Chapter 194 Volendam Advances to the Dutch Cup Final!

"Kivu: I'm looking forward to competing against Zhang Jun."

"The Feeling of Scoring is Fantastic--An Interview with Zhang Jun"

"They Will Create History--Adrianse Talks About Zhang Yang"

...

Various domestic sports newspapers were piled on the desk, but Qiu Suhui didn't have time to glance at them. His negotiations with the Football Association had reached a critical moment, and he was busy with this matter all day long. These newspapers could only be accumulated and read later.

On the last day of the lecture, Qiu Suhui led a hastily assembled team that had only trained for three days to a 1-1 draw against the U21 runner-up, Dalian. This match actually brought all three giants of the Chinese Football Association to the scene--full-time Vice Chairman Luo Wenqiang, Technical Department Director Ma Qi, and League Department Director Yang Weiguang. It not only caused a sensation in the Honghe base, but also in the Chinese football circle.

The arrival of the three shattered the rumors that the head coach of the National Olympic team would be selected through competitive recruitment. After more than half a month of hype, the new head coach of the National Olympic team finally surfaced, and everyone focused their attention on Qiu Suhui, the head coach of the Henan Zhongyuan Youth Team.

The draw in this teaching match also dispelled the doubts within the Football Association about Qiu Suhui's level. What remained was for the Football Association and Qiu Suhui to sign a contract. In fact, national teams at all levels, except for the national team, which must sign a contract with a foreign coach, do not have contractual relationships with the Football Association. The relationship between coaches and the Football Association is an appointment system. The Football Association waves its hand to put someone in charge, and that person must take the post. The Football Association waves its hand again, saying that someone should be dismissed, and that person is dismissed. This kind of unprofessional relationship makes it impossible to guarantee the treatment of coaches, and their positions are naturally insecure. The enthusiasm of the coaches cannot be brought into play, and the training effect can be imagined.

Doing so actually also puts the Football Association at a disadvantage. Shen Weiguo's sudden resignation gave the Football Association a hard time. If both parties had signed a contract, the Football Association could have used the contract to restrain Shen Weiguo. Shen Weiguo was a smart man. If the Football Association could easily dismiss him, he could also easily fire the Football Association.

Based on the interests of both parties, when Qiu Suhui proposed signing a contract, the Football Association only held a meeting and agreed. There was also no problem with the contract term, which would last until the end of the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. If the National Olympic team failed to qualify for the Olympic Games, the contract would automatically terminate, and Qiu Suhui would regain his freedom.

However, Qiu Suhui demanded that no one in the Football Association, except for Chen Wei, who was in charge of the National Olympic team, had the right to interfere with his work. He was not allowed to question the team formation, personnel selection, training, competition, or tactics of the National Olympic team. He must not impose the opinions of his superiors on him and demanded absolute power to lead the team...

Watching Qiu Suhui walk out of the conference room, the door was gently closed by the waiter outside. Luo Wenqiang finally vented his suppressed anger. He slammed the contract documents on the mahogany table: "This isn't negotiation at all! It's clearly extortion! He wants absolute power. Then what do we need the Football Association for? He doesn't allow this, he doesn't allow that! What is the General Administration of Sport for?" Seeing Luo Wenqiang's rage, everyone else sat quietly in their seats, afraid to breathe.

"Chen Wei, what kind of person did you find? No organization, no discipline! Doing whatever he wants! And calling the leadership's concern interference!"

Chen Wei smiled bitterly in his heart. Luo Wenqiang was the one who supported him in the beginning, and now Luo Wenqiang was the one who was pushing all the responsibility onto him. But he was the leader. If the leader said he was wrong, then he was wrong.

"This...actually, this is something we already knew. Because when Qiu Suhui signed a contract with the Henan Zhongyuan Club, he also required the club to delegate all power. And he did indeed bring a U21 championship to the club. We investigated his previous coaching experience, and this is almost the most important thing to Qiu Suhui." Even though Luo Wenqiang was angry, Chen Wei still had to explain it clearly to him. After all, he and Qiu Suhui were already on the same boat. He insisted on Shen Weiguo's resignation in the first place in order to support Qiu Suhui. If Qiu Suhui's negotiations with the Football Association broke down, he could return to Zhongyuan and continue as a coach. But what about himself? Once the National Olympic team was defeated by Syria and failed to even enter the top twelve, the domestic fans and media would become angry, and he, the vice chairman in charge of the National Olympic team, would be the first to bear the brunt. Dismissal was inevitable. In this sense, his official career was Qiu Suhui's future.

"That was at a club, this is the National Olympic team! What if he doesn't obey the leadership? Does the Football Association still have any authority? If this gets out, where will the Football Association's prestige be? What if all the other levels follow suit? Milu was a very bad example before! It was because he wavered when implementing the Football Association's opinions, which led to many problems in the preparation plan... With the big game approaching, he actually went to shoot commercials! It's no wonder the Chinese team lost in the World Cup! It's because our contract with him stated that interference was not allowed. Milu was a foreign coach, so that was one thing, but Qiu Suhui is doing the same thing!"

