SWR: Chapter 771/772

Chapter 771: Best in Europe

Although Gao Shen has won three Champions League titles, he has never actually attended any UEFA awards ceremony.

He even missed out on the major FIFA awards.

Yes, although he has appeared on FIFA and UEFA's official websites countless times, and has accepted interviews and recognition from both authoritative associations, he has never received an official award from them.

Because the FIFA Men's Coach of the Year award was only established in 2010.

It was officially introduced after Gao Shen had already won his second Champions League title in 2009.

This made things quite awkward.

When the FIFA Men's Coach of the Year award was launched, many people believed that even though Gao Shen hadn't coached a World Cup team or won the Champions League that year, he still deserved the honor.

But in the end, the award went to Del Bosque, who led Spain to win the World Cup, not Guardiola, who won the Champions League.

As for Gao Shen, who led Manchester City to their first league title in history, he wasn't even nominated.

Now, Gao Shen has led Manchester City to win the Champions League, becoming the only active head coach with three Champions League titles. Almost everyone believes that there's no doubt he'll win FIFA's Coach of the Year award this time.

But just then, UEFA stepped in.

…

As everyone knows, since last year, FIFA's World Player of the Year and the Ballon d'Or, originally founded by France Football, were merged into the FIFA Ballon d'Or, leaving a gap in the European-specific awards landscape.

Previously, UEFA's annual awards were position-based: best goalkeeper, best defender, best midfielder, best forward, and finally best player. These were segmented awards. The most prestigious Best Player award was seen as a strong predictor for the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year, which shows its significance.

But after the merger of the Ballon d'Or and FIFA's award, UEFA saw an opportunity. In cooperation with the European Sports Media Association, they decided to revamp their awards ceremony. The original segmented position-based awards were scrapped, replaced with a newly created European Best Player award.

As the name implies, this award recognizes the best-performing players in Europe and in European leagues over the past season.

The voting system involves football journalists from 53 European countries and regions. The first round of voting produces a top-three shortlist, followed by a second round of live voting to determine the final rankings.

But that's not all. UEFA also introduced a Best Coach award.

And everyone knows that, in the past season, Gao Shen—who led Manchester City to a treble and equaled the great Manchester United dynasty—is undoubtedly the top favorite, if not the only contender.

His main rival was Guardiola, who lost to Gao Shen's Manchester City in the Champions League final.

In other words, Gao Shen had virtually no competition.

This has even been jokingly referred to by the media as an award UEFA created specifically for top managers like him.

…

The media can hype it up, but Gao Shen doesn't let it get to his head.

Although he received a call from Platini and was almost certain to win the award, and so attended the ceremony with his fiancée Su Qing, he still remained humble.

When the team arrived in Monaco, all Manchester City players wore formal suits provided by the club.

Gao Shen's sponsor, Kiton, sent a custom-made suit directly from Italy to Monaco for him.

This Italian brand from Naples has greatly benefited from its partnership with Gao Shen. With strong momentum in its development, it focuses exclusively on high-end bespoke tailoring.

Manchester City arrived in Monaco around noon and checked into the hotel prepared by UEFA.

Gao Shen spent the afternoon trying on his suit, while Su Qing tried on a gown sponsored by a Chinese designer.

The two would be attending the awards ceremony together that evening.

The entire Manchester City squad would also attend, with Kompany representing the Champions League titleholders by holding the Big Ears trophy.

Everyone was looking forward to it.

Aside from Gao Shen's certain win for Coach of the Year, Luis Suárez was also shortlisted for Player of the Year.

Among the top three from the first-round vote, Suárez, Messi, and Ronaldo all had strong fanbases, but Suárez and Messi led in support.

Suárez stood out for his high goal tally, and for helping Manchester City win the treble, including defeating Messi's Barcelona in the Champions League final.

But Messi had the most eye-catching stat: 53 goals for Barcelona last season.

Due to Manchester City's advanced squad rotation system, Suárez's goal count was noticeably lower than Messi's.

So, the final result remained unpredictable.

…

The awards and draw ceremony began at 5:45 p.m.

By 7 p.m., staff had come to escort the guests.

Gao Shen and Su Qing were already dressed and ready.

Su Qing wore a simple yet elegant champagne-colored gown. Its mesh and tulle details highlighted her graceful figure. Her exposed shoulders and neckline added a touch of allure, while the custom diamond necklace from a jewelry company further enhanced her ethereal elegance.

