After Paris Saint-Germain was removed from the list, I led England to victory!

For the next two weeks, Yan Yuan worked like a machine that never stopped, turning the training ground into his "home".

Every morning at six o'clock, while the Hoffenheim training base is still shrouded in a thin mist, his figure has already appeared on the empty stadium.

Early in the morning, he practiced the change of direction technique that Nagelsmann emphasized over and over again, pushing lightly with the outside of his right foot and stopping abruptly with the inside of his left foot, his body weight shifting as smoothly as mercury.

Occasionally, he will also do some ginga ball control exercises, which can improve his ball feel on the inside and outside of his feet.

These are basic ball control training exercises.

At first, his teammates only occasionally caught glimpses of him practicing extra, assuming it was just a passing fad for a newcomer.

But soon they discovered that Yan Yuan's training intensity far exceeded their expectations.

After the regular training session ended, while everyone else had finished showering and was preparing to leave, Yan Yuan took a quick shower, changed into another set of training clothes, and continued to practice shooting on the field.

He repeatedly fired shots into the corner of the goal until the goalkeeping coach had to remind him.

"Hey kid, if you keep practicing like this, you'll break through the net!"

Nagelsmann noticed Yan Yuan's unusual behavior.

After a tactical analysis class, he even stayed behind to observe Yan Yuan's extra training.

Yan Yuan arranged the training cones in a complex pattern to simulate various defensive pressures that might be encountered in a match.

He would suddenly stop and change direction, or suddenly accelerate; every move he made carried the urgency of real combat.

Even more surprisingly, he would take out his tactical notes during training breaks and repeatedly rehearse his running routes by comparing them with his position on the field.

This is more like a ball intelligence training session.

"Kid, are you preparing for the Champions League final?" Nagelsmann finally couldn't help but step forward and ask, half-jokingly.

Yan Yuan wiped the sweat from his forehead, his breathing still not fully steady: "Coach, I just want to make sure I don't drag the team down in the friendly match."

"Holding everyone back?" Nagelsmann raised an eyebrow.

"Yan, if I remember correctly, you scored four goals and provided three assists in the last group scrimmage. Is that what you call dragging the team down?"

Yan Yuan did not relax because of the coach's praise. Instead, he said seriously, "But I... still had three passing errors and two defensive lapses. If this were a formal match, these mistakes could cause the team to lose points."

Nagelsmann was silent for a few seconds, then his gaze became serious.

He had seen too many exceptionally talented young players, but few were as harsh on themselves as Yan Yuan was on their own mistakes.

Most talented players actually prefer to flaunt their highlights rather than dwell on their mistakes.

"Do you know what I admire most about you?" Nagelsmann suddenly asked.

Yan Yuan shook his head.

"It's not your technique, nor your football IQ," Nagelsmann said.

"It's your attitude. Many South American players are more talented than you, but they will never train like you. They believe more in their improvisation rather than refining their skills day after day."

Yan Yuan lowered his head slightly, his voice soft but firm: "Coach, I am of Chinese descent. My father often tells me, 'One minute on stage requires ten years of practice off stage.'"

I think that in top leagues, talent is just a ticket to the game; ultimate victory is won through hard work.

Nagelsmann nodded thoughtfully.

He recalled the fleeting geniuses he had encountered during his coaching career.

Most of them eventually succumbed to laziness or complacency, but this Chinese-American teenager seemed to be born with an almost obsessive gene for diligence.

This diligence and hard work are ingrained in the Chinese people, and Yan Yuan inherited this from his parents.

"You can train, but you must take care of your body," Nagelsmann's tone became serious.

"I don't want to receive a report from the team doctor the night before a friendly match saying that I have strained a muscle due to overtraining."

Yan Yuan smiled and said, "Don't worry, Coach. I do recovery training every day, and my body is much stronger than it looks."

In fact, thanks to daily training and systematic extra practice, Yan Yuan's physical reserves are indeed amazing.

In the subsequent team fitness test, his 12-minute run time ranked third in the team, second only to two dedicated defensive midfielders.

Even more astonishingly, his shuttle run record broke the club's U23 team record.

Strength and conditioning coach Schmidt stared at the data sheet in his hand, shaking his head incredulously: "This guy's lung capacity is 1.5 times that of a normal person?"

The teammates' initial surprise turned into admiration.

After an extra training session, Gnabry stayed behind to practice passing and cutting with Yan Yuan; Captain Vogt even adjusted his extra training time so that he could study defensive positioning with Yan Yuan.

