"Here it comes!"
In the hotel room, Emilia imitated Maël's celebration, raising her hands, her eyes full of admiration. "In these crucial battles, he always steps up and always has a brilliant performance!
"It's like he was born for this! The report about his goal can be published!"
Her braces hadn't been removed yet, and her toothy smile was very cute, making people feel a heartfelt joy that was very healing.
"Bang, bang, bang!" Peter, who was next to her, was even more excited, banging on the table. There wouldn't be any more surprises. Today, Maël and Football Record would be the focus of the football world.
They would grab countless hot topics, accumulate many fans, and together usher in better development prospects!
"Hurry up and post it."
Peter leaned over to look at Emilia's computer, knowing that Emilia was about to fill in the keywords.
As a series of clicks and clacks sounded, one short sentence after another was entered into the appropriate position, and a report that looked like it had been carefully prepared for a long time was freshly released.
"77th minute of the match!
"Volley World Wave!
"Take the lead! '1 goal and 1 assist!' 'Near Game-winning goal!'"
Emilia pondered for a while before clicking publish, deleting the last bit of 'near Game-winning goal' before pressing the mouse. It was still necessary to be rigorous and avoid any reversals at the end of the match.
It wouldn't matter much to her, but it would probably affect the newspaper and Maël.
"Phew!"
Refreshing the backend and watching the number of clicks and likes surge, Peter shouted heartily, fantasizing, "Do you think it's possible for us to become a company like 'News Corporation' in the future?
"Covering newspapers, television, magazines, books, the Internet, etc., a sports empire with countless copyrights."
News Corporation is the group of American tycoon Murdoch, whose most famous subsidiaries are Sky Sports, The Sun, The Times, etc.
They have a lot of copyrights and say in the sports industry, and they also have a pivotal position in the entertainment industry.
Hearing the name of her former company, the bright smile on Emilia's face gradually turned into a self-deprecating wry smile. "It should be difficult, they are too big... Is Mr. Peter trying to help me make a comeback?
"Haha..." Of course, she wasn't narcissistic to that extent, although she herself might have always had this goal. "Just kidding."
"It's difficult, but not impossible?" Peter didn't say anything, just looked at her and smiled.
"I think so."
Emilia turned her gaze to the backend data column, looking at the various data that continued to soar with anticipation, and said softly, "If it continues to grow at this rate, I don't think anything is impossible.
"We have Maël, and he will always have the influence of people like Cristiano, Messi, and Beckham.
"And our company will become his Irina, his Victoria... Just a metaphor."
...
Etihad Stadium, 80th minute of the match, Džeko and Adam Johnson came on together.
They replaced Barry and Yaya Touré, who had been running for a whole game. Their immediate combat power was definitely not as strong as Milner, who had just gone up.
After the two came on, one stood in the center forward position and the other stood in the winger position, launching a strong attack according to Mancini's requirements, striving to score one or more goals in the final moments.
"Bang, bang, bang!"
Manchester City's frontcourt accelerated the passing rhythm, and David Silva and Nasri's positions were closer, and the two of them were jointly responsible for organizing the attack.
The combination of Agüero and Džeko, a truly high and 'fast' combination, also began to play a role at this time.
In the 82nd minute of the match, David Silva's precise through ball found the inserted Agüero.
After Agüero got the ball deep in the ribs, he was already marked tightly by Koscielny and couldn't turn around... He turned his head and passed the ball to Nasri, who had inserted on the wing, and the latter immediately sent a Cross.
"Bang!"
In the middle position, Džeko gained the upper hand in the first confrontation with Mertesacker. He headed the ball hard, almost smashing Arsenal's goal.
The ball eventually flew out above the crossbar by a foot or so, causing countless Manchester City fans to let out a burst of regret.
But their momentum had already been built up. When a group of midfielders and forwards with a combined value of nearly 300 million frantically counterattacked with high pressure, the opponent's defense would inevitably leak a lot of flaws.
Arsenal was not known for its defense in the first place, and it was inevitable that the backcourt would be suppressed... It depended on whether the frontcourt could alleviate these pressures through offense.
