Zlatan looked slightly down at Lynn.
Although he could not understand what gave this man the confidence to say such things to him, the words certainly sounded pleasant.
He glanced at the club chairman.
The chairman gave him a sowhat helpless look, as if expressing that he simply could not resist the temptation of two million pounds.
In truth, it was unrealistic for Swedish clubs to sell players for huge sums.
No matter how good a player was, if he had not yet proven himself on Europe's top stage, major European clubs would not easily take the risk of spending heavily on him.
A rich buyer like Lynn, who ca in and imdiately offered two million pounds, had truly nad a price that was difficult to refuse.
Zlatan understood the situation.
The club already wanted to sell him, and the owner standing before him seed very sincere.
More importantly, his way of doing things suited Zlatan's taste.
He sat down and said, "Tell about your club."
Lynn took out a docunt introducing Swansea City.
Zlatan casually flipped through it and felt that there was nothing especially attractive.
However, having grown up in a poor district, he could not refuse the temptation of money.
Behind the Swansea City introduction file, there were attached details of the terms for new signings.
For example, free apartnts, and the club could also arrange jobs for players' family mbers in the community near the club.
Zlatan pointed at the apartnt display image and said, "I want the biggest one."
"The biggest one was prepared for you."
Lynn answered without hesitation.
Hearing this, Zlatan imdiately laughed. He was starting to like Lynn a little!
"Signing-on fee. Five hundred thousand pounds."
"Fine. But the contract has to be five years."
"Annual salary of five hundred thousand pounds."
"Fine. Every ti the team wins promotion, I'll raise it by another twenty percent."
"And give a car. I want an Audi. I choose the model."
"Once you score twenty league goals, I'll give it to you."
There was not the slightest pause in the conversation between Lynn and Zlatan.
After they finished speaking, they looked at each other.
Then Zlatan closed the file and asked, "When do we sign?"
"You can leave for Swansea tomorrow. Once you arrive at the club, we can complete the signing."
Zlatan stood up and said, "I'm going to say goodbye to my teammates."
"Good. See you in Swansea then, do you need soone to pick you up?"
"If soone's coming to pick up, arrange two beautiful won and a Rolls-Royce or a stretch Lincoln."
"Go to the club by yourself."
Zlatan walked out of the eting room without looking back.
After shaking hands with the Malmö chairman, Lynn imdiately said goodbye as well.
He called the club and told them to prepare for Zlatan's arrival.
Before Zlatan, Lynn had calculated the accounts.
The transfer fees and salary costs for all the players Swansea had signed so far ca to only £7.25 million.
Including the salaries and new-contract signing-on fees for the seven internal players, the total was roughly £8 million.
But Zlatan alone cost £3 million!
Even so, Lynn did not regret it at all.
He believed the spending was worth it.
This Swedish tower would repay him many tis over — far more than anyone could imagine.
...
That night, Lynn left Malmö and flew directly to Spain.
The next morning, he arrived in Asturias in northern Spain, at Sporting Gijón.
He directly requested a eting with the club chairman to discuss the transfer of a player from Sporting Gijón B.
Sporting Gijón were still in the Segunda División, while their B team played at an even lower level.
There was one player who had been trained by Sporting Gijón since childhood and had just entered their B team that sumr.
His na was David Villa.
The eighteen-year-old El Guaje!
Lynn's negotiation with Sporting Gijón went very quickly, because he firmly believed one thing: when a player had huge potential, there was no need to waste ti haggling over the transfer fee.
A prolonged tug-of-war could easily make the target club grow irritated and end negotiations.
It was better to complete the deal decisively.
Villa had not yet played for Sporting Gijón B, so it could not be said that his ability had been fully displayed.
Compared with young stars who had already made a na for themselves at eighteen, Villa belonged to the type of player who blood after gradual accumulation.
He beca a famous star by fighting his way up step by step from the lower leagues, not by coming from a prestigious academy with a dazzling halo from birth.
£1.5 million.
Aside from Spain's two giants, Real Madrid and Barcelona, the financial conditions of La Liga clubs were not good, let alone clubs in the Segunda División.
When Real Madrid and Barcelona each controlled the broadcast rights to their own matches, other clubs had no way to share in the broadcast attention and financial benefits brought by those superclubs.
It could be said that the economic situation of Spanish football clubs existed at two extres, with an enormous gap between rich and poor.
£1.5 million was enough to move Sporting Gijón into selling a player who had cost them almost nothing.
At noon, Lynn went directly to Villa's ho.
Villa's father was a coal miner.
The family's conditions were difficult, but Villa was deeply afraid of going down into the mines to work.
Because of that, he was determined to escape such a life. He focused entirely on football, and now he had reached a crucial period.