Even the seasoned image designers, used to working with models and celebrities, were full of praise.

"You look absolutely stunning tonight," Gao Shen said sincerely.

Su Qing's cheeks turned slightly pink, making her look even more radiant, though her heart felt warm and her gaze affectionate.

"Let's go." Gao Shen said proudly, walking over and bending his left arm.

Su Qing gave a soft hum and gently took his arm.

The two stepped out together.

…

Night fell.

Media reporters and fans from around the world had already gathered outside the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco.

The conference center faces the sea to the north and east, with a triangular Japanese garden to the south. To the west, a single road separates it from the National Museum of Monaco, and a cycling track runs alongside the road.

At this moment, the red carpet extended from the entrance of the Grimaldi Forum to the roadside.

On either side of the cycling track, media reporters stood shoulder to shoulder, cameras and equipment at the ready.

Fans lined up across the street, facing the red carpet and the conference center's main entrance.

When the limousine carrying Gao Shen slowly came to a stop at the red carpet, the live commentator had already called out his name.

All the reporters instantly perked up, and the fans across the street became visibly excited, chanting "Gao Shen!"

A concierge stepped forward and opened the door.

As Gao Shen stepped out in his sharp black suit, the clicking of cameras erupted in a frenzy.

He politely greeted the reporters and fans, then quickly circled around the car to open the door for his fiancée.

The crowd gasped in surprise.

Su Qing reached out with her right hand and gently held onto Gao Shen's left arm. The two walked side by side onto the red carpet.

"Here we see Gao Shen, the strongest contender for this year's Coach of the Year award, making his entrance."

"Beside him is his beautiful fiancée."

"By the way, she's also the chairman of Leeds United in the English Championship, so she's involved in professional football herself."

"A perfect match, truly."

Gao Shen and Su Qing didn't need to force anything. Their steps naturally matched.

When they reached the entrance of the conference center, staff led them inside.

"Did you hear their surprised reactions?" Gao Shen joked as they stepped in.

Su Qing already knew what he was thinking and didn't answer immediately.

"They're all envious of me," Gao Shen said with a hint of pride.

Su Qing tightened her grip on his arm.

"I think more people envy me."

"Really?" Gao Shen grinned even wider.

…

This was actually Gao Shen's first time attending a high-profile evening event like this.

He had been to similar events before, but never anything quite so grand.

He felt slightly excited.

As soon as he entered, all eyes turned to him.

Everyone in European football knows that Gao Shen is currently the only manager in the world to have won three Champions League titles.

Even more impressive, he led three different teams to those championships.

That achievement is truly unmatched.

For any ambitious club, Gao Shen will be a name they cannot ignore when choosing a manager in the future—especially since he's not even 31 years old.

Yes, he won't turn 31 for a few more days.

Judging by Sir Alex Ferguson's career, Gao Shen could continue to dominate world football for another 40 years.

It's a daunting thought.

Despite this being his first time at such an elite gathering, he already had many friends in the room.

For instance, Napoli's general manager Marino was the first to come up and greet him. They had worked together for three years in Naples and knew each other well.

There were also football insiders he hadn't worked with directly, but had frequent contact with: Bayern's Hoeness, Barcelona's Rosell, Juventus's Andrea Agnelli, and AC Milan's Galliani.

These are some of the most influential figures in European football.

Gao Shen also wanted Su Qing to become more familiar with this high-level circle, so he welcomed everyone and chatted briefly with them.

Everyone knew that Su Qing was the chairman of Leeds United and Gao Shen's fiancée.

Ever since Gao Shen took over Leeds United, the consensus was that they were a Premier League team in waiting.

It might take one season or several, but promotion was inevitable.

After all, Gao Shen had her back.

Many even believed that Gao Shen had disassembled his core team for Leeds United's benefit.

Lucas, Borrell, and Sarri—key members of his coaching staff—were now all at Leeds.

Under Sarri's leadership, Leeds United had won five straight matches.

In addition to four consecutive league wins, they had also played a League Cup match on August 9, beating fourth-tier Bradford 3–0 at home.

Now, many clubs looking to change managers were watching Sarri closely.

Gao Shen wasn't just good at developing players, but also great at developing coaches.