Wenger also quickly made adjustments to strengthen the defense. He replaced Walcott and Ramsey one after another, replacing them with Mikel and Djourou, attempting to establish a tighter defense through numerical superiority.
But this way, the control in the mid-to-front field was basically gone, and Arsenal had almost bid farewell to ball control.
"I'll drop back!"
Van Persie waved at Wenger at this moment, suggesting, "Should I drop back to midfield to support, and let Maël be the only one up front? If Arteta and Song can't deliver the ball, multiple support points might help!"
Wenger pondered for a moment, and finally nodded in agreement with this suggestion, allowing Van Persie to return to midfield. The Netherlands forward's footwork was definitely up to par in that position.
He had said more than once that the most suitable position for Van Persie was actually as a false nine, Bergkamp's position.
Compared to the latter, Van Persie had a stronger finishing ability, and he could push forward more often into dangerous areas to score, and of course, he also had the ability to pass threatening balls.
Should he pair him with a tall center forward?
Wenger had this idea. He had been paying attention to Giroud of the French team and had already put him on the transfer list, but he hadn't thought about making a move before.
Now he had this idea. Arsenal was a team with a strong attack and a weak defense, which was related to his initial insistence on offensive football.
Since they couldn't rely on a solid defense to score, they might as well put all their hopes on the front line, playing a 4-4-2 or even a 4-2-4 formation with wingers flying together.
With Maël and Van Persie as two explosive points, if that center forward was strong, it wouldn't be a pipe dream for Arsenal to score more than 3 goals per game on average.
He could start planning!
Arsenal had a chance to win the league this season, so he had to put more effort in and seize the opportunity!
If they were really short of money, they could sell a few players who were no longer able to play. According to his observation, some people's bodies seemed frighteningly strong, and as long as they paid attention to rotation, they were unlikely to get injured.
On the field, Maël came alone to the middle of the opponent's two center backs, becoming a forward spearhead, taking on the role of a fulcrum or counterattack.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Seeing the Manchester City front players trying to shoot one after another, he often felt cold sweats on his body, fearing that the opponent would score a game-winning goal at the last moment, or even score 2 goals in a row.
Manchester City had a tradition of comebacks.
After increasing the number of defenders, Arsenal's back line became slightly more stable, but it wasn't a fundamental solution. Being pressed like this, something was bound to happen sooner or later.
He had the idea of doing something, but he couldn't get the ball right now, so no matter how much he wanted to score, it was useless.
"Pa!"
In the 86th minute of the game, David Silva's curved shot hit Mertesacker and bounced out of the penalty area, and Alexandre Song controlled the ball.
"Someone's coming!"
Maël, seeing Nasri already rushing up, was afraid that he would turn around directly, and reminded, "Pass it back!"
"Bang, bang!"
Alexandre Song obviously heard it, and passed the ball to Mertesacker in front of him, who passed it forward to Arteta.
Arteta took the opportunity to turn around, facing the direction of attack, looking for a way to pass the ball to Maël.
It was almost over, at this time, it would be good to let Maël go to the sideline to protect the ball. At least the backcourt could catch a breath.
"Pa!" But Milner reacted quickly, blocking Arteta's passing line all the time, and even completed a sliding tackle to steal the ball in the final sprint.
Maël in the front field immediately stopped with a look of melancholy. He couldn't stay up here anymore. Next time his teammates got the ball, he had to go back to receive it, or even pull to the side to receive it, and solve the problem in the way he was best at.
In the 87th minute of the game, Manchester City launched another wave of continuous attacks. First, Adam Johnson crossed the ball from the left, and Agüero at the far post missed the shot.
"Bang!"
Immediately afterwards, Nasri, who got the ball on the right side, passed the ball towards the inverted triangle position, and David Silva, who followed up, hit a low shot.
The angle of this shot was not tricky, but it was saved by Szczęsny and flew to the other side.
Adam Johnson, who had just completed the cross, received the second ball, observed it, and found it difficult to handle, so he directly swept a low, flat ball towards the goal.
