Two days later, in a barbecue restaurant in Rio de Janeiro, Ethan met the legendary Juninho, whom he had long admired, along with his agent, Faou, a newspaper editor-in-chief in his fifties.
Jim Cassel and Alberto joined Ethan for this meeting. They were all very interested in Brazilian barbecue.
During these two days, Ethan also took a tour around Rio de Janeiro, getting a look at the situation of Brazilian football clubs and gaining a certain understanding of Brazilian football.
As a famous tourist city in Brazil, Rio de Janeiro boasted four famous Brazilian clubs. Besides Vasco da Gama, there were Flamengo, Fluminense, and Botafogo. Currently, all four teams competed in the Brazilian Série A and the Rio State Championship.
Ethan had originally planned to go to Flamengo to look for Adriano. Although this future Emperor of Inter Milan failed to achieve success in Europe for various reasons, he still possessed talent.
But after further thought, Adriano's self-control and professionalism were indeed worrying. Moreover, to be frank, in terms of strikers, Ethan already had enough candidates. Besides Crouch and Kitson, he had also initiated two other operations, which were currently underway and progressing smoothly.
Since there were enough candidates for strikers, and considering the fact that it would be difficult for Adriano to pass the work permit review, was there any point in buying the seventeen-year-old just to have him sit on the bench in England?
"Ribeiro, I heard you are very resistant to transferring to New Manchester United. Is that true?" Ethan asked with a smile.
Juninho looked at the young man in front of him, who seemed to be about his own age and wore a kind smile that easily won people over. Even so, he still nodded stubbornly and admitted, "Forgive me, sir, but I don't think going to a fifth-tier team in England will help my career!"
"You're right. A fifth-tier team wouldn't really help you. After all, you were once a Brazilian international. But what if it were an ambitious team?" Ethan asked with a smile.
"I don't understand what you mean!" Juninho said.
"If I told you that I want to be promoted to the Premier League within five years, would you think I'm telling a fairy tale?"
"Five years? Is that possible?" Juninho said with a wry smile.
"I don't know, but I'm very willing to take that gamble. That's why you see me spending £800,000 to buy you. Meanwhile, my club staff in Manchester are working to bring in players from France, Belarus, Poland, Denmark, Iceland, and other countries. Anyone can see that although we were founded just a year ago and have only just been promoted to the National League, our goal this year is to keep moving up!"
"I spent £3 million in Manchester to buy a training ground, and now I'm preparing to spend a large sum of money to negotiate with the city council to acquire a stadium. So far this year, we have spent at least over £1 million on signings. While money doesn't mean everything, at least it proves that we have the determination and strength to get promoted as soon as possible!"
"In addition, I can guarantee that my investment in the coming years will definitely not be less than this year's. My goal is to build New Manchester United into one of the top teams in England and even Europe, and you will be an important part of this team. I have always believed that you are a buried genius!"
Ethan spoke from the heart in one breath. His tone was very sincere, making it hard to believe he was lying.
Cassel secretly gave Ethan a thumbs up. When it came to winning people over, Ethan was probably the most capable person in the whole club. Bruce could scold players, but when it came to persuasion, he was far behind Ethan.
Juninho looked hesitantly at Faou, who obviously could not give him much advice.
"Perhaps you are still a bit worried, but I think you can talk to our team's head coach. You've heard of Manchester United, right?"
"Of course, sir!" Juninho nodded.
"I used to be a die-hard Manchester United fan, but last year, I established New Manchester United myself. Our team's head coach is the most outstanding legendary centre-back in Manchester United's history, former captain Steve Bruce. I think you should talk to him!"
Juninho thought for a moment and nodded. "Alright, sir!"
Ethan smiled, took out his phone, and dialed Bruce's number. Bruce's voice came through immediately.
He handed the phone to Juninho, then heard him responding with "uh-huh" and "yeah." Bruce on the other end was clearly doing his best to persuade him.
At first, when Ethan told Bruce about this, Bruce was unwilling. He did not think a Brazilian international would be willing to come to New Manchester United, and Brazilian players generally found it hard to adapt to the English style of play. Most importantly, the high transfer fee of £800,000 made Bruce want to back out.
After all, Gilberto Silva, the starting defensive midfielder who helped Brazil win the World Cup in 2002, transferred to Arsenal for only $4.5 million, and part of that went to the agent. Now Ethan had gone directly to Vasco da Gama and offered £800,000, which was about $1.5 million. This price was not low at all.
