In the conference room of Intihad Stadium, Gao Shen looked at Gary Cook, Marwood and Brian Kidd in front of him and asked with concern, and the person Gao Shen was referring to was naturally Yaya Toure.
Agent Dimitri Seluk.
It's also interesting to say that the players in Côte d'Ivoire actually found a Russian agent.
What many people don't know is that the agent of Zygrinski, who joined Barcelona in his previous life, was also Dimitri Seluk.
Obviously, Zygrinski was recommended to Barcelona by Seluk.
As a result, within one year, Zyglinski left, and so did Yaya Toure.
This is why Seluk later "cursed" Guardiola.
To put it bluntly, it's all for profit.
But one thing is for sure, Seluk is very difficult to deal with.
Gary Cook first explained his relationship with Seluk. After all, Gao Shen is now responsible for competitive affairs. It would be a bit unreasonable if he and Seluk were not clear about it.
Speaking of which, he actually has nothing to do with Seluk. Manchester City had pursued Yaya Toure before and had contact with Seluk, but Yaya Toure was not interested in Manchester City at that time.
But times have changed. Manchester City, which Yaya Toure looked down on back then, has now become the Premier League champion under the guidance of sophisticated management. However, the Ivory Coast midfielder encountered Busquets and Thiago Motta in Barcelona.
A double whammy.
Last season, Yaya Toure played only single digits and was a substitute half of the time.
You can imagine how bad his situation is at Barcelona.
This just confirms that sentence: You ignored me at first, but today I have made it impossible for you to reach high.
It was under this situation that Seluk felt resentful. In an interview with Daily Sports in late May, he publicly blamed Barcelona, believing that the reason why Barcelona was unwilling to give Yaya Toure a chance to play was because of the Ivorian's contract.
It stipulates that a large part of his income fluctuates based on his playing time.
But Barcelona was too stingy and refused to pay the money, so they suppressed Yaya Toure.
In addition, Seluk also revealed that Barcelona is eagerly pursuing Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas and even wants to use Yaya Toure as an addition to the transfer plan, but his player refuses to be included in Cesc Fabregas.
exchange plan.
According to the intelligence obtained by Gao Shen and Manchester City, Barcelona and Arsenal did have such a plan at that time, and both parties were very interested, because in this way, Barcelona could pay a lot less money and at the same time get rid of Yaya Toure.
Arsenal is also interested in the Ivory Coast midfielder, but they have no money to sign him.
However, after being kicked out by Seluk, the deal fell through.
Up to now, Barcelona has basically run out of money after bringing in Villa and Aguero. It is impossible for Arsenal to pay such a large sum of money for Yaya Toure, so the transfer of Cesc Fabregas is also temporary.
Shelved.
…
"Seluk said that Barcelona has officially informed them that they can find their own teams. As long as a team is willing to pay 20 million euros for Yaya Toure, they can take away the Ivory Coast midfielder from Barcelona."
"Twenty million euros?" Gao Shen was delighted. It was rare for Barcelona to make a good deal.
In 2007, when Yaya Toure moved from Monaco to Barcelona, the La Liga giants only spent 9 million euros.
Of course, the initiative now lies in Barcelona's hands, because Yaya Toure's contract is until June 2012, and the liquidated damages are as high as 100 million. This means that unless Barcelona agrees, no one can take him away.
Yaya Touré.
Gao Shen actually doesn't have much interest in Yaya Toure. He currently has Xavi Martinez and Jordan Henderson in the team. Next, Fernandinho will join the team, and the midfield configuration is calculated.
Not too luxurious, but enough.
Yaya Toure's character and his playing habits gave Gao Shen quite a headache.
However, as one of the best midfielders in the world, the price of 20 million euros is not expensive.
"Why didn't Manchester United take him away?" Gao Shen suddenly thought of this question.
Manchester United has just taken away Lass Diarra from Real Madrid, and they obviously want to strengthen their recruitment. There is no reason not to pay attention to Yaya Toure.
"Seluk said that he has not been in contact with Manchester United because his players feel that they are very suitable for the Premier League, but they only want to play for the best team in the Premier League, which is our Manchester City." Brian Marwood laughed.
.
Everyone couldn't help but smile.
The agent’s mouth is a liar!
Seluk’s words cannot be believed even a single English letter.
"We got another piece of information. It is said that Ferguson did consider Yaya Toure, but because Yaya Toure's playing time last season was so little that Ferguson was a little worried about his competitive state.
In comparison, Lars Diarra will be more reliable." Brian Kidd said.
After Gao Shen met with Ferguson last time, he called Kidd over and gave him a harsh speech. After he came back, he began to make up his mind to get the intelligence work done, and now it was time for Gao Shen to see the results.
Gao Shen felt that what Brian Kidd said was more reasonable.
Standing in 2021, looking back, of course I will feel that Ras Diarra is nothing and Yaya Toure is the king.