"Chih chih chih!" The ball quickly crossed in front of the goal, Szczęsny didn't save it when he went to the ground, and fortunately, the few people who were following up at the far post also missed the ball one after another, and no one poked the ball into the net.
Almost! "Hiss!"
After this wave of attack, the Arsenal midfielders and defenders looked pale, and they all gasped. Even Wenger on the sidelines didn't look too good.
Szczęsny didn't dare to pass the goal kick short anymore, and kicked a long pass as far as possible to the opponent's backcourt, so that the overall line of his teammates could press forward.
The football was headed by Kompany in Manchester City's half. Seeing Maël standing beside him, he didn't think there would be much threat, so he wanted to head it to his central defensive partner, Kolo Touré, to secure the ball.
"Bang!" This was originally a sure-fire clearance in the backfield. Manchester City should have been able to firmly control possession and then steadily advance to the front to launch an attack.
But at this critical moment, Maël suddenly used his amazing flexibility to stylishly hook a foot towards the sky, intercepting the football's flight path, "Snap!"
The football hit the tip of his foot, and everything came to a standstill at that moment. The heartbeats of Manchester City's players and coaches seemed to skip a beat.
Intercepted! "Danger! Maël has intercepted the football! It's a predictive interception! The player reacted in a very short time and intercepted the football! We all know that Maël has a monster-like physique. Kompany was careless! This is a super, super, huge, huge low-level mistake!"
"No, it's because of Maël's stunning hook that turned Kompany's reasonable touch into a low-level mistake!"
Zhan Jun's voice was sharp, and Zhang Lu, who was beside him, kept echoing. He was so engrossed in watching that he acted as a comma and a period. I wonder if ESPN will regret paying him.
In Manchester City's half, Kompany's face instantly turned green. He quickly rushed forward, wanting to use a foul to stop Maël, but the latter took the ball down and dribbled it diagonally to the outside.
Kompany just wanted to slap himself twice. Wouldn't it have been over if he had cleared the ball early? Screw it, why did he have to set up his teammate?
Now it's good. As long as Maël takes the ball to the corner area, the last few minutes will pass quickly, and Manchester City will lose any hope of getting points.
"Bang, bang!" Maël took two steps towards the right with the ball, bypassing Kompany's defensive zone and creating a gap.
Kolo Touré, fearing that he and Kompany would be directly blown past, chose a very reasonable retreat, protecting Kompany's back.
Maël suddenly had a flash of inspiration, glanced at Joe Hart's approximate position, and found that the other party was retreating near the penalty area line.
Well, there's nothing he could do then. You just happen to be standing forward, and I just happen to have a good crossing technique for long passes. Isn't that a coincidence?
Following the iron law of if the heavens have feelings, they too will age, Hart will be fooled by a shot.
Maël took the ball to the right, swung his left arm, and wound up his right leg.
At this moment, everyone knew what he was going to do, and the hearts of Manchester City fans stopped with their players and coaches.
"Bang!!"
Just before Kompany came up to defend, Maël's right foot made contact with the bottom of the football, using the maximum long-pass force to shoot the ball towards the far end of the goal, but he didn't pursue too much height.
Whether in terms of appearance or the touching action, his figure was extremely dashing at this moment. People seemed to see the young Beckham in red standing there.
The football flew into the air, pulling the hearts of more than 40,000 people in the stadium to shoot towards the net together, drawing a beautiful arc in the air.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
In front of the goal, Joe Hart was originally watching the football and running backwards. When he realized that the football was very fast and the landing point was very tricky, he wanted to turn around and sprint at full speed.
But as a goalkeeper, he usually doesn't have many running scenes, and coupled with poor coordination, he lost control of his feet when he turned around, and fell to the ground.
"Swish!" Joe Hart, with a bitter face, supported himself on the ground with both hands and was about to stand up when he saw the football hit the middle of the goal.
The linesman on the side quickly ran back towards the center circle line, and the referee's hand also pointed to the center circle, indicating that the goal was valid: "Beep!!"