"He has also been in Europe for many years, so his ideas..."

"Then change them! This is China, not the Netherlands! The situation in China is different. You can't just copy everything from Europe. How can you improve Chinese football by using European ideas? Chairman Mao had a saying: 'Adapt to local conditions.' Adapt to local conditions, comrades! What does adapt to local conditions mean? Chen Wei, you should understand, right?"

Chen Wei nodded.

"If everyone was like him, we might as well just hire foreign coaches. You go and work with Qiu Suhui. I hope we can reach a consensus in the negotiations the day after tomorrow."

After saying this harsh sentence, Luo Wenqiang left. The others also left one after another with some schadenfreude expressions. Only Chen Wei was left sitting alone in the empty conference room, staring blankly at the Football Association logo on the opposite side. The green background represents the football field, Tiananmen Square represents China, and the football below doesn't need any explanation, right? This is the logo of the Chinese Football Association.

A football has to bear such a heavy Tiananmen Square...

When Chen Wei was in the General Administration of Sport, he was just a director's assistant who liked football. He never thought that because he liked football, he would be transferred to the Football Association and face such great pressure. In China, liking football doesn't mean you can improve football! There are too many things outside of football that influence everything. Every step Chinese football takes leaves a deep footprint on the ground. That's not so-called down-to-earth work, but rather the pressure is too great and the steps are too heavy!

Now he was completely caught in the middle of the pressure. The pressure from Luo Wenqiang, the pressure from the fans and the media, any kind of pressure was enough to cause his dismissal. The match against Syria was imminent, and if the head coach was not determined, it would mean the complete collapse of the National Olympic team, which was the focus of the Football Association's work for the next two years.

This National Olympic team was once known as the "Super Platinum Generation" and was highly anticipated by the Chinese people. If they didn't even make it to the final stage of the qualifiers, who would be responsible when the four-year dream was shattered in advance?

Chen Wei walked out of the negotiation hotel, but was shocked to see twenty or so journalists in front of him. Long guns and short cannons were aimed at him, and when they saw him come out, the flashes went wild.

"Vice Chairman Chen, may I ask if there are some conflicts between the Football Association and Qiu Suhui? Why is the signing of the head coach, which was supposed to be a sure thing, so tortuous?"

"Is it a matter of salary?"

"May I ask if you thought about the current situation when you agreed to Shen Weiguo's resignation in the first place?"

"The match against Syria is imminent, but the National Olympic team can't even guarantee normal training. Who should be responsible for this?"

Who should be responsible for this?

Chen Wei, who was stunned in place, suddenly felt a chill. Maybe in a month, because of this sentence, he would bid farewell to the Football Association and be dismissed in disgrace. Luo Wenqiang would definitely make him a scapegoat. As the vice chairman in charge of the National Olympic team, he was also the person primarily responsible. There was no escaping it.

In early April in Beijing, Chen Wei, a native of Jiangnan, felt an inexplicable chill. He turned up his collar, lowered his head to push his way through the crowd, and got into his black Audi A6, speeding away.

A month ago, when he caused such a storm in Chinese football, did he think that the storm would become so big that he couldn't control it? This ambitious young man felt the heavy pressure on his shoulders as soon as he took his first step.

In the end, Chen Wei lowered his attitude and humbly "begged" Qiu Suhui to make concessions. He also talked to Luo Wenqiang, hoping that the Football Association could give Qiu Suhui, a talented person, full autonomy, based on the attitude of "respecting talent and trusting talent." Of course, he also did not forget to "threaten" Luo Wenqiang with the imminent Sino-Syrian war. "If Qiu Suhui doesn't sign the contract, and the National Olympic team loses the Sino-Syrian war under such circumstances, none of us can bear that responsibility!" He said this because he didn't want to "bear all the pressure himself."

It should be said that the proximity of the Sino-Syrian war prompted both parties to return to the negotiating table and quickly sign an employment contract. Qiu Suhui no longer demanded "absolute power," but instead changed it to "having as much autonomy as possible in leading the team." The Football Association also no longer clung to power, but agreed that unless the situation was extremely urgent, they would not interfere in the affairs of the National Olympic team. Chen Wei successfully acted as a peacemaker and helped stabilize the situation for the National Olympic team.

When both parties signed their names on the contract, he was finally able to get a good night's sleep for the first time in a month.

The selection of the head coach for the National Olympic team was finally settled, and Qiu Suhui deservedly became the new head coach of the National Olympic team. The media began to promote again that the Chinese National Olympic team had bid farewell to the Shen Weiguo era and entered the Qiu Suhui era.

Even though he knew that Qiu Suhui's election was expected, Li Yan still felt uncomfortable in his heart--this had nothing to do with Qiu Suhui's level, nor with Chinese football, it was purely a subjective like or dislike in one's heart. But fortunately, he could leave this messy Chinese football scene soon and return to Volendam in the Netherlands to see his old friends. Li Yan didn't want to have his mood disturbed by those things.

But his mood was still disturbed.

