Awakening the Messi template, Florentino Pérez begs me to join Real Madrid

Three days after winning the AFC Champions League against Jeonbuk, Takeshi was called to the assistant coach's office.

Pushing open the door, Lippi was staring intently at the tactical diagram on the projection screen, with several scouting reports spread out on the table.

"Sit down." Lippi gestured for him to sit down, then pointed to the screen. "So far this season, you've played four positions: center forward, false nine, attacking midfielder, and left winger."

Wu Shi nodded. He had calculated it himself: he had played 13 league games, including 4 as a center forward, 3 as a false nine, 2 as an attacking midfielder, and 4 as a left winger.

The stats aren't spectacular—4 goals and 4 assists—but his strength lies in his well-rounded performance.

"European scouts are starting to notice you." Lippi pulled up a report, which was in German.

It's not about how many goals you've scored, it's about your versatility. In modern football, that's very valuable.

Wu Shi's heart skipped a beat.

"But don't get too excited." Lippi turned off the projector.

"You're a jack of all trades, master of none. Your center forward isn't physically strong enough, your attacking midfielder's playmaking is still immature, and your wingers' defense is a weakness. All-rounder? Being all-rounder sometimes means having no special skill."

That's very straightforward.

"Starting today, the training plan will be adjusted." Lippi took out a piece of paper. "In the morning, practice shooting and passing with the attacking group, and in the afternoon, practice positioning and interception with the defensive group. Add two tactical lessons every week. I want you to thoroughly understand the responsibilities of each position."

The coaching assistant added, "There's also physical fitness. You're currently 79 kg, which is still too thin for your height of 185 cm. The goal is 82 kg, and your body fat percentage shouldn't exceed 11.5%."

After leaving the office, Wu Shi went straight to the gym.

Today is the monthly physical fitness test day, and the system will update the complete data.

In the physical testing room, Wu Shi stared at the complete data panel that had just been generated on the screen.

[Name: Takeshi]

Age: 17 years and 1 months

[Height: 185cm (1cm taller than three months ago, system note: the last stubbornness of puberty)]

[Weight: 79.2kg (2.8kg of pure muscle away from the 82kg goal. System note: Eat more protein and dream less)]

[Body fat percentage: 11.1% (Not bad, system note: mainly thanks to the cafeteria lady cooking the chicken breasts too dry)]

Template integration rate: 6.15%

[Core Six-Dimensional Chart] (Maximum score 100, average score of professional players of the same age is 60)

The system "thoughtfully" added a subtitle to this crooked hexagon:

"Look, doesn't it look like a pizza that got caught in a door? This side is overflowing with toppings (passing 82), while that side is just a crust (defense 41). I suggest renaming it 'One-Sided Warrior'."

Scroll down to the detailed data:

Speed ​​(80):

• Explosiveness 79 (↑3): "Improved from being 'half a beat slow' to being 'a quarter a beat slow'."

• Absolute speed 81 (↑2): "The Chinese Super League is enough. Go to Europe? Get ready to be called 'Old Man Messi'."

Agility 80 (→): "You're lucky you didn't lose agility while gaining muscle."

Shots (78):

• Precision 83 (↑2): "The only thing you can touch Messi's taillights."

• Strength 74 (↑3): "Do you know why your long-range shots are always a little off? Your legs are too thin."

·Arc 89 (↑2): "This arc would be a work of art in the Chinese Super League, but in Europe... it's just okay."

Passing (82):

·Short pass 84 (↑3): "The pass was accurate, which deserves praise."

·Long Pass 78 (↑2): "From 'clearance long pass' to 'barely finding someone'."

• Vision 92 (↑3): "The system's biggest cheat code for you, use it wisely."

dribbling (76):

• Ball control 79 (→): "Not regressing is progress."

• Dribbling 77 (↓1): "Side effect of muscle gain: decreased flexibility. Now dribbling past opponents is like a truck turning a corner."

Balance 85 (↑4): "At least it won't fly away after a collision."