"Yeah!!" Only more than 4,000 Arsenal fans erupted in cheers, but they still couldn't warm the entire stadium, because more than 40,000 Manchester City fans were plunged into an ice cave.
"F*ck!"
Kompany, who lost possession and caused the team to concede a goal, swung his right hand. He was extremely, extremely remorseful, feeling a thorn piercing his throat, first making him slowly speechless, and then feeling a sting in his heart.
No hope!
One to three!
Stunning lob shot!
Kolo Touré also ran to Joe Hart's position at this time. He looked at Joe Hart's bitter face and couldn't help but close his eyes and mourn, remembering how many wonder goals he had conceded.
If he had learned Chinese, perhaps he would sigh: If the heavens have feelings, they too will age, please let Hart go.
"Vamos!!"
Maël spread his arms, laughed excitedly, and tilted his head back, showing his handsome face to the broadcast lens.
Two world wave goals!
After the Italian Tuttosport selected him as the winner of the Golden Boy Award, he also used this performance to give himself his first personal honor.
"Yes!" Van Persie, who was closer, was the first to come up, and Arteta and Alexandre Song also ran over quickly. Everyone at Arsenal suddenly went crazy.
"Won!"
"Maël! God!"
"Whew! I don't know how to express it, I can only say that I was under a lot of pressure just now, but now, I feel like I can single-handedly defend David Silva + Agüero!"
"Hahaha! Undefeated for half the season might be coming!"
"Go! Go!!"
Arsenal's players celebrated wildly, and Professor Wenger also spread his arms and slid on the sidelines, revealing a rare side of himself.
"He scored again!! Maël! A magical lob! An incredible lob! It happened at the Etihad Stadium!!"
Zhan Jun roared, as if squeezing all the air out of his lungs, "Three to one! Maël killed the game with a brace!
"Arsenal have overcome their last strong opponent and are officially marching towards an undefeated first half of the season!
"Maël! Radiant! The bright young man, on the day he won the Golden Boy Award, single-handedly created 3 goals, defeating Mancini's team!
"Haven't you seen the 18-year-old Ronaldo? Haven't you seen the 18-year-old Messi, the 18-year-old Cristiano?
"Now, you can see the shadows of all three of them in an even more talented player!"
Zhan Jun vented all his excitement and looked at Zhang Lu, who was so shocked that he slumped in his chair, unable to close his mouth as he laughed.
"I thought Manchester City was going to make a comeback. Mancini's team has come back from behind to win 4 times this season, and drawn once with a game-winning goal! But look, Maël stood up! I don't think any words of praise are too much for him now. Whether it's Maël the Great or the new king of the Emirates Stadium... he deserves these titles at this moment."
"Haha...!"
Zhan Jun laughed loudly beside him. He turned his head and thought for a long time, trying to find a good title for Maël. Finally, he thought of an aircraft carrier, inspired by the soon-to-be-commissioned 'Liaoning Aircraft Carrier', "This can be regarded as Arsenal's aircraft carrier setting sail, like a jiao dragon!"
"Why an aircraft carrier?" Zhang Lu found the title quite interesting and turned to ask with a smile.
"First of all, he's very strong."
Zhan Jun pointed to Maël in the broadcast lens and smiled, "He's big, that's the first point. Secondly, he's a nearly all-around player, strong in all aspects.
"Whether it's searching, tracking, attacking, or utilizing space on the field, as well as this large-scale, high-intensity striking ability, they're all very similar.
"So just now, it was the aircraft carrier firing its guns and hitting the target!"
"Hehe..." Zhang Lu chuckled and nodded, "That's quite fitting. Then I have to say, it would be even better if he had air superiority."
On the sidelines, Mancini didn't explode this time. He stood on the sidelines like a melancholy Italian man, looking at everything in the world with melancholy eyes, unable to recover for a long time.
In a few weeks, a rotated squad against Maël with a rotated squad, a full-strength squad against Maël with a full-strength squad.
All losses!
What could he do? "Yes!"
Inside the hotel, this time it was Peter who roared, "Brace! Single-handedly created 3 goals! Maël has won everything tonight!"