From Guardiola to Zidane, and now Sarri—not to mention the younger generation of European coaches like Klopp, Tuchel, and Pochettino, all of whom have been deeply influenced by his tactical philosophy and have gone on to achieve great coaching success.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 772: The Most Difficult Team to Coach in the World

"Hi."

After Gao Shen finally greeted everyone around him, Real Madrid's sporting director, Jorge Valdano, walked over.

"It's really not easy to get a chance to meet you these days."

After joking a little, Valdano turned to Su Qing and greeted her, "Hello, Su. You look absolutely stunning tonight."

"Thank you, Jorge," Su Qing replied gracefully.

"Why didn't you reach out earlier? You're not like the others. If you ever need anything, just give me a call, and I'll come to you right away," Gao Shen said with an exaggerated smile.

Valdano was very pleased by those words.

Everyone can flatter, but it depends on who says it.

Given Gao Shen's current status in world football, very few people are in a position to hear him say something like that.

Valdano happened to be one of them.

Because their friendship began when Gao Shen was still an unknown.

To Gao Shen, Valdano and Sacchi would always hold a special place.

To avoid being interrupted, the three of them moved to a quieter spot.

Valdano's position at Real Madrid wasn't great, mainly because Mourinho was deeply dissatisfied with him.

Of course, Valdano was equally dissatisfied with Mourinho.

Sometimes, Gao Shen really felt that what Florentino was doing wasn't exactly reliable.

Or rather, it was too eager for quick results.

The coach Valdano admired wasn't Mourinho. He preferred attacking football.

Mourinho couldn't bring entertaining attacking football to Real Madrid. What he brought was pragmatism and results.

That was the core issue.

Mourinho was no longer delivering results for Real Madrid.

Due to the butterfly effect caused by Gao Shen's presence, Barcelona had become stronger than in the previous timeline.

If nothing else, the front three of Sánchez, Agüero, and Messi was enough to terrify all of European football.

Real Madrid had suffered defeats on multiple fronts and were eliminated in the group stage of the Champions League last season.

This season, they barely stayed in Pot 2, but their UEFA coefficient points were already near the bottom of that tier.

At this rate, if their European performance didn't improve, they would likely fall into Pot 3 next season.

If Real Madrid ended up in Pot 3, no matter how you looked at it, it would be disastrous.

As a result, Mourinho's position came under threat.

Under mounting pressure, Mourinho reverted to what he did best—creating conflict to divert attention.

Within management, the target was Valdano. Inside the dressing room, it was Casillas. Outside, it was Barcelona.

This approach had worked well in the early stages of his career, at Porto and Chelsea. That was because he always had a clear target and was able to defeat it.

That created a positive feedback loop.

But if you set up a target and can't defeat it, the strategy backfires.

That was what happened with Inter Milan against a rising Napoli.

Even after Gao Shen left, Mourinho won the Serie A title, but it remained controversial.

And now, at Real Madrid, he had hit another wall.

Because this time, he was up against Guardiola's Barcelona.

Under immense pressure to produce results, Mourinho started losing control. Things escalated.

Most recently, in the Spanish Super Cup, he had poked Barcelona assistant coach Vilanova in the eye.

While fans mostly saw it as a dramatic moment, the incident caused an uproar in European football.

Especially in Spain, and especially within Real Madrid.

"You know, every team has its own values. Real Madrid doesn't want to stir up division and confrontation. That's not who we are. But Mourinho is trying to start a war with Barcelona."

Valdano seemed helpless.

He admitted that he and Mourinho had never gotten along, but Mourinho had crossed the line.

Casillas fell out with Mourinho because, as captain, he spoke up in the locker room. He said that poking someone's eye wasn't acceptable and left a terrible impression.

"This isn't something Real Madrid stands for!"

When Florentino arranged a sit-down for the two of them, as soon as Casillas brought up the incident, Mourinho exploded and nearly started a fight. Thankfully, someone from the media and PR department was present at the time.

Since then, Casillas and Mourinho hadn't spoken a word to each other.

And soon after, Casillas became the target of media criticism.

Since Real Madrid's performances weren't going well, fans and media needed someone to blame. Casillas, who had tried to make peace with Barcelona, became the perfect scapegoat. He couldn't explain himself.

After all, his girlfriend was a journalist. He was the captain of the national team.

Naturally, the whole incident became an irreconcilable mess.

