Ms. Skaya dialed the number of Courtois' agent, Henlotta.

The other party's attitude was firm:

"Thibaut's two children and their mother live in Madrid. He misses his family."

"That's right, I often met with Real Madrid executives last year. Sorry, I don't mean to offend Chelsea. My role is just to help Real Madrid evaluate Courtois' competitive state."

"I hope you Chelsea can see the situation clearly."

Beep beep beep!

The other party hung up the phone, ending the call.

Ms. Skaya looked angry. She had no chance to say "no, no, no!" The time to negotiate with other clubs was running out.

The new season was about to begin, and the summer transfer window was closing soon. In the little time left, the goalkeeper position was the most difficult to fill.

Courtois had laid his cards on the table, no more pretending.

He didn't leave sooner.

He didn't leave later.

He just had to pick the moment that put Chelsea in the most passive position to leave.

His behavior aroused condemnation from fans across the internet.

Including Real Madrid fans.

Because in an interview, this guy couldn't help but provoke the old goalkeeper of the Galácticos:

"Who is Navas? I don't know him. I only know that I once benched Čech."

"I am destined to reach heights that many goalkeepers cannot reach. I can improve the defense of the Galácticos by a level!"

"Real Madrid's overall level is much higher than Chelsea's. I hope Hazard makes the right choice as soon as possible."

The news comment section exploded.

-

[Yoshi! There's a good old saying in China: "A wise man submits to circumstances." There's nothing wrong with Ku-san's strike. The full-strength Galácticos are the best team in the world overall.]

-

[Seumida! Courtois values loyalty. Even after joining a powerhouse, he doesn't forget to persuade his good national teammate, Hazard, to join him. Sharing weal and woe, riches and honor.]

-

[Chelsea is going to gg, like Manchester City last season. The midfield control is strong, but they were still screwed over by Bravo.]

-

[Real Madrid is awesome, right? The main lineup + the second goalkeeper, but they still conceded five goals to Sevilla.]

-

[I watched that game. No matter how awesome the midfield trio and Varane are, no matter how great the control is, they can't fill the hole. The opponent was accurate every time. The relationship between the goalkeeper's positioning and the defensive line's spacing was analyzed into a small essay of thousands of words in the post-match report.]

-

[Goalkeepers are hard to find, and they also have to fit the team's build-up play system. Strong teams have very high requirements for goalkeepers' other abilities, such as Liverpool's Karius. Although he's not very reliable, his fighting style is very suitable for Liverpool's high defensive line.]

-

[With only a few days left before the league starts, it will be difficult for Chelsea to buy a good goalkeeper. If other clubs have suitable candidates, they will bleed them dry.]

-

[I predict Chelsea 2:3 Burnley in the first round of the Premier League.]

Cobham Training Centre.

Tuchel presented his ideas to the club.

"Chelsea needs a goalkeeper with a large defensive coverage area, fast speed, quick footwork frequency, strong step control, reasonable prediction and positioning, excellent ability to intercept attacks, good at compressing the opponent's offensive space, and also possesses excellent foot skills, can resolve the pressure of building up from the back, participate in backcourt passing and control, and can directly launch attacks from the backcourt!"

"Ideally, he should be equally proficient with both feet."

"These are my... and Li's ideas."

Tuchel didn't forget to change his wording at the end.

Although he was controlling, he had a very clear understanding of his current position at the club.

Hearing these words, the Chelsea staff immediately revealed a look of despair: We can't even afford to eat shit, and you want to eat top-grade silver cod?

Čech looked haggard, his eyes bloodshot, and shook his head:

"We can't find a goalkeeper like that."

"Only Neuer, with healthy shoulder bones and complete metatarsals, can meet your requirements."

"If you are willing to greatly reduce your requirements, I have found a few goalkeepers who meet some of the conditions."

"Barcelona, 29-year-old Cillessen."

"West Ham United, 30-year-old Adrian."

"Lorient Youth Team, 17-year-old Meslier."

"Rennes, 25-year-old Édouard Mendy."

The situation was pressing, and Chelsea couldn't buy a better goalkeeper at this time.

Manchester.

De Gea looked conflicted when he saw the news.

"I can't join Chelsea."

"Of course, it has nothing to do with the lack of a release clause or other factors."

"I love Manchester United deeply."

Manchester United was willing to offer a sky-high salary in the contract renewal, also to recognize his loyalty.

"I want to retire at Old Trafford, to spend my whole career here."

Maguire closed his notebook and said seriously:

"Stop fantasizing, you're not suitable for Chelsea's tactical system at all."

"If you can't develop your passing ability, you won't be able to spend your whole career at Manchester United."

"Speaking of which, Manchester United can't sell you either! You can't leave, there's no release clause in your contract."

Time flew by.

The Premier League opening game was coming!

Chelsea still hadn't solved the first-choice goalkeeper problem. Ms. Skaya went to the Apennine Peninsula, but several Serie A powerhouses that had a good relationship with the Blues in the past gave her the cold shoulder.

"Aren't you good at saying 'no, no, no'?"

"We won't sell anyone, no matter how much money you offer! Unless you pay the release clause!"

London.

Dyche led Burnley to Stamford Bridge.