Emilia was writing a manuscript on the side, using this method to distract herself... Manchester City's attack was very fierce just now, and she was very afraid that Mancini's team would equalize or score a game-winning goal at the end.
If that were the case, the post-match report of '2 divine goals carry the whole game' would have to become '2 divine goals can't save the team'.
This brings a different feeling. For a football player, the team's victory is very important.
"He scored again?!"
She turned her head and waved her hand after seeing the replay, putting down all her worries.
She moved her laptop horizontally and placed it in front of Peter, "I just finished writing about his brace, take a look, it needs to be sent out as soon as possible!"
"Just send it!"
Peter had no intention of looking at it. After working in the media for so many years, he understood the fans' mood at the moment, "Just tell them how wonderful Maël's goal was, and let them know about the exclusive interview tonight.
"With the GIF, no one will care about your words, they will only focus all their attention on Maël."
"That's true." Emilia nodded, added a few keywords, and sent out the report.
The popularity of this report quickly surpassed the previous two, attracting countless fans to forward and like it, and many media outlets that couldn't keep up with the pace also reprinted the news.
At this moment, the company's phone rang, with a number they had never seen before.
Peter signaled Emilia to answer, and after the latter answered, she heard a voice from the other side, "Is this Football Record? I'm Jorge Mendes, you should have someone in Manchester, right?"
Emilia suddenly became nervous after hearing Mendes' voice, glanced at Peter, and then nodded, "The boss and the person preparing for the exclusive interview are both in Manchester. What are your instructions, Mr. Mendes?"
"I have a suggestion."
Mendes' voice sounded, with a hint of barely perceptible urgency, "Contact Tuttosport to receive the award tonight. You and Maël will depart directly from Manchester International Airport after the game."
"I see the buzz around the interview is already very high, why not go even bigger? You can film a documentary of the interview, starting from the moment the player walks out of the Etihad, all the way to the player receiving the award in Turin."
"Although it's a bit of a rush timewise, this will maximize the impact, both for the player and for you."
"I think Maël will agree, but I don't know what your opinions are. Think about it carefully. If you can overcome some difficulties and do as I say, there will definitely be no mistakes."
"You can edit the documentary and post it on social media, and extract the dialogue for news reports."
Emilia had the speakerphone on. She saw Peter on the other side nodding ecstatically, and then anxiously pointing at the phone, signaling her to ask some questions.
She was quite clever, and inquired, "We have no problem, but we don't know if Maël agrees? And will the player have time to rest?"
"I'll take care of that."
Mendes seemed to be getting up from somewhere, and laughed, "You guys go prepare. Wait for him at parking lot C1 in the Etihad basement, and tell him by the way, although I'm in Spain now, I'll be in Italy tonight."
"At that time, you wouldn't mind me appearing in the interview, right? Haha, I must be there for Maël's important moment."
"Of course not."
Emilia suppressed her excitement and exchanged a few more polite words before hanging up the phone, cheering and high-fiving Peter, and then starting to pack things up urgently.
Two minutes later, they rushed out of the hotel with two large suitcases, not having time to call a car, and hailed a taxi at the door to head towards the Etihad.
"Beep! Beep! Beep—!"
Etihad Stadium, with the referee's three long whistles, the game came to an end.
In the end, Arsenal defeated Manchester City three to one with two goals from Maël and one goal from Van Persie! There are only two games left, as long as they grit their teeth and fight through them, they will have an undefeated first half of the season! "Let's go."
Wenger was so happy after the game that he couldn't concentrate, and took out the post-match speech he had said in the last EFL Cup, "Great team."
Mancini could understand his feelings to some extent, patted him on the shoulder and said nothing, retreating back to the player tunnel.
"You said that last time." Assistant coach Philip came to Wenger's side, looking embarrassed.
"Ah? Really?"
Wenger felt the warmth in his hand, turned his head and glanced at Mancini's departing back, feeling a little apologetic. He really didn't think too much just now, and said whatever came to mind.
Turning his head and seeing Maël coming over, Wenger really wanted to go up and hug this player who had repeatedly created surprises for him, but he was afraid that he couldn't lift him.