But under Ethan's constant encouragement and guarantees, Ethan even assured Bruce that this was a Brazilian who was not "very Brazilian." He could attack and link play in the final third, assist the defensive midfielder in defence, and participate in interceptions and disruption. At the same time, he possessed excellent individual ability, could shoot and pass, and was almost an all-round warrior.
Most importantly, he was only twenty-four years old. Once he joined the team, he could play for another ten years without any problems.
It was precisely because of Ethan's persistent support that Bruce finally agreed to help. After all, Ethan had a good eye for talent, such as Evra and Messi. And Juninho was a Brazilian international after all. Although he had only been selected once, he must have talent.
The phone call lasted more than half an hour. Basically, Bruce did all the talking while Juninho listened. By the end, Juninho was nodding constantly.
Seeing this scene, Ethan secretly thought he had a chance.
Sure enough, after hanging up the phone, Juninho shook off his previous dejection and recovered some spirit.
"By the way, Mr. Yu, if Ribeiro transfers to New Manchester United, how will the English work permit be resolved?" Faou was very familiar with Juninho and could tell at a glance that he had been persuaded.
"Only professional leagues require work permits. We are in the fifth tier, so I have a way to circumvent the work permit issue for now. You can apply for a tourist visa to England first. If asked upon entry, just say you are here for tourism. Our club will arrange for someone to pick you up. As for future matters, just leave them to us to handle."
Ethan knew the tricks Premier League teams would use to deal with work permits in the future. As long as Juninho set foot on English soil, it would not be difficult to apply for a work permit given his status as a former Brazilian international.
Essien and Muntari also entered England on tourist visas. Ethan was still struggling to find a way for them to apply for work permits in the future. If it really did not work out, he would have to loan them out.
"In short, once you go to England, you only need to think about how to win games for the team. As for everything else, let our club worry about it for you!" Ethan said with a chuckle.
Although he was a former Brazilian international, he was still an international nonetheless. This was the first international-level player in New Manchester United's history.
"Rest assured, Ribeiro. By joining New Manchester United, you definitely will not remain obscure. You will have a vast stage on which to display your talents and become a Brazilian superstar praised by fans all over the world, because you are a genius!"
This was what Ethan said to Juninho when they parted ways.
Juninho trembled and looked at Ethan in disbelief.
In fact, after transferring to Lyon, Juninho's performances had always been very good, especially his all-round ability in attack and defence, coupled with that sharp free-kick skill that struck fear into opponents. Yet such a player had never been widely known among fans.
Ethan admired this Brazilian star very much. He felt that Juninho was one of the most underrated Brazilian players. At the same time, he possessed the professionalism and self-discipline that many Brazilian players lacked, always being cautious and dutiful. Such a player might be low-profile, but his contribution to a team was definitely huge.
It was precisely because of this that Ethan refused to let this star slip away from him for nothing.
Walking out of the barbecue restaurant, Ethan felt in a great mood.
"At least before we reach the Premier League, we don't need to worry about the midfield core!" Ethan said to Cassel and Alberto.
And with De Rossi, Essien, and Muntari, New Manchester United would not need to worry about midfield defence for the next few years.
Don't think three defensive midfielders are too many. In reality, three were just enough. After all, in the coming years, the tactics of European teams would become increasingly pragmatic. A single defensive midfielder would simply be unable to satisfy the team's balance between attack and defence. De Rossi, Essien, and Muntari were all players who were fierce and tenacious in defence, had excellent running ability, and also possessed decent attacking capabilities.
With these three players, New Manchester United's spine would be strong.
Of course, for the time being, they could not place too much hope on these three players, so Ethan had already asked Walsh to help contact a powerful defensive midfielder, who would be Carl Makinson's main competitor in the new season.
In addition to bringing in a defensive midfielder, there were also two wingers, two strikers, and three defenders.
It could be said that after entering the National League, New Manchester United would be completely transformed.
Having invested money, Ethan believed that New Manchester United's strength would improve greatly, because he had said that he was not only satisfied with avoiding relegation. He wanted to be promoted to League Two next season.
Not only that, Ethan also hoped that in the coming years, the team could be promoted every year until it reached the Premier League. This was why he was determined to bring in Essien, De Rossi, and the others this summer.
Only by constantly winning and constantly being promoted could he keep this group of talented stars. Otherwise, in the end, he would just be preparing them for other clubs.
Ethan was no saint. He would not be willing to develop players for other teams, and New Manchester United would not become the kind of club that had to rely on selling players to survive.
Either don't do it, or if you do it, do it the best!
This was Ethan's consistent way of doing things!
(To be continued.)