But standing in 2010, the difference in strength between the two is not big. However, Yaya Toure has been absent for a long time and Diarra is in good condition. There is not much difference in worth between the two, so there is no need to say who to buy.
"However, Seluk revealed another piece of news. Chelsea is also very interested in Yaya Toure." Gary Cook reminded.
This time it really caught Gao Shen's attention.
If Manchester City wants to successfully defend the Premier League title this season, its biggest competitor will definitely be Carlo Ancelotti's Chelsea.
The current situation has completely changed. There is no way to use the profound memories of the past life to confirm the future trend. No one can guarantee whether Ancelotti will succeed at Chelsea this season.
Therefore, from Manchester City's standpoint, the best way is to grab the players Chelsea want. While strengthening themselves, they can also weaken their competitors, killing two birds with one stone.
"Chelsea is really interested in Yaya Toure?" Gao Shen looked at Brian Kidd.
The latter nodded, "It's absolutely true."
If you think about it carefully, it's actually not surprising, because after Chelsea sent away Ballack, only Mikel was left as the main defensive midfielder, but everyone knows that Mikel's shortcomings are there.
But if Yaya Toure is introduced, the situation will be completely different.
Gao Shen didn't have much interest in bringing in Yaya Toure before, but if Chelsea is also interested, then it is necessary for him to get involved.
Strike first to gain the upper hand!
After thinking about it, Gao Shen made a decision.
"I want to meet Seluk!"
…
That afternoon, Gao Shen, accompanied by Gary Cook, Marwood and Brian Kidd, met in the same conference room the Russian agent who was giving Barcelona management a headache.
According to outside rumors, Gao Shen once thought that he would have a very sarcastic image, but in fact it was not the case. He seemed quite forthright and not as bad as the media reported.
Seluk obviously also knows that Manchester City's transfer signings are all made by Gao Shen. Whether he can promote Yaya Toure to join Manchester City depends on Gao Shen's words.
After everyone sat down and exchanged polite greetings, the topic naturally revolved around the transfer of Yaya Toure.
Gao Shen did not hide anything, but told Seluk very bluntly that he could not build tactics around Yaya Toure. If he wanted to come to Manchester City, he must change himself and integrate into Manchester City's tactical system.
Here, don't expect Manchester City's tactical system to accommodate him.
The implication is that if Gao Shen lets him play as a central defender, he must play as a central defender, and if he is asked to play as a defensive midfielder, he must play as a defensive midfielder. If he is asked not to push forward, he must stay in the backcourt.
"You know, at Manchester City, we pay attention to team football that is full of integrity. We do not advocate individual heroism, so in our team, no one is special, everyone is treated equally."
Gao Shen first drew his own bottom line, and then began to analyze and position Yaya Toure.
He believes that Yaya Toure is a world-class midfielder who is also capable of playing as a central defender and can bring some different elements to Manchester City, such as his dribbling, his strong body, delicate foot skills, etc.
wait.
Gao Shen is still thinking that if Yaya Toure joins the team, he can also try a double midfielder, which will be a very interesting change.
For example, let Yaya Toure and Xavi Martinez form the black and white twin towers in the midfield.
In his previous life at Manchester City, the combination of Fernandinho and Yaya Toure was also very successful.
But all of this is based on one premise, that is, Yaya Toure must obey the entire team.
Seluk is full of confidence in his players. He firmly believes that Yaya Toure has no problem with his ability and condition. His performance in the World Cup is enough to prove this.
But he didn't expect that Gao Shen would make such a request.
This is beyond his scope as an agent, and he needs to communicate well with the players.
If Yaya Toure can accept it, he can take the next step with Manchester City.
"Mr. Gao, my player really hopes to join your team. He will definitely bring you more wins and championships." Seluk said.
Gao Shen nodded, "I believe it, but I still say that all my team's victories and championships are achieved through teamwork, not by any one person."
Seluk understood Gao Shen's determination.
If Yaya Toure doesn't agree, then Manchester City will close the door.
After understanding this layer, there is actually nothing much to talk about.
…
After sending Seluk away, Gao Shen communicated a lot with Gary Cook and others, mainly about Yaya Toure.
A player's strength is one thing, but character is also important.
Gao Shen must be careful about the impact he will have after joining the team, especially the unity in the locker room.
This is also the reason why he said ugly things first.
If Yaya Toure can accept it, then fine, Manchester City can afford 20 million euros.
After entering the team, whether he can play in the game depends on his state and performance. This can further stimulate competition within the Manchester City team, which is also a good thing for Gao Shen.
Gary Cook and others also basically agree with Gao Shen’s views and practices.
Two days after meeting Seluk, Fernandinho finally arrived in London, England.
Gao Shen also brought Marwood and Brian Kidd south from Manchester and met with Fernandinho in a London hotel. They chatted all night, both about tomorrow's hearing and about his future in Manchester City.
The next day, Gao Shen and his party marched toward SOHO Square, where the FA headquarters is located.
