Moumou to look at the Life Timer.
Was it worth it?
Currently, he couldn’t give an answer, but he was even less willing to spend his remaining life on regret.
So, he proactively brought up a topic: “Does Sir Alex have any ideas regarding new signings?”
Although in a sense he was a “reborn” individual who knew this period of “history,” as a veteran fan, he knew one thing very clearly—
Sometimes a team buys a player, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the player was their first choice.
For the same position, scouts might provide a list of several players to the manager.
And it was common in the football world for a manager to favor a specific player but spend an entire summer failing to bring him to his team.
Some players might even disappear suddenly after entering the medical room.
Therefore, in the football world, fans believe nothing until the official announcement.
Because of this, Tang Moumou, despite knowing “history,” wanted to know which players Sir Alex actually favored this summer.
As the CEO of Manchester United, Gill, who was fully responsible for the club’s transfer matters, naturally knew the inside story.
Gill certainly wouldn’t hide anything from his deep-pocketed new Boss.
“The season has just ended, and summer has only just arrived. Fergie and I haven’t had an in-depth conversation about a specific list yet, but we’ve discussed the direction.”
As Gill spoke, he noticed the young chairman adopt a posture of attentive listening.
The CEO saw a thick sense of curiosity in his eyes; clearly, their new chairman couldn’t wait to get involved in transfers.
And transfers were indeed the topic fans were most interested in and felt most involved with.
Gill decided to give a more detailed introduction: “In that summer you know of, we lost both Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez.” After that, Fergie was actually troubled by the front line. This season, we lost the Premier League title because our goal difference wasn’t high enough, so signing a forward is definitely a top priority. But I haven’t heard him mention any suitable candidates.”
A forward? That was easy.
Any Manchester United fan knew whose “thigh” the team relied on to eventually win the league title this season.
So, Tang Moumou immediately said the name: “Arsenal’s Robin van Persie—isn’t he entering his final contract year?”
Gill’s heart stirred.
Although he was the esteemed CEO of Manchester United, in front of the chairman, he was just an employee.
For an employee, understanding the boss’s intentions was crucial.
Although the boss seemed to mention it casually, even a detail like “entering his final contract year” had been pointed out. How could he not understand?
“Robin van Persie is a good forward,” Gill first acknowledged the chairman’s eye for talent, “but buying a player from Wenger’s hands won’t be easy.”
Especially when you’ve announced to the world that there’s no cap on the transfer budget this season.
But there was no need to voice any complaints about the boss.
Tang Moumou smiled and said, “Our first consideration is Sir Alex. As long as he likes the player, the price doesn’t matter.”
That phrase again.
Gill didn’t know whether to envy his old friend or feel sorry for him—
If, if this young boss had appeared two years earlier, when Fergie led the team to three Champions League finals in four years, how could they have only come away with one trophy?
But instead of dwelling on that, it was better to think about how to make the young chairman feel comfortable opening his wallet.
With a target in mind, Gill picked up the conversation again.
“Regarding the midfield… you must have watched this season’s matches?”
Tang Moumou nodded silently.
How could he not have watched?
The midfield was also what he wanted to talk about most, so he voiced a few observations: “If Paul Scholes hadn’t returned to the team mid-season, we wouldn’t have been able to make that late push and remain in the title race until the very last moment. But we can’t always rely on Paul. After all, he’s already 37, and next season he’ll be 38. My hope that the team signs Modrić is partly for this reason. In fact, I have a few other players I’d like to recommend. However, I neither want to be a chairman like Massimo Moratti nor like Abramovich, interfering in the team’s operations as a layman.”
Having said this, Tang Moumou looked at the CEO.
Do you understand what I mean?
Although the words were subtle, how could Gill, as an employee, pretend not to understand?
So, he considerately took the initiative to ask, “There are only so many outstanding players in the big five leagues. The players you like, such as Modrić, are already on Manchester United’s scouting radar. So why not mention the other candidates? We will consider and evaluate them, then seek Fergie’s opinion.”
Tang Moumou had gone the long way around just for this moment.
He immediately said, “Chelsea’s academy product De Bruyne, Bayern’s Schweinsteiger, and Athletic Bilbao’s Javi Martínez can all be considered. And there’s Kanté—he’s a young French player, also a defensive midfielder. He plays very well; I think his future achievements could rival Makélélé’s.”