"Are you going for the Monthly Best again this month?" Wenger looked at Maël with a smile, "Are you going to take me along with you again?"
"Haha..."
Maël hugged Wenger, feeling very good as well, "If possible, of course I want to go for it."
After speaking, he walked into the player tunnel and returned to the locker room.
He first opened his phone, ready to browse the post-match news, but just happened to see Mendes' call coming in.
"Hello?"
"..."
"..."
"Okay, help us book the tickets."
After learning about Mendes' plan, Maël nodded in agreement and went to the bathroom to take a shower, "I'll take a shower and leave."
Hanging up the phone, he quickly finished his shower, changed into a new set of clothes that he had brought with him, and left after sending Wenger a text message.
"Maël."
As a result, as soon as he went out, he saw Wenger leading all the assistant coaches and most of the players standing behind him, waving goodbye to him, "Congratulations, see you at the Emirates Stadium!"
"Thank you!"
Maël could see the expectations on everyone's faces, and he waved to them with a cheerful mood, leaving the Etihad Stadium.
After walking a few steps, Agüero chased up from behind and stopped him, hoping to exchange jerseys with him.
Maël accepted the proposal, exchanged jerseys with Agüero, left contact information, and then parted ways.
"Come on, Maël! The European Cup is out of the question, but I'm eager to meet you on the World Cup stage. That's a real competition, a feast!"
"Definitely!"
Exiting from the agreed-upon C1 exit, Maël saw Peter and Emilia, who had already set up their photography equipment. They were both waiting for him with smiles on their faces.
"Just you guys?"
He had just asked when he saw two business cars driving from a distance. One was empty, and the other was full of Football Record photographers and staff.
He smiled and waved, walking over to Emilia's side. She quickly held the microphone to his mouth. "You know the interview has already started, right?" "Yeah, I've actually thought about how this interview would start many times, but I never imagined it would be like this."
"Everyone knows you've just experienced an important match. Can you talk about your feelings at this moment? What is the significance of this match for you and the team?"
As Emilia spoke, she opened the car door and invited Maël into the empty car. This seemed to be a dynamic interview.
"I'm very happy."
Maël stepped into the car and officially began to answer the questions. Peter, who had been holding the handheld camera, handed the equipment over to a more professional photographer.
In the camera's lens, Maël had a bright smile and was very pleasing to the eye. He answered the questions calmly, "Nothing is better than winning against the last strong opponent of the first half of the season on the day I receive the Golden Boy Award."
"It's a long, somewhat strange sentence, but when these elements are stacked together, you understand the significance of this match to me, and my mood when I won it."
"As for the entire team... I don't know if everyone has noticed, but many teams build faith and cohesion through reversals and difficult victories, and ultimately achieve important accomplishments."
"I believe we can do the first part like them, and we can also do the second part like them."
Emilia nodded and sat next to Maël after getting into the car, while signaling the photographer and Peter to get in as well.
The first question is usually like this, letting everyone understand the current time and place, and the general mood when being interviewed.
Coupled with the title, it can usually instantly bring people into the player's current state of mind.
"Have you booked the tickets?"
Maël looked at Emilia and asked a question that didn't fit the current tense, "Also, have you contacted Tuttosport? What if they're not prepared?"
"Mr. Mendes has taken care of everything." Emilia didn't seem to care. This kind of documentary interview needs these kinds of small segments. "Arrive in Turin at nine, attend the awards ceremony at nine thirty."
"Okay."
Maël nodded, relieved, and looked at Emilia, raising his eyebrows to signal her to continue asking questions.
"Around the time you scored your fifth league goal? We agreed to do an exclusive interview when you scored 10 goals, then it was postponed to 15 goals, and now to this."
Emilia smiled sweetly and held the microphone to Maël's mouth. "Your growth rate is too fast, so fast that outsiders are constantly setting new goals for you. I want to ask about your own goals."
"Not just the season goals, but also the current, this month, the first half of the season, etc. I want to hear about your plans for this season."
"Let me think, there are indeed quite a few goals."