Defense (41):

·45 steals (↑10): "From 'reaching out is a foul' to 'reaching out might touch the ball'."

• Watching people 48 (↑8): "Now you know who to watch, even though you often miss them."

Intercept 38 (↑23): "The largest increase, because the starting point was too low."

Body (77):

Strength 76 (↑6): "Finally, he's acting like a football player."

• Endurance 79 (↑2): "I was able to run the whole race, although I felt like I was sleepwalking in the last twenty minutes."

• Vertical jump 75 (→): "I've grown taller, but my vertical jump hasn't. It's a waste of my height."

Injury tendency: Medium (↓): "More muscle means more durability."

[Skill proficiency] (100% at the same level as Messi at the same age)

1. Outside-of-the-foot curling shot (Advanced): 89%

"Your signature move is that you can only use your right foot. Messi at his age is already ambidextrous."

2. Surgical scalpel direct insertion (intermediate): 71%

"Skills that rely on vision, footwork is barely keeping up with brains."

3. Multi-position adaptation (basic): 68% (new feature)

"He can play in four positions, but each position has obvious weaknesses—commonly known as a 'jack-of-all-trades, master of none'."

4. Messi-style inside cut (beginner): 61%

"Insufficient explosiveness, his inside cut turns into an outward-pointing gait."

5. Trash Talk Offense and Defense (Beginner): 55% (New)

"I've progressed from being stunned when I'm insulted to being able to insult back, although my vocabulary is still at a vulgar level."

6. Defensive Positioning (Beginner): 42% (New)

"I know where I should stand, but my body often doesn't cooperate."

[Global ranking for this age group: 96th]

Comment: "Your versatility improved you from 99 to 96. If you want to break into the top 95 next time, I suggest you first improve your defense to a passing grade—or learn to disappear so that your opponents can overlook your defensive weakness."

Wu Shi turned off the control panel and rubbed his temples.

Just then, the teaching assistant pushed the door open and came in: "The old man is looking for you."

Head coach's office.

Lippi was on the phone, speaking Italian. Wu Shi only understood a few words: "...friendly match...next month."

After hanging up the phone, Lippi gestured for him to sit down: "Two pieces of news. First, in the next round of the AFC Champions League group stage, we're playing away against a Japanese team. You'll be starting."

Takeshi nodded.

"Secondly," Lippi paused, "Later next month, Real Madrid's first team requested a friendly match in Guangzhou. They offered it themselves because they plan to hold a youth training camp in China next summer and want to warm up the team beforehand."

Wu Shi's heart skipped a beat.

Real Madrid?

"They specifically asked to see you." Lippi said with a half-smile, "Your performance in the AFC Champions League, coupled with your versatility, has caught the attention of their scouts—although it's only initial interest."

The assistant coach added: "Real Madrid will bring their first-team starters to this friendly match, but they won't field their full-strength squad or play the full 90 minutes. Your task is simple: prove within the limited time you have that you're not a 'Chinese Super League exclusive.'"

"What do you mean by 'special supply for the Chinese Super League'?" Wu Shi asked.

"They only look okay in Asian leagues; their true colors are revealed in real high-level competition," Lippi said bluntly. "At 79 kilograms, you're already struggling against a center-back of Kim Min-jae's caliber. Imagine if it were Ramos or Varane..."

Wu Shi subconsciously touched his shoulder.

"So starting tomorrow," Lippi handed over a new training plan, "technical training in the morning, intensive physical training in the afternoon—I've found you some strong guys from the reserve team to train in physical confrontation. In the evening, tactical class, analyzing video footage of Real Madrid's last ten matches."

Wu Shi took the schedule, and the densely packed schedule made his scalp tingle.

"Tired?" Lippi asked, looking at him.

"Not tired."

"That's good." Lippi stood up and walked to the window. "This friendly match is a commercial activity for Evergrande. But for some people," he glanced back at Wu Shi, "it could be an opportunity to change the trajectory of their careers. Although the chance is small, it exists."