De Bruyne.
Schweinsteiger.
Javi Martínez.
Kanté…
Who were they? Gill was a bit dazed.
It wasn’t that he didn’t know football, but out of those four, he had only heard of Schweinsteiger.
Tang Moumou had been watching the CEO’s expression, and seeing this, he feigned embarrassment: “Um… I’m a loyal player of FM. But after noticing them, I went to watch their games and assessed their performances.”
Gill: “…”
He understood.
The so-called “FM” referred to the game Football Manager.
It was a game that allowed players to act as the head coach of a football club. Through this game, players could lead and direct matches, set tactics and training, and even handle transfers to bring their favorite players to their beloved club.
The game’s biggest highlight was its massive database, covering detailed data on nearly thousands of clubs and tens of thousands of players worldwide, updated regularly every year.
Because the game’s database was so impressive, even some smaller teams would use FM data to scout or even buy young players.
After all, buying and developing “wonderkids” was the greatest joy for an FM player.
As the Manchester United CEO and a football professional, Gill had naturally heard many “legends” related to FM.
But he never imagined that his own new boss, who was wealthy enough to toss around 5 billion euros, would actually play this game in real life…
Look, he bought Manchester United.
Look, before buying Manchester United, he went to scout wonderkids based on a game database…
Look, now he wants to bring the wonderkids he scouted to Manchester United.
The CEO’s first reaction, of course, was to refuse.
If that Scottish red-nose (Ferguson) knew his boss wanted to bring players he focused on in a game to Manchester United, he would go crazy, perhaps even giving him the “hairdryer treatment.”
Reason reminded Gill—
This is the boss.
And… the boss’s favorite is Modrić, whom he had heard Rio Ferdinand and Fergie discussing a few days ago.
If Fergie really liked Modrić and they brought Modrić to Manchester United, that would be enough to satisfy the young boss. Why bother refusing him now?
After a brief calculation, Gill took out his phone, tapped a few times in his notes, and even double-checked the names with Tang Moumou.
Afterward, Gill said, “I’ll send their information to the scouting department now, along with Robin van Persie.”
If they were going to play the part, they had to go all the way.
Besides, for a giant like Manchester United, every position’s recruitment would involve a long list of players for the manager to choose from.
Adding a few more names to the list now didn’t hurt.
This solemn attitude was very well-received by Tang Moumou.
What a great subordinate; it was a pity he only had thirty-some hours of life left.
But while sighing, he didn’t forget to remind him: “There are two more players, for the center-back position. Uh, I really like Vidic and Rio Ferdinand, but considering their increasing injuries, I think we should have more options at center-back.”
Gill said without changing his expression, “Tell me their names and teams, and I’ll send them over together.”
Since he had already provided one forward and five midfielders, adding two center-backs wouldn’t make much difference.
“Godín from Atlético Madrid. His performance at Atlético this season has been very good, and he helped the team win the Europa League.”
Gill looked up at the young chairman and smiled happily: “Fergie has scouted him. When we brought De Gea from Atlético last season, Fergie noticed Godín at the time.”
Tang Moumou hadn’t expected Godín to have already entered Sir Alex’s field of vision, but the word “noticed,” paired with the CEO’s current smile, was very meaningful.
It wasn’t just “noticing”; it was clear that Sir Alex was very interested, but… there was no money.
Tang Moumou smiled and said, “Sir Alex can continue to observe him. If he likes him, we will definitely bring him to Old Trafford.”
Gill smiled and asked, “And the other one?”
The other one…
Tang Moumou’s smile turned shy again: “It’s De Ligt from Ajax.”
He remembered this kid born in ’99, who was incredibly precocious and was already shining in the Ajax youth ranks this season.
Since he could get a chance at Ajax, he could also come to Manchester United to learn.
After all, they had the former world-best defenders here.
It was just that he felt a bit embarrassed about digging up someone else’s carefully nurtured “cabbage.”
“Okay.” Gill quickly finished typing the name and looked at the young chairman again. “Trust in the efficiency of the scouting department. As soon as they give their recommendations, I will introduce them to Fergie.”
The scouts at Manchester United…
Tang Moumou thought to himself: I actually really want to fire the whole department.
[35 hours, 17 minutes, 45 seconds!]