He was full of confidence, believing that his team would become the most fearsome dark horse of the new season after strengthening in the summer transfer window.

The Clarets were determined to make life difficult for the Big Six.

"CCTV5! CCTV5! Good afternoon, viewers!"

"We are now broadcasting the first round of the 2017-18 English Premier League!"

"Chelsea at home against Burnley!"

"The Blues battle the Clarets!"

"Seven years ago, it was Chelsea who killed Burnley's hopes of staying up."

Li Kang stepped onto the green field.

The system notification sound rang quietly.

[Ding! Task triggered: The Premier League Big Seven.]

[Task Introduction: Standing in front of you is "Bald Mourinho", the Premier League's seventh strongest team, Burnley, who punches Tottenham, kicks Manchester City, and fights Liverpool to the death! They are stronger than Enrique's Arsenal, can you believe it?]

[Task Reward: Bronze Treasure Chest.]

Li Kang: "..."

He was now used to ignoring the narration and only judging the difficulty of the game from the reward level.

As for Chelsea's goalkeeper problem? Li Kang regretted melting all the goalkeeper modules a little.

*What do you mean by a destroyer-type goalkeeper?*

"Now, let me introduce the starting lineups of both sides."

"Chelsea's lineup is 3-4-3."

"Goalkeeper: Caballero."

"..."

With the referee's whistle.

The game officially began.

Chelsea had possession.

"Bald Mourinho" didn't park the bus, but constructed a highly elastic pressing defense.

The burly midfielders engaged in a fierce melee.

Using the Premier League's reasonable style of confrontation, they frantically chopped down Hazard, Willian, Fabregas, and others.

24th minute of the match.

Burnley goalkeeper Pope sent a precise long pass from the backcourt.

The forwards rushed forward like crazy.

"They don't care about the spacing between the lines at all!"

"Pope's 60-meter long pass is too accurate, directly bypassing Chelsea's midfield defense!"

"Barnes!"

"Almost! Chelsea's 37-year-old goalkeeper, Caballero, is still going strong!"

Caballero held the ball tightly, signaling his teammates in the back line to widen the spacing.

Tuchel gestured, signaling Chelsea to build a ground attack in the backcourt.

Snap!

Rüdiger made a mistake when receiving the ball in front of the penalty area.

Burnley striker Barnes succeeded in pressing.

The Stamford Bridge library was plunged into panic.

"Beautiful!"

"One-on-one!"

"He's not going to score this?"

"It's Caballero again!"

Finally.

The referee blew the whistle to end the game.

Chelsea 3:0 Burnley.

Won the first game of the new Premier League season.

The entire Stamford Bridge echoed with Li Kang's name.

The blue ocean kept churning, filled with joy.

Chelsea's new number 10 provided two key assists in this game, securing the victory.

Li Kang was surrounded by his teammates, thanking the home fans together.

Tuchel shook hands with the opposing coach and walked towards the tunnel in frustration.

His thoughts wandered:

Arsenal won the treble because of "Versatile Little Li + low defensive line + peak-late Čech."

Versatile Little Li, with unlimited freedom, switching to any role at any time.

Peak-late Čech, perfectly integrated with the low defensive line and the transition attack.

After careful analysis: Wenger's team-building ideas were perfect.

Chelsea's situation was different, with strong individual strength. To maximize the value of the lineup, they had to rely on "Quasi-Ball King Li + high defensive line + high goalkeeper," to play a dominant force that looked down on Europe.

The problem was.

Poor Chelsea, where could they find a suitable goalkeeper before the summer transfer window closed?

If they couldn't find one.

It meant that the already established tactical framework had to be completely overturned.

Caballero was useless. Even Messi couldn't carry him. Why should Chelsea suffer the sins of the Argentine national team?

Damn it, Courtois was perfect, except for his character.

Thinking of this, Tuchel couldn't help but complain about Courtois again.

Dino trotted all the way to catch up: "Boss, don't be confined to the high defensive line, we can learn from Wenger's team-building ideas."

Tuchel stopped and asked doubtfully, "Then where can we find a second Čech? He is also unique."

Dino looked confused.

As time went on, it became more difficult to sign players as the temporary transfer window closing date approached.

Not to mention not being able to buy goalkeepers who met the conditions, they couldn't even buy those who didn't.

Now all of Europe was treating Chelsea like a pig to be slaughtered, and even a second-rate goalkeeper dared to ask Chelsea for 80 million.

At the same time.

Amex Stadium.

Brighton 0:2 Manchester City.

Guardiola was interviewed by reporters.

"Ederson is excellent. He launched three good offensive opportunities in the backcourt."

"Transferring the point of attack to the goalkeeper is a tactical trend for the next few seasons."

"But Ederson hasn't fully integrated into Manchester City's attack and defense operation, which takes time."

"Manchester City has the patience to wait for his growth."

"I want to try a 2-5-3 formation, with only two center backs on the defensive line, and Ederson acting as the third center back..."

"The opponent I'm most looking forward to? Chelsea in the next round!"

On the way home, Li Kang received a message from Neuer.

"Li, although we are very suitable, I will not leave Bayern."

"I will wait for you in the future."

Li Kang: "..."

(End of this chapter)