Ethan had always held German football in high regard. Although he did not particularly enjoy watching German matches, that did not stop him from admiring the fighting spirit and tenacity of German teams, a group of players who fought with a collective team spirit.
Back when he played Football Manager, his favourite strikers were those with exceptional pace, ideally combined with superb technique. Thus, his attention was mostly focused on players like Agüero, Messi, and Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, there was one person who had left a very deep impression on Ethan.
Ivica Olić, a player who was still obscure at this time. Yet in the 2010 Champions League, he would produce a classic example of saving the day and becoming famous overnight.
In the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, Bayern Munich hosted the Red Devils, Manchester United. Through his relentless effort and never-say-die persistence, Olić scored in the final seconds before the end of the match, helping Bayern pull off a last-minute 2-1 win against Manchester United.
It was this goal, worth its weight in gold, that introduced Olić to fans worldwide. He then scored another in the second leg and went on to score a hat-trick away to Lyon in the semi-finals.
It could be said that in 2010, it was Olić's magical performance that helped Bayern reach the Champions League final.
Throughout the 2009-10 season, Olić made 29 Bundesliga appearances for Bayern, scoring 11 goals. He made 10 appearances in the Champions League, scoring 7 goals, and 2 appearances in the German Cup, scoring 1 goal.
This was a surprising record, especially for a player signed on a free transfer for nothing.
Olić had never been a highly efficient goalscorer. Before joining Bayern, his best scoring seasons came between 2001 and 2003 in the Croatian league, where he scored 54 goals in 84 matches. After moving to Russia, he was used more as a left winger, which caused his goal tally to plummet.
In fact, Ethan's interest in Olić was not because of his efficiency, but because of his wind-like pace and his non-stop running for the full 90 minutes. He was like a perpetual motion machine that stayed fully charged. From the moment the whistle blew, he simply could not stop.
Perhaps Olić's technique was not outstanding. Perhaps his finishing was not great and his efficiency was low. But who would not like a player who was extremely quick, could run for the full 90 minutes, and possessed that German-like will to never give up?
"Ivica Olić?" Bruce frowned as he thought. "Who is that?"
"A Croatian striker. He performed excellently in the Croatian Second Division the season before last and was scouted by Hertha Berlin of the Bundesliga. They brought him to Germany, but for some reason, he could never get any game time. After six months, Hertha Berlin lost faith in him and wanted to send him back to Croatia," Walsh replied.
"Has he recovered?" Ethan asked with some concern.
In truth, his arrival had already changed many things, but most of them were subtle changes around him. He could not guarantee that these changes would not affect Germany.
"Not exactly recovered. He can't get a game at Hertha Berlin at all. He only made 3 appearances the whole season with no goals. Hertha Berlin has completely lost faith in him."
"The whole season? Didn't he return to Croatia during the winter break?" Ethan was very surprised.
At this, both Walsh and Bruce looked at Ethan in shock. "Why are you so certain he would return to Croatia?"
"I saw news on the internet at the time that Hertha Berlin was planning to send him back, which is why I asked Walsh to go to Marsonia in the Croatian Second Division to negotiate."
Upon hearing this, the two stopped dwelling on it.
"Hertha Berlin did indeed intend to send him away, but he chose to stay. He also married a German girl."
"And he is still living in Germany. So, when I couldn't find him in Croatia, I went to Germany to try my luck."
Speaking of this, Walsh was full of resentment toward Ethan.
Ethan smiled apologetically. "So, what was the result?"
"Hertha Berlin has wanted to get rid of Olić for a long time. They still owe Marsonia a transfer fee of £130,000 from when Olić originally transferred from Marsonia to Hertha Berlin."
Walsh paused, took a sip of water, and continued, "I talked to Hertha Berlin. They agreed that as long as we help them pay off this £130,000 debt, they will agree to Olić's transfer to New Manchester United."
"You agreed?" Bruce asked with concern.
"Of course. I called him, and he said to buy Olić!" Walsh pointed at Ethan.
