Chapter 20: The Coach’s Thoughts (Please Support with Votes and Favorites)

After a few days of brief negotiations, Lu Deyang and Suzuki reached an agreement.

The basic endorsement contract was set at $200,000 per year, signed for only one year, with Suzuki having the right of first refusal for renewal under the same conditions.

He would receive $20,000 in service fees each time he appeared on major newspapers and magazines, $50,000 for appearances on mainstream television stations, and a minimum of $100,000 in profit sharing based on sales due to the event’s influence.

If he made more than twenty appearances and secured at least one championship by the end of the season, he would receive a bonus of $200,000.

Meanwhile, the Suzuki Group would handle his promotion in Japan, as well as the promotion of his works, already connecting him with Shonen Sunday, a magazine under Shogakukan.

The other party was very optimistic about “Pocket Monsters”; it made sense that Pikachu could conquer the world.

Moreover, Lu Deyang’s story was more coherent than the original and added some depth.

This contract was already a significant concession from the Suzuki Group.

Primarily because players’ commercial value wasn’t as exaggerated these days, and Lu Deyang was very young.

Players like Mancini, who rose to prominence at seventeen, were rare; even at twenty-two, one was still considered young. Talents like Beckham at twenty were still loaned to third-tier leagues.

Interestingly, the team Beckham was loaned to at the time, Preston, was coached by David Moyes.

Now, Sampdoria’s young forward Chiesa faced a similar situation.

The Suzuki Group worried that Sampdoria’s coach Boskov might not give Lu Deyang many opportunities.

After all, this was the common practice in football nowadays.

Players who could be regular starters in the top league at eighteen were either exceptionally talented or just lucky, often stepping in due to injuries to main players. Otherwise, even someone like Totti would only get sporadic chances, sitting on the bench and waiting.

“The Reggio property has been sold off; there’s about $420,000,” Lu Deyang said.

“Didn't expect Uncle to be so wealthy!” Monica exclaimed.

Italian housing prices were at a low point, with an income-to-price ratio of about 8.0 in major cities. A middle-class couple would need about eight years of no spending—roughly $100,000—to buy a house.

However, housing prices in Italy had always been stable, rarely exceeding 12 times annual income. Even so, many young people disliked buying property, prompting the Italian government to introduce various subsidies to encourage home purchases.

Italians seemed indifferent to real estate investment. Later, Milan’s prices were around 3,000 euros per square meter, meaning two people working for one month could afford a square meter.

With such money, one could now buy a very fine villa in Milan or Rome.

“After all, he’s been in business for many years and is very frugal,” Lu Deyang explained.

Chinese people commonly have a habit of saving.

“Ask my dad when you have time; let’s pool money and buy a new house!” Monica said excitedly.

Though their current apartment was nice and rent was cheap, renovating someone else’s place always felt lacking.

Lu Deyang gave a thumbs-up!

This was good news; he had always heard that his future father-in-law was well-off.

After running a trucking company for so many years and with only one precious daughter, it was only right to provide a decent dowry.

There was only one place in the world where parents didn’t worry about their children lacking a dowry—because that place was known for playing favorites.

“Tomorrow, I’m going out with teammates early to get familiar in advance,” Lu Deyang said.

Some teammates had returned to Genoa.

These days, the difference between stars and ordinary players wasn’t that great. Even though they earned more, they rarely traveled abroad.

Whenever they did, they always brought souvenirs for their teammates.

“You might be the first to have built good relations with the whole team before the season starts,” Monica smiled.

Lu Deyang nodded.

He had heard yesterday that the team signed Lombardo.

When training began, Lombardo would be surprised to find that although everyone was new, the situations were entirely different.

After dinner, the two studied separately.

Lu Deyang continued drawing comics, planning to find a skilled collaborator once things stabilized.

The biggest issue was the aesthetic differences between East and West.

Monica was good at drawing, but even her comics leaned toward a Marvel-style.

Lu Deyang wasn’t accustomed to overly realistic comic styles.

So, the matter of finding a collaborator would be addressed later.

The story had just reached a scene where Ogawa and a strange girl took a boat across a river. The girl falsely accused Ogawa of touching her, and after being unable to prove his innocence, he finally learned that sometimes he had to defend himself by force.

Male readers like Liben would deeply empathize with such a plot.

Next year, there would be the “work email harassment incident,” with Japanese women reaching a peak in their assertiveness, causing men like Liben to refuse contact with them at work to avoid legal trouble.

When faced with relentless harassment, men simply ignored the provocations, but women would keep pushing. The physical and mental stamina were on different levels—you couldn’t outmatch them, which was why Liben’s women stayed housewives at home.

The later establishment of the general affairs department was only to meet legal requirements for the number of female employees.

In essence, it was about giving them menial tasks to avoid public criticism while not entrusting them with important duties, preventing issues of “data women workers” and false accusations, simply placing them somewhere.

In the future, Europe and America also saw a trend of women returning to the home for similar reasons.

Too many buffs on the other side, couldn’t win in fights, and work was too exhausting and competitive.

Monica showed no reaction to the new plot.

That was the advantage of Italy.

Early the next morning, Lu Deyang took Mancini to visit the Vierciovod family again.

Vialli was already playing Dungeons & Dragons with young Vierciovod and a few others.

Mancini teased the host: “Gianluca, playing such childish games makes you look creepy. And you like to cosplay in movies too.”

“You’re the one who’s clearly enjoying it,” Vialli retorted.

Lu Deyang laughed: “Liking movies and game merchandise isn’t a problem; it’s Roberto’s conservative mindset. Maybe in a few days, we’ll see him grabbing women off the street to burn them.”

They all slapped their thighs and laughed heartily.

Vierciovod’s mother joined in with a playful remark: “There are no witches in our family—don’t come after me.”

Mancini rolled his eyes hard.

He found it impossible to argue with Lu Deyang, which made his sharp tongue backfire every time.

At times like these, it was better to say little.

Young Vierciovod, just back from football camp, waved: “Come play with us.”

Though it was their first meeting, there was no awkwardness.

Vierciovod liked inviting teammates home for his mother’s cooking.

“Scared, Roberto?” Vialli mocked.

“Who’s scared? Bring it on,” Mancini sat down and started learning the rules.

Lu Deyang had played before but didn’t know their specific rules.

Many board games had house rules added by the players themselves.

After more than an hour, Mancini complained: “This is boring; I’m done.”

“You just can’t play well,” Vialli said.

“So what makes it fun?” Lu Deyang asked. “Should we randomly pick a player to play Louis XVI?”

...

While he and his teammates frequently gathered, Boskov was also troubled by Lu Deyang.

He had never seen a player who became a sensation without playing a single match.

The Yugoslav coach’s desk held several English newspapers.

His English wasn’t good, but he could understand pictures.

The front pages of The Sun, The Times, and the Evening Standard all featured photos of Lu Deyang.

He had also heard that Lu Deyang earned a huge endorsement fee.

He was uncertain how to handle such an outspoken young man.

Even Mancini had been somewhat reserved when young.

But Lu Deyang’s confidence overflowed.

He turned to his assistant and asked, “How should we manage Deyang?”

“Limit his behavior within certain boundaries, but give him enough freedom?” Assistant Nachizo Pezzotti answered hesitantly.

There were few players in Serie A with endorsement contracts.

He had never dealt with such matters.

“No!” Boskov shook his head. “I feel Deyang is still too young. I’m afraid he’ll get lost in the media and fan adulation. This season, we need to focus on toughening his mindset.”