When he was told that he couldn't go to the Netherlands, he was stunned.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Yan Wei was taken aback. "Don't hate me. If you want to hate, hate SARS, hate SARS. The country is no longer allowing Chinese citizens to leave the country. Not to mention the border, even the provincial borders are difficult. In a word, stay at home honestly!"

"Damn it!" After being stunned for a long time, Li Yan slammed the *Football Weekly* in his hand on the table. "When will the ban be lifted?"

"How would I know? You have to ask SARS. Maybe the old man will be happy tomorrow and withdraw it, and you'll be free. Now go home and sleep, search for information online, and write articles in your spare time. This is what the boss told me to tell you--special mission in a special period--maintain contact with Zhang Jun and Yang Pan through the Internet and telephone."

"Damn SARS!" Li Yan had just finished scolding when he sneezed. The colleagues in the office were so frightened that they quickly covered their faces with everything at hand. Li Yan looked at everyone disappointedly, turned around and went out--he was going to the hospital to check if he had a fever, dry cough, or difficulty breathing, and whether he needed to be quarantined.

"What?" Li Yongle looked at his teammate in surprise. "Because of SARS, the Major League is postponed?"

The teammate nodded: "Can we still play in this situation?"

Li Yongle was stunned for a moment. He wanted to obtain the Best Player award through the Major League and go to the Netherlands, following the same path as Zhang Jun and Yang Pan. Zhang Jun and Yang Pan's success in the Netherlands had made Chinese players widely noticed in the Netherlands. It can be said that Zhang Jun's success paved the way for future generations. After entering the door, they would have to look at their own strength. But Li Yongle believed that he had this strength.

But now, a sudden SARS had ruined all his plans. The Major League was postponed, he couldn't get the Best Player award, and the Netherlands had finally become a dream... This damn SARS!

Li Yongle kicked the football hard at the opposite wire fence, making a dull sound. He was not worried about his safety in Beijing, the hardest-hit area. Instead, he was worried about his future. Perhaps for him, chasing Zhang Jun's footsteps was sometimes more important than life.

Sophie found that there was a word that appeared more and more frequently in the news media--SARS. In the beginning, as early as the Spring Festival, there was news that there was an infectious disease in Guangdong, and even Banlangen (Isatis root) was sold out in the market. She thought it was just another boring rumor. But when she saw in the newspaper that Guangdong had admitted that the infectious disease was "Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome" and that it had already spread, she realized that the situation was not as simple as she had imagined.

In the past two days, all the schools were clamoring to close, more and more people around her were wearing masks, and people eating in the cafeteria were starting to use their own lunch boxes.

"Hey, did you know? More than a hundred people have died in Guangdong, but the government only reported ten! So corrupt!"

"Really?"

"Why would I lie to you? This thing is hard to prevent. It's spread through the air, through droplets..."

Two people who were whispering to each other suddenly jumped away strangely and looked at each other warily. Their eyes clearly said: "Stay away from me!"

"Hey! Yesterday, a boy at University A was sleeping in the dormitory and didn't want to go to school. So he lied and said he had a fever. Well, that was great! The school doctor, the counselor, and the vice principal all went, scaring the boy to shivers! As a result, he was sent to the school hospital for quarantine on the spot! Haha!" A roommate was vividly telling a "rumor" that she didn't know where she heard it from in the dormitory, scaring a group of girls.

Sophie sat on the bed with her pillow in her arms, staring wide-eyed at the roommate on the upper bunk opposite her. Two white masks were also hung next to her bed. The two masks cost her thirty yuan. Now it was a "special period," and even the prices were "special prices."

In the drawer were two big bags of Banlangen granules that she had just "snatched." She was starting to feel a little scared now. Although she had masks, Banlangen, and someone to disinfect every day, she was still scared. This was a sense of insecurity of being able to do nothing but hug a pillow in times of crisis.

Zhang Jun was not here, and she was afraid.

She naturally couldn't go sketching anymore. Now, whenever she had time, she sat in the dormitory and practiced sketching with her drawing board. Every day, she went back and forth between the dormitory, the classroom, and the cafeteria. She didn't dare to go anywhere else. How many more people had died in Guangdong? How many more people had died in Shanxi? How many more people had died in Beijing? How many more people had died in Henan?... Every day, there was news like this. Looking at those cold, impersonal data, Sophie felt that the Grim Reaper was wandering in the world, looking for its prey. Maybe her?

Sophie had never thought about the word "death," but in the spring of 2003, when she was alone in Hefei, China, facing the menacing "SARS," she thought about it more than once in this spring that should have been as bright as a flower.

Not only Sophie, not only Li Yan, or Li Yongle, in the spring of 2003, the whole of China was plunged into a nightmare. A seemingly sudden but long-foreshadowed catastrophe swept across this land. Anhui, where Sophie was located, was the last place to fall: the disease notices in the newspapers never had the name Anhui, but in the end, it still couldn't escape. SARS visited this land south of the Yangtze River...

Masks, white coats, the sirens of ambulances, isolated wards, the smell of 84 disinfectant permeated the air, decorating the entire spring of China so pale.