Chapter 14 A Meal

Zhou Yi was sitting in an ordinary restaurant, in an ordinary corner, at a table for four that was occupied by three people.

Him, Tim Kister, and Jurgen Klopp.

Klopp had placed his baseball cap on the fourth seat, as if he were saving it for someone.

"I'm sorry to have called you out from where you were eating, so I'm personally treating you to a meal. Well, actually, I'm hungry. I came directly from Brackel and haven't had dinner yet, so I'm starving!"

After listening to Kister's translation, Zhou Yi laughed. He felt that Klopp was not as he had imagined, but a very interesting person.

But Klopp was not very satisfied with Zhou Yi's reaction. "Zhou, I suggest you start learning German now. A lot of things are not real when they're passed back and forth through translation. Like I just told a joke, but you didn't laugh at the time. Laughing after hearing the translation turns my joke into a cold joke."

After translating this sentence, Kister added to Zhou Yi, "Don't mind him, Jurgen is just like this. You have to get used to his way of speaking."

"Tim, don't add things casually, it will make me worry that Zhou can't understand what I mean." Klopp seemed to hear something and reminded Kister.

"I didn't, Jurgen, I just told him that's your style." Kister retorted.

Zhou Yi was confused listening to their conversation in German.

To him, German sounded like they constantly had phlegm in their mouths that they wanted to spit out...

It seemed the first step to learning German was to always have phlegm stuck in your mouth.

After arguing with Kister, Klopp turned to Zhou Yi again, "I'm not a person who likes to talk nonsense, I'm used to getting straight to the point. Let me put it this way, Zhou, you told Kister that you wanted a first-team promise from Dortmund. But to be honest, I'm very disappointed with this statement."

After listening to the translation, Zhou Yi understood. Did he think his request was too high? Was it worth flying over from Dortmund just to criticize him for being ignorant?

"Because my plans for you are not just as simple as playing in the first team."

Zhou Yi was a little surprised when he heard this.

"You will be a very important member of Dortmund's future."

Zhou Yi thought he had heard wrong. He asked Kister, "Did he really say that?"

"Of course..." Kister didn't expect Klopp's evaluation of Zhou Yi to be so high either, and his expression was equally surprised.

"I can't promise you exactly when you can play in the first team right now. But what I can promise you is that as long as you play well in the youth team and perform well, you will definitely be promoted to the first team. No matter how old you are, if you perform well at nineteen, I will let you play in the Bundesliga at nineteen. If you perform well at eighteen, I will let you play in the Bundesliga at eighteen... I think you should also know that it's not just Wenger who likes to give young players opportunities, but also me."

Klopp was very proud and confident when he said this.

Zhou Yi was completely shocked by Klopp's words. He didn't expect the head coach of a Bundesliga powerhouse to say such a thing.

Such a promise... if he wasn't joking, it was really attractive...

"Of course, we can't write this into the contract, because it's impossible to clearly define responsibilities, and the law doesn't support such clauses. So, you can only choose to believe me, my personal charm and promise."

Klopp looked at Zhou Yi, directly, without blinking.

"I have a question." Zhou Yi was finally able to speak.

"Please speak."

"First of all, I'm very happy that you value me so much, but I'm also curious as to why you value me so much. I don't quite understand whether your sentence 'I am an important member of Dortmund's future' is to make me happy or serious. If it's serious, what's the reason?"

After listening to Kister's translation, Klopp laughed, "That's not one question. But indeed, I need to explain it to you clearly, instead of painting you a beautiful picture of a wonderful future with nice words, and then tricking you into our youth training camp and ignoring you. If you can make it out in a few years, then the club will earn money. If you don't make it out, then we won't suffer any losses..."

After joking, Klopp asked Zhou Yi, "Guess how I knew about you?"

"The game against Dortmund's youth team?"

"Yes, but I didn't know about you through scout reports or anything after the game. I know that some clubs are interested in you now, and some clubs have even approached you, but I bet that none of those clubs' head coaches have actually watched your performance on the field, except for me."

Zhou Yi was indeed surprised—he didn't expect Klopp to have watched his game in person. But why would a first-team head coach suddenly come to the youth team's training ground?

"And since then, I have been very clear about your performance in every game. Thanks to Tim's hard work." He pointed to Kister. "He has been responsible for tracking you and observing you for more than just one or two games. Against Arsenal, against Chelsea, against Manchester United, Liverpool, AC Milan and Inter Milan, I know every performance in every game you've played. Tim is a very good scout, he has an outstanding eye for judging players, and he strongly suggested that I sign you as soon as possible... I'm laying all my cards on the table, Zhou. Why did I have to fly over here? Because I was afraid you would run away. I know we have a lot of competitors, and I want to sign you first so that I can sleep well."

Zhou Yi laughed, this coach was too straightforward.

But he also gained a new understanding of Klopp, a name he had only heard in the news before.

Just as Kister said, this honest style might be Klopp's personal charm.

Thinking back to what he had just said: "You can only believe in my personal charm and promise"...

Zhou Yi felt that since this coach had watched all his games, he must know him very well. At the same time, he had promised him an important position in the first team, and the sincerity of flying all the way from Germany just to persuade him to join...

