freeallnovels Chapter 65: In Search of New Stars
Chapter 65: In Search of New Stars
Chapter 65: In
However, Shevchenko dreamed of playing in Italy, not England.
The slightly na?ve Shevchenko expressed his thoughts directly to the translator: "I want to go to Italy, not England!"
Aldrich could only patiently urge the translator: "Please tell him that playing in England will attract more attention than playing in Ukraine, especially now that the visibility of the Premier League is on the rise. He can play in England first, create a name for himself, and then be discovered by more Serie A clubs. Also, if he stays in the UK for a few years, he could obtain an EU passport, which would give him a significant advantage when making a transfer to Italy."
After a lengthy back-and-forth between the translator and Shevchenko, the translator then said to Aldrich, "He wants to know if your team can stay in the Premier League long-term and what plans you have for his future as the club owner and head coach."
Speaking about his old profession, Aldrich no longer needed to be charming or sly with his answers. He opened his mouth and spoke passionately for about ten minutes.
Then Aldrich realized the translator had condensed his ten minutes of speech into a mere thirty seconds...
He wanted to punch the translator, but when he saw Shevchenko's expression wavering, he held back.
"He is concerned about his language barrier and whether he can integrate into your team."
"If he wants to leave Ukraine and join any major league, he will encounter this issue, whether it's Italy, Germany, England, Spain, or even France. No one speaks Ukrainian! The club will assign him a translator until he can fully read and use English in daily life. I think you can tell him that, rather than dream of joining a big club and struggling to communicate with various star players, including the head coach, he might as well join my team. At least this way, his shortcomings will have minimal negative impact, and he will gain experience on how to live in a foreign environment."
Aldrich exerted all his efforts to successfully persuade Shevchenko to join. Although the negotiation took longer than expected, he thought it was reasonable, considering the player was leaving his hometown to head to England; caution was warranted.
Before finalizing this transfer, Aldrich returned to London and immediately asked Andrew to handle this matter.
Millwall couldn't deal directly with the FA; they needed a middleman.
The English football scene had always been riddled with black-and-gold scandals, but mostly behind the scenes of player transfers.
Aldrich simply wanted the FA to open a convenient door for him. Even if someone exposed this scandal in the future, Aldrich could wash his hands of it.
Nedvěd didn't have an EU passport, but once he made a name for himself, who the hell would dare claim he wasn't a genius? Not signing him would be a loss for English football.
Shevchenko's situation was similar; as long as he could shine in English football, no one would be foolish enough to leak any wrongdoing regarding the transfer hearings down the line.
As long as the money transaction left no incriminating evidence, Aldrich felt secure. He had complete faith in Andrew; that kid had been obsessed with money since childhood and had mastered the art of handling finances, even studying street drug trade models before he turned 18. He certainly wouldn't be caught red-handed and would leave no trace behind.
However, Aldrich learned from Andrew in London that the FA needs a guarantor to be present at the hearing.
Millwall was no longer the unnoticed team it was in League One last year; back then, nobody cared who they signed. But this summer, Millwall was a Premier League team. Relying solely on paperwork to get the FA to open its back door would invite imitation from the other 19 teams.
Aldrich needed a respected figure in English football to step in. After much thought, he realized there was only one person who could help him and would be willing to repay the favor:
Alex Ferguson!