Lynn sat on the sofa in Villa's ho, looking at Villa's parents and the still rather thin Villa himself.
"David, I admire you very much. I also know what kind of talent you have. That is why I want you."
"Sporting Gijón have already been moved by my offer of £1.5 million. That money does not belong to you. But to allow you to focus completely on football, without worrying about your family, the terms I am offering you are these:
If you agree to transfer to Swansea, you will receive a £500,000 signing-on fee, an annual salary of £400,000, and a free 300-square-tre apartnt.
If your parents are worried about you, or if you are worried about them, the club can provide them with jobs in the community. Alternatively, they can run a small shop outside the club's stadium, with rent waived completely.
In addition, we will provide your parents with a free 200-square-tre apartnt."
"What do you think?"
Villa was stunned.
He looked around at his worn-down ho, and his heart fell into struggle.
In his eyes, the terms Lynn offered were astronomical.
Earning £400,000 in a year — that was an unimaginable fortune to soone who currently did not even earn £10,000 a year.
Not to ntion that as long as he signed, he would imdiately receive a £500,000 signing-on fee.
It would transform his entire family's life at once. His father would no longer need to go down into dangerous mines.
His mother would no longer have to work herself to exhaustion and take on odd jobs every day.
He himself could truly devote everything to football and work hard to realize his dream.
At that mont, Villa's father spoke.
"But Swansea City are a Third Division club..."
The implication was that Swansea did not have much of a future.
Lynn said seriously, "This year, we are in the Third Division. But we have already invested more than ten million pounds in recruitnt. I believe we will soon beco a Second Division, First Division, and then Premier League club."
"Sir, right now, no Premier League or La Liga club is willing to sign your son, because they have not discovered David's footballing talent."
"I have discovered it."
"My investnt in him will be seen as a gamble, but I do not regret it at all, because David will not disappoint ."
"I have more confidence in him than you do, more than his mother does, and even more than David himself does."
"If you still have concerns, I can sign an additional agreent with you."
"If Swansea fail to reach the Premier League within five years, David may terminate his contract with the club for free, and he will also receive £5 million in compensation."
Lynn's words stunned the entire Villa family.
It seed that Lynn truly had more confidence in Villa than anyone else.
Villa's family had never experienced such a situation.
They also did not really know how to negotiate.
They were completely persuaded by Lynn and agreed to Villa's transfer to Swansea without even bargaining over the terms.
Before leaving Spain, Lynn called the club and asked them to arrange the Villa family's arrival.
He told Mo Yuan and Benn to treat the matter seriously and make sure everything was arranged as soon as possible.
After leaving Spain, Lynn's final stop was Portugal.
...
Lisbon.
The Alcochete training academy.
This was Sporting CP's youth academy.
Lynn toured the facility under the guidance of Sporting CP's CEO.
He saw Cristiano Ronaldo in the under-16 youth team, clearly outstanding in technique and overflowing with talent.
Following Lynn's gaze, Sporting's CEO smiled and said, "That's Cristiano. He had heart surgery just two months ago. I didn't expect him to recover so quickly. Now he's full of energy again."
Lynn kept his eyes fixed on Ronaldo, who was showing a strong desire to express himself on the pitch.
He calmly said, "I want him. How much training compensation does Sporting need?"
Sporting CP's CEO's expression imdiately turned ugly.
He shook his head.
"Cristiano is the best-performing player in our academy. We will not let him leave."
Lynn nodded gently.
Then he turned to look at him and said calmly, "What if I give him a one-million signing-on fee? Pounds, not euros. That's about 1.7 million euros. Would he co with ?"
The Sporting CEO, who understood Cristiano Ronaldo's family situation, instantly flew into a rage.
"So you're a robber! You didn't co here to visit and learn. You liar!"
Lynn said, "I'm sorry. I truly did not co here to visit and learn. Cristiano Ronaldo is the reason I ca."
"I only want to know how much compensation Sporting CP requires. If you cannot decide, then forget it. I will symbolically pay £500,000."
Because Ronaldo was only fifteen, he definitely had not signed a professional contract with Sporting CP.
In other words, no matter what kind of contract relationship he currently had with the club, it was not protected in the sa way as a professional deal.
Lynn could negotiate directly with Ronaldo over a transfer, but he would need to pay Sporting CP a training compensation fee, so that the club would not recover nothing after investing in his developnt.
The Sporting CEO called security and had Lynn thrown out.
After training ended, he even specifically went to speak with Ronaldo, hoping that Ronaldo would not be tempted by another club.
Ronaldo listened in complete confusion.
That evening, Lynn went to Cristiano Ronaldo's parents' ho.
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