What reason did he have to refuse?

Was he really waiting for Barcelona?

How could that be? Zhou Yi knew that it was just a joke, and he knew what he was thinking. He wasn't waiting for Barcelona.

He was just waiting for a club that really valued him and understood him.

Now, such a club was in front of him.

Zhou Yi was also a straightforward person, so he nodded and said, "Since you, Coach, are so straightforward, then I'll be straightforward too. Okay, I promise you, I'll sign with Dortmund!"

After listening to Kister's translation, Klopp was stunned, "He agreed?"

"It seems like he agreed..."

"Why did he agree so... easily?" Klopp murmured.

"Isn't this what you wanted?"

"That's what I said, but it feels unreal... Forget it, I have to believe him! Since he believes in us." After Klopp finished speaking, he smiled at Zhou Yi and extended his hand to him, "Then it's settled, I'll be waiting for you in Brackel, Zhou."

"Not Dortmund?" Zhou Yi asked strangely.

"Brackel is Dortmund's training base." Kister explained.

"Oh, oh, good! Good!" Zhou Yi nodded repeatedly.

"Very good, we have reached an agreement, and my trip to Barcelona has been worth it. But unfortunately, we can't sign any contracts, because before you successfully come to Dortmund, we both still have a lot of work to do." Klopp said. "So what we have now can only be considered a gentleman's agreement."

Zhou Yi said with a smile, "Then we're even, I believe in your personal promise, Coach, and you believe in my personal promise."

Hearing Zhou Yi say this, Klopp clapped his hands happily and said with a smile, "Yes! That's right! Mutual trust! This is the foundation of human interaction!"

In this way, Zhou Yi's decision to join Dortmund was finalized in an ordinary Catalan restaurant.

There was no grand scene with clinking glasses, it looked very casual, and it had nothing to do with being formal or official.

Years later, if people were to start writing a biography of Zhou Yi from here, they could only say that this was a way that really fit the temperament of both Klopp and Zhou Yi...

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Because the restaurant was next to the hotel, after the meal, Klopp and Kister first sent Zhou Yi back to the hotel.

Then they turned around and went to the airport.

"Jurgen, do you think we can trust him? What if, I mean what if, he performs well in the game the day after tomorrow, and Barcelona takes a fancy to him too?"

On the way to the airport, Kister voiced the doubts in his heart.

As a scout, he had contacted many players and their parents, so he had seen too many players and their families go back on their word.

He knew very well that in the face of economic interests, promises were bullshit. Too many children would abandon the agreement they had already reached with Dortmund because other clubs offered more generous conditions.

Not to mention that Barcelona was indeed more attractive than Dortmund.

Klopp raised the brim of his baseball cap: "Then what can we do? We have no choice, now we can only choose to believe in that child, believe in his personal charm and promise."

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Zhou Yi had just walked into the hotel lobby when he was stopped by Sun Pan and the others. In addition to Sun Pan, Guo Nu, and Yang Muge, these three fixed partners, there were also some other teammates.

They were all obviously waiting for Zhou Yi.

When they saw Zhou Yi, they surrounded him.

"How is it? How is it? How did the talk go?"

Everyone asked at once.

Zhou Yi thought that there was nothing to hide, so he nodded and replied, "Well, I chose Dortmund."

"Wow!" A burst of exclamations rang out in the hall.

"They... they agreed to all your requests?"

Everyone looked at Zhou Yi in disbelief.

A first-team promise, with Zhou Yi's strength and qualifications, such a request was simply a fantasy. How could Dortmund agree?

Zhou Yi nodded, "They agreed."

The teammates were silent.

When Zhou Yi insisted on his principles, they thought that Zhou Yi would eventually be beaten bloody by the cruel reality, and then he would have to bow his head and admit defeat, and lower his requirements. And maybe at that time, no one would want him even if he lowered his requirements.

But to their surprise, Zhou Yi did not change his requirements after rejecting Arsenal twice, stubbornly waiting for a team that could meet his requirements to appear... and he really waited for it!

In the face of a long-sought ideal, should one insist on oneself, or compromise and give in?

Is taking a step back a vast sky and sea, or giving way again and again until one loses confidence?

Is sticking to the bottom line not shedding tears until you see the coffin, or waiting for the clouds to clear and see the moon?

Many people fell into deep thought.

"Congratulations, Zhou Yi. I didn't expect you to be the first of us to go out." Yang Muge was sincerely happy for Zhou Yi.

"You will all be found soon!" Zhou Yi said.

"I don't want to think so much, I'll talk about playing well in the game in front of me first." Yang Muge shook his head with a smile. He seemed to be used to being ignored.

"Damn it, you kid is really lucky, you have to treat us!" Sun Pan muttered, not hiding his envy, jealousy, and hatred.

Guo Nu also looked at Zhou Yi enviously, although he didn't speak, his eyes had already said everything.

One Zhou Yi, tonight I don't know how many people will have trouble sleeping.

Fortunately, there were no games tomorrow, otherwise the state of the whole team would probably be affected.

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ps, ask for recommendation tickets and clicks on Tuesday, thank you everyone for letting us be on the homepage yesterday!