Maël nodded and began to think. Just like he said a long time ago, this kind of exclusive interview is also a review of his future, which has a certain effect.
"Does it seem like I'm deliberately showing off in a low-key way if I say that my psychological expectation at the beginning of the season was 25 goals and 10 assists?"
He laughed softly, "Having come this far, the goal of competing for the Golden Boot is certain. As for the specific numerical goal, I think there are two levels."
"One is to break the single-season league record of 30 goals set by my senior, Henry the Great, and the other is to break the Premier League goal record of 34 goals set by Alan Shearer and Andy Cole."
"In addition, I hope to win the Premier League Best Young Player of the season, or even the Best Player? Haha, the season MVP, this goal is a bit too big."
"Let's talk about the team aspect. It is certain that we will compete for the final championship in the Premier League, and I also have ideas for the EFL Cup."
"As for the FA Cup and the Champions League, I haven't been exposed to one of these competitions, and I've only been exposed to the group stage of the other, so I'm not familiar with them. I don't dare to say anything now."
"The team's bench depth should not be enough to compete for the championship on three or four fronts. Focus on some matches and steadily win the championships we deserve."
"If we end up with nothing in the end, it will be a blow to this emerging team."
He rubbed his hair, realizing that some parts were not yet dry, and continued, "As for the others, from small to large, I will pursue victory in every match, the monthly best player, and every award that can be won."
"After all, I said a long time ago that my goal is to win all the awards."
"It seems like there's nothing else? Anyway, this season's performance won't allow me to win the Ballon d'Or, haha, maybe next season or the season after that."
Emilia had been looking at him with a smile, and after he finished speaking, she asked the next question.
"..."
The two of them chatted all the way to Manchester International Airport, still talking.
Before boarding, seeing that the camera had to be temporarily turned off, Emilia asked a question she really wanted to ask, "Have you considered finding a girlfriend? What kind of girl are you looking for?"
"I have considered it."
The wind was strong in front of the plane, and Maël's hair was blown up. After thinking for a while, he said seriously, "I might need someone who can accompany me and give me comfort at any time."
Emilia nodded with sparkling eyes, asked the cameraman to turn off the handheld camera, and led everyone to board the plane.
Peter arranged to the person next to him, "Cut out this part as soon as we get on the plane, shoot some more footage later, and release it tonight."
"Okay."
Exiting the airport in Turin, it was already past 9:10 PM. The group turned on the camera and hurriedly boarded the prepared business car, heading towards a conference center in the city center.
"We've arrived in Turin, and Maël is about to receive the first important individual honor trophy of his career."
Emilia smiled joyfully in front of the camera, and after introducing the situation to the camera, she pointed the microphone at Maël, "I want to ask, what does the Golden Boy Award mean to you?"
Maël didn't think for too long, he already had an answer to this question, "It means that I have already climbed a medium-height peak, and now, it's time to start climbing towards the highest one."
"The Ballon d'Or?"
"Yes, and the European Golden Boot, European Best Player, and many other awards."
"Haha... Someone once said that you spend more than £10,000 a week to support your team? And live in a house with a weekly rent of more than £10,000? Fixed expenses exceeding £30,000?"
"Almost. A good living environment can bring me better mood and motivation. The team members ensure my good health. I will add private doctors, drivers, and so on in the future."
"As the number of social media fans grows, I will also consider adding some internet operation positions, which are all under consideration."
"Although the weekly cost may exceed £50,000 by then, the benefits it can bring me are obvious. You have to be willing to invest in yourself and use money to find some professional talents. Doing everything yourself is foolish."
The two chatted for a while, and the car had already arrived at the entrance of the conference center.
Maël was still expecting a red carpet leading straight to the drop-off point, but he only saw a few pieces near the door... It seems that if he wants to learn from those stars and walk the red carpet, he will have to wait for the Ballon d'Or ceremony early next year.
After getting out of the car, he took a few deep breaths, prepared himself for the important moment in his life, and walked towards the door.
The moment he stepped on the red carpet, he had a very strange feeling, a tremor all over his body.
