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

Guangzhou Tianhe Stadium

Three hours before the match was scheduled to begin, the stadium was already packed with people.

A frenzied scene of Real Madrid's white and Evergrande's red intertwined.

"Last two grandstand tickets! 1800 each!"

"Inner field, near the players' tunnel, 3700!"

"This is insane, this is insane..." a college student wearing a Evergrande jersey muttered, clutching a ticket stub that originally cost 480 yuan.

"My roommate resold the ticket for 3,000 yuan, which is enough for his living expenses for several months."

The temporary stalls that usually only appear on match days were packed with people in the plaza outside the stadium today.

There are vendors selling Real Madrid jerseys, Cristiano Ronaldo standees, and even posters comparing "Wu Shi vs. Cristiano Ronaldo".

A middle-aged woman dressed in business attire, who usually only reads financial news, asked her friend:

"So Real Madrid is a football club? I know Ronaldo, but who's that Wu Shi?"

"You don't know this? The most talented teenager in the country right now, the one who has already secured a starting position at Evergrande, is only 17 years old."

"Oh...so we'll get to see Ronaldo score tonight, right?"

"Not necessarily, a friendly match might only last half a game."

Such conversations can be seen everywhere around the stadium.

Tonight, Tianhe Stadium is no longer just the home ground for Evergrande fans.

It has become a football pilgrimage site for the entire city and even the entire GD province.

A row of black minivans slowly drove into the stadium's VIP entrance.

The first person to get off the car was Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez.

Next up was head coach José Mourinho, wearing his signature Armani coat.

Then, the main character appears.

When Cristiano Ronaldo got out of the car, the screams in the entire passageway instantly increased by eight octaves.

He has already transferred to Real Madrid.

He's no longer the Cristiano Ronaldo who loved stepovers during his Manchester United days.

Now, he exudes the composure of a "Galacticos" star player in every gesture.

Real Madrid players entered the locker room one after another.

Among the crowd, a blond boy stood out.

Alvaro Morata, 18, is the most dazzling young star of Real Madrid Castilla's youth academy this season, and was specially brought to China by Mourinho.

Alvaro surveyed the Evergrande away dressing room, his eyes brimming with the arrogance typical of youth players from top European clubs.

That kind of arrogance that says, "I know I'm great, and the whole world knows it."

The assistant coach handed him the starting lineup: "Alvaro, you'll be playing left winger tonight. Your opponent will be Evergrande's number 21, Wu Shi. He's Chinese, 17 years old, one year younger than you."

Alvaro took the list, his gaze lingering on Wu Shi's name, a slight smile playing on his lips.

17 years old, younger than me.

But he spent ten years playing in European youth academies, while his opponent played in the Chinese Super League.

That place that's always marked as "average league level" in European scouting reports.

"Watch how I teach this Chinese kid a lesson," Alvaro said with a smile to his youth academy teammates.

"Let him know that although we're about the same age, there's a huge gap between us, haha."

The atmosphere was completely different in the Evergrande locker room.

Wu Shi was tying his shoelaces, his fingers trembling slightly—a natural muscle reaction from excessive excitement.

"Relax." Gao Lin walked over and plopped down next to him. "Let me share some experience with you. Back when I was on trial at Chelsea..."

Wu Shi looked up: "Gao Lin, when did you ever go to Chelsea?"

"I've been there in my dreams," Gao Lin said calmly, "but that's not important. What's important is your mindset. Look—"

He counted on his fingers:

"First, this is a friendly match. The Real Madrid big shots won't really give it their all; they're afraid of getting injured. Second, you're playing at home; we have tens of thousands of people supporting you. Third..."

Gao Lin leaned closer and lowered his voice:

"That Real Madrid number 17, Morata, right? I saw him in the corridor just now. The way that kid looked at us, tsk tsk, like he was looking at animals in a zoo."

"These kinds of kids are the easiest to deal with—you only need to let them pass once or twice, and they'll get anxious, and when they get anxious, they'll make mistakes."

"Um, Morata, what's he doing at Real Madrid?"

"Hey, Little Stone, you know Morata? You seem to follow him quite a bit!"

Wu Shi realized that Morata should have just turned 18 at this time and wasn't very famous.

Wu Shi chuckled awkwardly and said, "We're in the same age group, I've heard this name before."

"So," Gao Lin patted him on the shoulder,

"Play freely. If you play well, Real Madrid might actually take a liking to you!"

"It's okay if we don't play well - it's just a friendly match anyway, losing to Real Madrid isn't shameful."

These words made several people in the locker room laugh.

Wu Shi smiled, and most of the tension in his heart dissipated.

Yes, it's just losing—but the opponent is Real Madrid, what's so shameful about losing?

On the contrary, if you play well...

At the very least, they need to know how long their "reinforced plastic" can withstand the pressure from European powerhouses.

When the players from both sides entered the field, the roar of the Tianhe Stadium almost lifted the roof off.

Fans sang as the flag was raised, interspersed with screams of "Cristiano Ronaldo! Cristiano Ronaldo!"

The broadcast cameras swept across the stands, capturing many rarely seen faces—local entrepreneurs, entertainment stars, and even several retired national team players.

The scene shows General Fan talking to a woman dressed in a professional office lady suit.

If you can hear it right up close

"Mourinho and Real Madrid are just dabbling. I played against Mourinho's team when I was playing in England. Although he was the coach and I was the player, back then I..."

"The level of attention this friendly match has received has surpassed all the Chinese Super League matches and even the AFC Champions League matches this season," the commentator exclaimed. "This is the influence of Real Madrid, this is the charm of top-level football."

During the pre-match handshake, Wu Shi finally got to see those faces he had only seen on TV up close.

Cristiano Ronaldo's hand was very strong. He glanced at him during the handshake, perhaps noticing the Asian boy wearing number 21, or perhaps it was just a formality.

When it was Álvaro Morata's turn, the other man shook hands in a very special way: he only extended his fingers, touched them lightly, and then let go.

In his eyes, there was no attempt to conceal his scrutiny and comparison.

[System: Opponent's left winger, Álvaro Morata, 18 years old, 185cm tall, 78kg. Real Madrid Castilla youth academy product. Ranked 17th among players of the same age group in 92-93.]

[Technical Characteristics: Smart positioning, decent shooting skills, average physical strength.]

[Mental Analysis: A typical arrogant player from a top-tier youth academy. He considers himself the best among his peers and sees you as someone who "needs to be taught a lesson."]

[Suggestion: Let your performance speak for itself. But remember—he has ten years of training in Real Madrid's youth academy, while you've only had less than a year of intensive training. The gap is objectively real; don't try to compete head-on.]

Wu Shi took a deep breath and got into position.

The referee whistle blows.

In the very first minute of the match, Real Madrid demonstrated what "top-level European rhythm" truly means.