Soccer: I became Bruno Fernandes.

Chapter 238: The Sheikhs Have Arrived!

On August 1, Central European Time, Udinese officially announced that they were considering Barcelona's offer!

This bombshell news suddenly set the European transfer market ablaze, causing a huge stir in the global media. It was like a stone being thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples everywhere. The entire European transfer market, along with the world's media and fans, eagerly awaited further news from Udinese.

The announcement from Udinese that they were considering Barcelona's offer clearly indicated that both parties had reached a crucial consensus on the transfer fee. This signaled that the two-month-long transfer saga was finally coming to a close.

Udinese's official website conveyed this message to all fans but did not disclose specific details. However, nothing stays secret for long.

According to the Gazzetta dello Sport, after several rounds of negotiations, Barcelona finally decided to raise Bruno's transfer fee to 135 million euros. This far surpassed the previous record of 101 million euros set by Bale's transfer to Real Madrid two years ago.

This marked the first truly 100 million euro transfer in football history. The price for Bale's transfer to Real Madrid was more symbolic than substantial.

Faced with such an astonishing sum, Udinese could not refuse. The Pozzo family knew that Udinese had become an obstacle to Bruno's progress and that their time together had come to an end. Even if they forced Bruno to stay another season, it would be meaningless.

Thus, Udinese officially announced they were considering Barcelona's offer as soon as possible. This news spread quickly, causing a huge reaction in European football.

In Madrid, Florentino Perez held an emergency meeting. Everyone, including the new team coach Benitez and the Real Madrid executives, attended.

"I believe everyone has seen this morning's news," Perez said.

Perez did not appear as composed as usual today. There was a sense of urgency in his expression, indicating that recent developments had caught him off guard and left him somewhat unprepared.

Everyone in the room understood why Perez was feeling anxious.

"This has taken us by surprise. Barcelona is very determined. According to reliable information I received, Bartomeu is very optimistic about Bruno. It is said that he personally flew to Udine to convince him to join Barcelona."

"Has Bruno agreed?" Benitez asked nervously.

When Benitez took over the reins at Real Madrid in June, his first request was for Real Madrid to bring Bruno to the Bernabeu this summer.

As the former coach of Napoli, Benitez had interacted with Bruno numerous times and knew very well the capabilities of this Portuguese midfield genius.

If Bruno could lead a small team like Udinese to win Serie A, the Europa League, and the Champions League, Benitez was confident that he could lead Real Madrid to win everything with Bruno.

Perez did not answer. Instead, Real Madrid Castilla coach Zidane shook his head and said, "No one knows what they discussed, but it is certain that if Bartomeu personally intervened, he must have made Bruno some significant promises."

Although Zidane was only the coach of Real Madrid's second team, his status within the club was exceptional, and he had a very close relationship with Perez.

Hearing this, everyone frowned deeply, looking worried.

After last season's trophy-less campaign, Real Madrid was once again facing a rebuild, and Bruno was undoubtedly Perez's primary target.

If Bruno transferred to Barcelona now, it would be a heavy blow to Real Madrid.

In today's football world, Messi and Ronaldo were undoubtedly the two best players. Behind them, stars like Bale, Neymar, Hazard, and Bruno were all strong contenders for the third-best player in the world.

However, judging by the performances of these players in recent years, only Bruno had truly approached the level of Messi and Ronaldo.

In fact, in the 2014-2015 season, Bruno's performance had already reached the level of Messi and Ronaldo!

Barcelona had already found Messi's successor in Neymar. However, Real Madrid had yet to find Ronaldo's replacement.

Bale had been with the team for two years and, although he performed well, everyone knew the Welsh winger could not reach Ronaldo's heights.

What worried the Real Madrid management more was that Ronaldo was over 30 years old. According to the usual football career trajectory, the Portuguese was nearing the end of his career.

Rebuilding the Galacticos was not just about finding a strong attacking playmaker but also finding Ronaldo's true successor.

From any angle, Bruno was the superstar who best fit Perez's vision and was the key pillar for rebuilding Real Madrid's Galacticos. In fact, Barcelona probably knew this and hence made every effort to poach Bruno.

Transfers are, after all, a form of warfare.

"The current situation is that Udinese is already tempted, and Barcelona's transfer is more than halfway done. If Bruno nods in agreement, the transfer is complete!" Zidane said again. As a successful professional player, he was very familiar with the transfer process and procedures.

Perez frowned, his eyes sharp, and gritted his teeth. "We must disrupt this transfer!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Butragueño asked, "But how?"

Everyone looked at Perez. As the head of Europe's largest and even the world's top construction group, he had to make a decision quickly, or it would be too late.

For a superstar like Bruno, once he transferred to Barcelona, the chances of him transferring to Real Madrid would be nearly zero.

Benitez, who had been silent, spoke up, "Increase the offer!"

Benitez's suggestion made everyone's faces darken.

For player transfers, raising the offer was indeed a very effective method. But the problem was that Barcelona had already raised Bruno's price to a terrifying level. Was it worth it for Real Madrid to continue increasing the offer?

Perez shook his head and said, "I learned some things from Jorge. Bruno clearly never considered joining Real Madrid."

"He doesn't like Real Madrid?" Benitez asked, puzzled.

Perez replied, "It shouldn't be that. From what Jorge gathered, Bruno is a very thoughtful and insightful person. He is very cautious with every step he takes. He doesn't want to come to Real Madrid because he doesn't want to play second fiddle."

Everyone nodded in understanding.

"Going to Barcelona isn't a good choice for Bruno either," Zidane shook his head.

The people present were either experienced football professionals, very successful businessmen, or industry elites. Naturally, they understood Zidane's point. Bruno aimed to be the best in the world. How could he go to a team with other superstars?

Moreover, Bruno was an outsider, while Messi was a local. It seemed that Bruno would be at a disadvantage.

Of course, now Bruno was at the peak of his fame. Even if he went to Barcelona, no one knew what would happen in the future.

But if there was a choice, a smart person would not choose to go to Barcelona.

Perez pondered, "Cristiano is about to turn 31..."

Hearing this, no one spoke. The meeting room fell into silence.

While Real Madrid's top executives were planning their next move, Bruno, who had returned to Udine for preseason training, received some mysterious guests at his suburban home in Udine.

Seeing the white headscarf, Bruno was very surprised but still greeted them politely, "Jassim, welcome to Udine!"

"Sorry to bother you, Bruno," Prince Jassim greeted Bruno with an Arab-style greeting and then said.

After some polite exchanges, everyone sat down.

Prince Jassim wasn't one for beating around the bush, so he directly asked about Bruno's transfer to Barcelona, mainly concerned about the progress of the transfer.

Mendes, representing Bruno, explained that the transfer was only halfway done. Udinese had not yet confirmed acceptance of Barcelona's offer, and Bruno hadn't had substantial contact with Barcelona, let alone discussed personal terms.

This clearly relieved Prince Jassim and his entourage, who were worried that Bruno had already reached a private agreement with Barcelona.

"Frankly, for a superstar of your level, both on the field and commercially, your value cannot be measured by money. I have always believed that at Udinese, your value is underestimated, and even if you transfer to Barcelona, they won't be able to fully utilize your potential," Prince Jassim said.

He then told Bruno that the only club in the world that could fully realize his potential and let him shine was the club he was about to acquire, Manchester United.

To back his claim, Prince Jassim detailed his plans to acquire Manchester United and his vision for the club post-acquisition, including transfer market strategies, training center enhancements, stadium improvements, and more, to restore Manchester United to its former glory.

As he put it, "Our goal is to restore Manchester United to its on-field and off-field glory."

(End of Chapter)

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