The versatioween Gao Shen and Guardio was mostly pyful banter, making fun of each other.

  Iy, if Napoli truly wao poach a pyer from Bara, even without Guardio as an intermediary, Gao Shen would have found a way. These decisions were far beyond what the two coaches could trol.

  Joking aside, Guardio treated Gao Shen with warmth, inviting him to his home for dinner.

  Guardio's wife was a fashion designer, running her own pany in Bara. The couple had two children, a son and a daughter, with their oldest daughter just turning six. The whole family weled Gao Shen.

  Later that evening, Guardio drove Gao Shen to a famous Spanish restaurant iy ter. It was clear that Guardio was a regur there, as he had made a reservation by phone and walked straight into a private room upon arrival.

  While they were chatting casually, Txiki Begiristain, Bara's teical director, joihem.

  Begiristain was not a tall man, standing about 1.7 meters. As a pyer, he ical Spanish left winger, although not a product of Bara's famed academy. He hailed from northern Spain and emerged from Real Sociedad's youth system. At 24, he moved to Bara and art of the legendary Bara Dream Team under Johan Cruyff. After leaving Bara, he had stints with Deportivo aually pyed in Japan before retiring.

  In his role as Bara's teical director, Begiristain had bee a savvy football executive. Upon sitting dowarted a versation with Gao Shen about his time in Japan and the development of football in Asia, especially highlighting Japanese football's rapid growth during his time there.

  For former football stars, the post-pying career path usually diverges into two routes: being a coach or entering ma. Begiristain had chosen ma, a on transition for pyers who wao stay in football but didn't necessarily want to coach. And while he wasn't sidered a visionary in his executive role, Begiristain had done a det job overseeing Bara's transfers and youth development.

  After some small talk, Gao Shen moved directly to the point.

  "To be ho, Txiki, there's a pyer in your youth ranks that caught my eye st season—Sergio Busquets. I don't think you're pnning to promote him to the first team anytime soon, are you?" Gao Shen asked, smiling.

  Guardio, sittio him, raised an eyebrow, feeling armed.

  This guy is here to poach my pyer, he thought to himself.

  Just a few days ago, Guardio had submitted his pns for Bara's sed team, whicluded promoting Busquets from the youth team. But...

  "Wait, Gao, aren't you looking for a defensive midfielder?" Guardio asked, fused.

  Gao Shen looked surprised. "Yes, why?"

  Guardio and Begiristain exged puzzled gnces, both sensing something off.

  "Sergio Busquets is a winger. He scored seven goals in 26 games st season," Guardio said.

  "A winger?" Gao Shen was dumbfouhat tall, somewhat gangly pyer as a winger? He felt like he was looking at the situation with a giant question mark over his head.

  Are they serious?

  "I don't think he's fit to be a winger. I'm actually thinking of him as a deep-lying midfielder," Gao Shen said, scratg his head.

  Guardio, still skeptical, nodded slightly, reizing Gao Shen's talent for spotting potential and transf pyers into new positions. "Well, maybe I'll give it a try season and see how he does as a holding midfielder."

  Begiristain, ever the astute businessman, quickly chimed in, "Gao, if you're sidering him for midfield, you really do have a good eye for talent."

  Gao Shen blinked. "So, are you willing to sell him?"

  Begiristain spread his hands with an apologetic smile. "I'm afraid not. Busquets' father is an old teammate of mine. I was the one whht him into La Masia. It would be... difficult to sell him."

  Gao Shen sighed. "I k. I've bee up by the both of you."

  Guardio and Begiristain exged amused gnces and burst out ughing.

  "Gao, the word around Europe is that you have an eye for talent. Look at the pyers you picked for Real Madrid and now in Napoli. Holy, and I'm not just saying this to ftter you—if anyone deserves credit for spotting talent, it's you," Begiristain said, giving him a thumbs up.

  "Yeah, yeah, enough of that. Just tell me, is Busquets for sale or not?" Gao Shen pressed.

  "Holy, I 't sell him. I 't expin that to his father," Begiristain replied with a smile.

  Gao Shen could only ugh bitterly.

  Of course, this was within his expectations. But that didn't make it any less frustrating.

  "So, I came all this way just to pick out a pyer for you for free?"

  Begiristain chuckled but quickly offered a promise. "If there are any other pyers you're ied in who are oransfer list, we could certainly talk."

  "If they're already oransfer list, do you think I'd bother ing to you? Unless, of course, you're a dist."

  Guardio, well aware of Gao Shen's shrewd iation tactics, quickly intervened. "It 't be too big of a dist."

  Begiristain caught on and nodded. "Yes, a reasonable price."

  Gao Shen gave them both a withering look. "I see what's happening here. You twanging up on me!"

  Seeing Gao Sheed was a rare sight, and Guardio couldn't help but relish the moment. Gao Shen was usually brimming with fidence, so seeing him taken down a notch felt strangely satisfying.

  "Seriously though, Txiki, the pyers you've put oransfer list arely top-quality," Gao Shen said, shaking his head.

  Begiristain and Guardio shared a knowing smile. "Well, what do you expect? If they were top-quality, it wouldn't be you looking at them," Begiristain said with a wink.

  "How much for Belletti?" Gao Shen asked, getting ba track.

  "At least six million euros," Begiristain replied.

  "Six million? He's already 31 years old! That's daylight robbery," Gao Sheed.

  "Well, he's still better than your current options at right-back, isn't he?" Begiristain teased.

  The whole of Europe khat Napoli's right-back situation had been exposed by Inter Min in that humiliating 3-0 defeat. It was that Gao Shen wao reinforce that position.

  "Too expensive. We 't afford that, especially with his wages," Gao Shen said, shaking his head.

  Begiristain shrugged, as if to say, "What I do?"

  Gao Shen sighed. "It's tough for small teams like us to pete with the giants when it es to wages."

  Then a thought struck him. "Wait, what about Thiago Motta? I heard he's on the way out."

  "He's not officially on the list, but yes, he wants to leave," Begiristain firmed.

  At 25 years old, Motta had struggled to secure pying time at Bara. After suffering from a string of injuries, his performances had deed, and the club's ret acquisitions had pushed him further down the peg order.

  "I heard you offered him to Inter Min for 1.5 million euros," Gao Shen said.

  Begiristain quickly shook his head. "No, no. His market value is still around six million. Even if he's had fewer ces to py, that doesn't mean we're letting him go for a cut-rate price."

  Gao Shen nodded. "That makes sense. But I'm not ied in signing someone who's injury-prone."

  Begiristain and Guardio exged ghey knew Gao Shen was trying to drive the price down.

  Thiago Motta, once sidered one of the most promising midfielders in Bara's youth system, had struggled to reach his full potential. Injuries and a loss of form had diminished his fidence, and with the arrival of Yaya Toure, Motta's future at Bara was bleak.

  "We've had i from several clubs," Begiristain said. "But no one is willing to meet our asking price."

  Gao Shen wasn't surprised. "You might want to cut your losses while you ."

  Begiristain sighed, knowing Gao Shen robably right.

  After a moment's pause, he leaned in. "Gao, just add a little more, and I'll sell him to you."