Just like Gao Shen once said when he coached Real Madrid, the club is obsessed with attention. Information leaks constantly. What's so strange about Casillas's girlfriend getting the scoop?

Real Madrid represents Spain. That has always been clear.

As the captain of both Real Madrid and the Spanish national team, when tensions flared between Real Madrid and Barcelona, Casillas called Puyol and Xavi to smooth things over. His intention was to prevent the club conflict from affecting the national team.

That was perfectly reasonable.

But in the "war" between Real Madrid and Barcelona, that made him a traitor.

Recently, Ramos also spoke up. While praising Mourinho to ease the tension, he also laid out the standards for Real Madrid's head coach—ambitious, respectful, and trusting of the players and team.

It was obvious. The two local leaders in the locker room were turning against Mourinho.

"Gao, I had already decided to leave," Valdano said suddenly.

Gao Shen nodded. He had heard about it.

Mourinho couldn't tolerate Valdano, and the two were locked in a stalemate. But since Real Madrid couldn't find a better coach at the moment, the only one who could leave was Valdano.

"But Florentino, Zidane, and Butragueño all told me to hang in there."

Valdano finished with a bitter smile.

It was a deadlock.

For everyone involved.

Only time could resolve it.

Maybe years from now, when Mourinho was no longer coaching Real Madrid, emotions would settle, and everyone could sit down and talk openly, clearing up misunderstandings.

But not now.

Mourinho wouldn't back down. And neither Valdano nor Casillas would give up their positions.

Sometimes, conflicts between adults really are that ridiculous.

"If you're not happy at Real Madrid, come to Leeds United!" Su Qing suddenly said with a smile. "I'm running a club now, and I could really use the advice and help of someone experienced like you."

Gao Shen and Valdano were both stunned.

She was poaching someone from Real Madrid right in front of them.

They both burst into laughter.

"If I leave Real Madrid, I'll seriously consider your offer," Valdano replied easily.

Though in reality, it was unlikely.

At Valdano's stage, writing columns and doing commentary was a comfortable life.

Still, Su Qing's words made it hard for him to say what he had originally intended.

He actually wanted to ask Gao Shen to come back.

Real Madrid's current situation was genuinely dangerous, even on the verge of collapse.

The locker room was splitting into factions again, largely due to Mourinho's antics. Even the local Spanish players, who should have stood united, were divided.

For example, Arbeloa and Casillas clearly weren't in the same camp.

Arbeloa was a die-hard Mourinho supporter.

But not necessarily because he agreed with Mourinho's philosophy—mainly because Mourinho valued him.

Given Real Madrid's current condition, who else could possibly control this situation?

Probably only Gao Shen.

"Thanks."

After seeing Valdano off, Gao Shen turned and smiled at Su Qing.

He understood what Valdano had really meant. But if Valdano had brought it up directly, things would've been hard to handle.

To be honest, Manchester City had treated him very well. There was no reason to leave now.

"Isn't that what I'm supposed to do?" Su Qing asked with a smile, gripping his hand tighter.

After a moment, she suddenly asked, "What kind of team is Real Madrid?"

There had to be something about them to make Gao Shen so obsessed.

Gao Shen frowned and thought for a moment. "It should be the most difficult club to coach in the world. Yes, the club—not counting national teams."

"Why?" Su Qing asked, confused.

"Because coaching a national team is a thousand times harder than coaching Real Madrid. And you can't scold anyone. If you do..." Gao Shen pointed to the ceiling and smiled, saying no more.

Su Qing thought he was joking and burst into laughter.

"Real Madrid is truly the most difficult club to coach because their standards are the highest. No matter how well you do, it's never enough."

Just like now, they want Mourinho to win matches and titles. But once he does, they're dissatisfied again, saying his football isn't attractive enough. They want him to win and play beautifully.

That's all?

No, even if you win and play beautifully, they still won't be satisfied. They'll wonder: can you keep winning beautifully next season? And the season after that? And the one after that?

"Who can do that?" Su Qing was puzzled.

Gao Shen nodded. "Exactly. Real Madrid is like a sea queen. After spending one night with you, she abandons you. She makes every coach hate her. But whenever she beckons, the best coaches rush to her."

"Because deep down, every one of us has an uncontrollable desire… to conquer her."

Su Qing finally understood.

So that's what it was.

In the end, wasn't it just a little obsession that men have about their work?

(To be continued.)