"You remind me of a young Cross," Vogt said to Yan Yuan after a training session.

"You're just as calm as him, just as... insane."

This was extremely high praise, but Yan Yuan was not satisfied with it.

In the tactics room outside the training field, he often studied the opponents' videos by himself.

He took detailed notes on Genoa's defensive weaknesses and Bologna's midfield vulnerabilities.

Once, the assistant coach pushed open the door and found Yan Yuan drawing complicated running routes on the whiteboard, with various tactical terms written densely next to it.

"Are you preparing for the World Cup?" the assistant coach asked, half-jokingly.

Yan Yuan didn't even look up: "No, sir, I just don't want to waste the opportunity the coach gave me."

This almost obsessive preparation finally paid off in the second intra-team scrimmage.

After dribbling past three defenders on the right wing, Yan Yuan sent the ball into the corner with a low shot.

After scoring, he didn't celebrate. Instead, he immediately ran back to midfield and signaled to his teammates to quickly reorganize the defense. This professional attitude made Nagelsmann on the sidelines nod in approval.

There's no point in celebrating goals scored on the training field; Yan Yuan wouldn't do anything meaningless.

After training, Nagelsmann called Yan Yuan back again. The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the two of them, casting long shadows.

"Kid, tell me the truth," Nagelsmann said, looking directly into Yan Yuan's eyes.

"Why are you working so hard? With your talent, you don't actually need to work this hard to get playing time."

Yan Yuan remained silent for a moment, then looked beyond the training ground into the distance:

"Coach, do you know how difficult it is for an Asian player, especially one of Chinese descent, to gain a foothold in Europe?"

We Chinese players don't get recognized as easily as South American players, nor do we have the comprehensive and high-level youth training system that European players have. I have to work harder than everyone else to prove that I deserve to be here.

He thought for a moment, then continued, "Moreover, I don't want to just be the 'not bad' player you mentioned; I want to be the best."

Nagelsmann remained silent for a long time.

Finally, he patted Yan Yuan on the shoulder:

"Next week in Genoa, I'll make you play the full match. Don't let me down."

Yan Yuan nodded emphatically. This was not only an opportunity for a friendly match, but also Nagelsmann's recognition of his intense training this week.

As night fell and the lights in the training field were turned off one by one, Yan Yuan was still practicing free kicks. The ball pierced the night sky, whistling through the wind as it went straight into the top corner.

On the eve of the friendly match, the Hoffenheim players' dormitory was so quiet that only the hum of the central air conditioning could be heard.

Yan Yuan was lying on his back on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Tomorrow's match against Genoa is a crucial opportunity for him to prove himself, but at this moment his attention is completely drawn to a system notification that suddenly appeared in his mind:

The in-store feature has been unlocked.

A line of text glowing with a pale blue light slowly unfolded in his field of vision, then exploded like fireworks, transforming into countless tiny points of light that reassembled into an exquisite virtual interface.

Yan Yuan suddenly sat up, his finger unconsciously tapping in the air, and the system appeared.

The layout of the system shop is almost coldly minimalist. On the left are category labels: "Football Skills," "Life Skills," and "Special Items."

On the right was a detailed list of products, each option marked with its point value accurate to the single digit. Yan Yuan's gaze swept quickly across the dazzling array of options like a scanner:

"Proficient in Portuguese (300 points)", "Advanced Culinary Skills (450 points)", "Basic Muay Thai Fighting Skills (600 points)"... These life skills are already tempting enough, but what really made Yan Yuan's breath catch in his throat was the football skills section.

"Cruyff turn (8100 points)", "Messi shoulder drop (9500 points)", "Ronaldo knuckleball (8800 points)"... Every legendary star's signature move is displayed there with a price tag, like limited edition sneakers in a luxury store window.

Yan Yuan's fingers trembled slightly. He had never felt so clearly the dimensional gap between himself and top stars that could be measured in numbers.

But what caught his eye most was a special option displayed at the top of the mall;

[Steel Body on the Green Field (Passive Skill)]: Immune to all sports injuries throughout a player's career, fatigue recovery speed increased by 100%.

Price: 100000 points

The skill description, marked by the system with a blood-red border, was only two lines long, yet it made Yan Yuan's throat go dry.

He knew all too well what this skill meant; how many talented players had been ruined by a single accidental sliding tackle, how many brilliant careers had ended in the instant of a torn ACL.

Ronaldo, Deisler, Hargreaves... these names flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern.