"Congratulations." The Italian hostess at the door made a gesture of invitation to him and said a congratulatory word in English.
Maël nodded to her, walked into the venue, and saw Mendes in front of a row of billboards, as well as his uncle and aunt.
They're here too? Maël's eyes lit up, and he looked at Mendes, knowing that it was Mendes' doing again.
"Surprise!"
Mendes came to him and pointed to Clermont and Betty, "I invited them to participate in today's event in advance, without telling you."
"Of course." Maël hugged him, then came to his uncle and aunt, and hugged them together.
"You've made something of yourself." Uncle Clermont looked at him with emotion as soon as they met, with tears in his eyes, "We can only sincerely congratulate and bless you, and be a little more afraid... We almost ruined you back then."
Maël patted him to indicate that it was okay, and then came to his aunt Betty, and hugged the person who had worked hard to raise him since he was a child.
Because he often sent money back, the family's living standards had obviously improved a lot, and their complexions were much better.
The frostbite on Betty's face was gone, only rosiness remained, "I am proud of you, and so is Clermont, and your younger siblings are all proud of you."
"When people learn that we are Maël's family, we will receive a lot of preferential treatment. The teachers in the school will take special care of them. Haha, many neighbors have also recorded blessing videos for you, I'll show them to you later."
"The teachers in the children's classes also asked me for your autograph. I didn't promise them, I just said I'd tell you and see what you think."
"I will give them to them." Maël patted Betty on the back, and after separating from her, he came to a place under Mendes' introduction.
"This is Vaciago, the editor-in-chief of Tuttosport, who is responsible for this award ceremony."
Under his introduction, a middle-aged man who looked very capable walked over and congratulated, "Congratulations, although I can't tell you the exact number of votes, I can tell you that this is the most lopsided edition."
"Haha... I hope you can be happier by saying that. My life philosophy is to enjoy this important moment to the fullest."
He pointed to himself, and then to Mendes, "Like today, this is not just your enjoyment, I will also enjoy it, Mr. Mendes will, and your family will."
Maël nodded and said from the bottom of his heart, "I agree with your view, let's enjoy all of this."
Vaciago put his arm around his shoulder, led him to a spot, and gestured towards a high platform covered with a black cloth.
"Thank you."
Maël knew this was the Golden Boy Award trophy. With excitement in his heart, he stepped forward, took a deep breath, and yanked off the black cloth.
In an instant, the true appearance of the Golden Boy Award appeared before him. It was a small ball somewhat similar to the Ballon d'Or trophy, with some different details in the design, such as the hand support and the base.
But there was no need to worry about the level of Italian handcraftsmanship. In Maël's opinion, this was a more beautiful trophy than the Ballon d'Or.
And it was the arrogant award that every player could only receive once in their lifetime, and which would not wait for anyone—the Golden Boy Award trophy!
Maël reached out and touched it, feeling a chill, but his burning hands quickly warmed it up. He picked it up and held it in his hands, a strong sense of satisfaction and honor welling up inside him.
"Clap clap clap!"
A round of applause rang out. Vaciago, Mendes, his aunt and uncle, Emilia, Peter, and all the emcee ladies applauded for him.
They all witnessed the moment when Maël held up the Golden Boy Award, and everyone's expectations for his future rose even higher.
Of course, on various social media platforms and in front of televisions, there were likely even more people enjoying this scene, or waiting to see photos of it.
"Click click!" The reporters from Football Record followed Maël in, occupying the best positions and taking the best photos.
Emilia couldn't resist in the end, and stepped forward to take many photos of Maël with Mendes, as well as photos with his family.
"Thank you!"
Finally, with Maël holding up the Golden Boy Award trophy and expressing his thanks, everyone took a large group photo, ending the award ceremony.
An important moment was thus reduced to a microcosm, becoming a series of important photos.
But Maël's feelings would last for a very long time, and these feelings would only gradually fade, not disappear.
Until he retired, he could point to this trophy and loudly tell people, "This is the first important achievement I obtained in my career!"
At this point, everything related to the Golden Boy Award was settled, and Maël won the 2011 Golden Boy Award!
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