"It's practically a super cheat code..." Yan Yuan muttered to himself, his eyes glued to the price list.

He subconsciously checked his points balance: 623.

It's not even a fraction of what's needed.

The system pops up a timely notification: [Points Acquisition Rules: Official match victory +100 (League) / 150 (Continental Cup) / 200 (International Cup), draw earns 50% points, friendly matches have no points bonus. Daily training base points are 20/hour, positively correlated with focus time.]

Points awarded for winning championships: 2000 points for winning a domestic cup competition, 5000 points for winning a domestic league competition, 20000 points for winning a continental cup competition, and 50000 points for winning an international cup competition.

Individual honors points system: League honors 1000 points, continental honors 5000 points, world-class honors 50000 points.

Yan Yuan quickly did the mental calculations.

Even if they play well in tomorrow's friendly match, they won't gain any points. To accumulate enough points for "Iron Body," they need to win at least two to three seasons of Bundesliga victories and endure countless training days, not to mention other points expenses.

Of course, this is under the premise of not winning any championships or receiving any individual honors.

He continued browsing the system and suddenly noticed an inconspicuous beginner area at the bottom of the store.

After clicking, several skills marked with "Newbie Special Offer" popped up.

"Precision Short Pass Training Package (Beginner): 500 points"

"Note: Improves ground passing accuracy within 15 meters by 15%"

This unassuming skill seemed particularly shabby among the many dazzling options, but Yan Yuan stared at it for a full ten seconds.

Against Genoa, Nagelsmann positioned him as a right winger, a position that requires a lot of short passing combinations.

"exchange."

Almost the instant he made his decision, his points balance jumped from 623 to 123.

A slight electric current surged from the back of his neck to his limbs, and Yan Yuan felt a strange muscle memory being written into his body.

He rolled out of bed, instinctively picked up the soccer ball beside the bed, and gently pushed it against the wall with the inside of his foot.

boom.

The ball struck a tiny mold spot the size of a fingernail on the wall with pinpoint accuracy, and bounced back at an angle as perfect as if calculated using trigonometric functions.

Yan Yuan caught the ball and tried a few more times. He could clearly feel that his control over the ball's landing point had improved.

This mechanical precision reminded him of the feeling of using pass assist when playing FIFA.

"Interesting..." Yan Yuan tossed the ball into the air, suddenly remembering that the system should contain his past training records.

Sure enough, the training data from the past two weeks was listed in detail:

July 3th: 9 hours of focused training, 180 points earned.

July 4th: 8.5 hours of focused training, 170 points earned.

(System reminder: Spatial training time within the system is not included in focus time; only actual training time counts as focus time.)

……

The last line displays: "Current consecutive days of focused training: 14, Achievement [Beginner Focuser] has been completed, Reward: 50 random points."

This unexpected discovery made Yan Yuan's eyes light up. If training time could also be converted into points, then reaching 10 points didn't seem too difficult.

Assuming Yan Yuan focuses for 10 hours a day, he will earn a fixed 200 points daily. This means he can accumulate 10 points in 500 days, and that doesn't even include the competitions.

Of course, it's impossible for Yan Yuan to train for ten hours straight every day without fail. Even someone as disciplined as Cristiano Ronaldo couldn't do that. Considering all the additions and subtractions, it would take almost two years to accumulate 10 points, and that's assuming he's relatively diligent and wins a lot.

He rolled out of bed, took out his tactical notebook from his desk drawer, and quickly wrote down a new training plan:

1. Add one hour of short passing practice to morning training.

2. Studying video recordings of popular matches during lunch break.

3. After the team scrimmages, practice set pieces and ball control.

As he wrote the last line, the pen nib paused on the paper. Yan Yuan suddenly realized what he was doing and couldn't help but laugh.

He's no different from those gamers who are addicted to mobile games, spending money on gacha pulls and grinding daily: using almost obsessive daily tasks to feed a progress bar that can never be filled.

But when he looked up at the Hoffenheim jersey hanging in the closet, the feeling of unreality immediately vanished.

The number 17 had a slightly matte sheen under the table lamp, like a medal waiting to be polished.

Yan Yuan closed the system interface and put the football back in its place.

The moonlight outside the window was blocked by clouds, plunging the dormitory into darkness.

Before closing his eyes, Yan Yuan took one last look at the unattainable "Iron Body" icon on the virtual interface.

"10 points..."

He closed his eyes with that number in mind and continued his extra practice in the system that night.