Bruce immediately shook his head. This guy was too much of a spendthrift, acting as if money were no object.
"Steve, don't worry. Listen to me. I've done the maths. We currently have five usable strikers: Crouch, Žigić, Kitson, Olić, and Jonathan Matten. Among them, Kitson hasn't had formal training for three years, so we obviously can't pin too much hope on him. And while Jonathan performed excellently in the North West Counties League Division Two, we are now in the National League."
"Buying an extra striker to be safe is worth it, in my opinion. Besides, I don't think we've made a bad deal!"
"Fine, I'll let that pass. What about the right midfielder I asked for?"
Ethan looked at Walsh, who immediately spoke up.
"We have options, and more than one. We've brought in the young winger Alexander Hleb from BATE Borisov in the Belarusian league. He's excellent with both feet and can play on either flank. In addition, we've signed Polish international Krzynówek from Bełchatów in the Polish Second Division. He's a left-footer who can occasionally fill in on the right. He'll be a powerhouse on the wings for us this new season."
Bringing in Hleb cost New Manchester United £70,000, while Krzynówek cost £90,000. They both came from lesser footballing nations, so while the latter was already a Polish international and the former was somewhat famous in Belarus, their transfer fees were not too high.
With the addition of these two wing stars, New Manchester United's flanks were bound to become much more fluid this season.
"As for the defensive midfield position, I've already reached an agreement with Holbæk, a third-tier Danish team. They are a semi-professional club and couldn't keep Poulsen, who was determined to leave. So, we got Poulsen for just £110,000."
"Furthermore, we've signed right-back Grétar Steinsson from ÍA in Iceland. Since this seventeen-year-old youngster hadn't signed a professional contract with ÍA yet, after negotiations, we brought him to Manchester for a fee of just £10,000."
Ever since Walsh started talking, Bruce had been recording the players mentioned and their transfer fees in his pocket notebook. Now, he began to tally the numbers.
Finally, he concluded that the team had spent a total of £1.9 million on recruitment this year, all paid in lump sums. Juninho alone cost £800,000, which would surely make him the transfer record-breaker for the National League this year, and possibly even for League Two, League One, or even Division One.
Juninho's salary was also not low, with a weekly wage of £4,000 after tax. This was the highest at New Manchester United, several times higher than Jonathan Matten's. But considering he carried the aura of a Brazilian international, such a high salary was understandable.
Aside from Juninho, the other players were basically obscure. Even Crouch, who came from the Premier League, was not even a regular in Tottenham's youth team, let alone known outside Tottenham.
"To be honest, Ethan, with such heavy recruitment, I'm feeling a lot of pressure!" Bruce said jokingly.
Indeed, with a Brazilian international and a Polish international, which club in the National League had ever possessed two internationals at once?
"Don't worry, Steve. I won't put any pressure on you. You can coach entirely according to your own will. The club will support you fully!" Ethan replied with great certainty.
Despite spending a lot of money on heavy recruitment, Ethan did not feel he should give Bruce an ultimatum. After all, doing so might instead burden the team, which could lead to poor results.
"Andy, how are the housing arrangements for our new signings?"
"Everything is arranged. I've had people find several nice places nearby. Once they arrive, they can choose the house they like, rent it, and move in with their luggage."
"We must pay attention to these matters, especially the players' dietary and lifestyle habits. I don't want these details to cause the players we've invested heavily in to become failures."
"Don't worry, I'll personally follow up on this. There won't be any problems."
Ethan was very confident in Walsh's working style. He was meticulous and patient, someone who would not make mistakes, though it was hard to expect him to provide surprises. With someone like him in charge of logistics, Ethan naturally had no reason to worry.
Bruce, sitting to the side, checked the time and felt it was about right, so he stood up. "Ethan, shouldn't you go home and get ready? Change your clothes and take a shower?"
"What for?" Ethan was a bit puzzled. Since when did Bruce care so much about his personal hygiene?
"We need to head to Ireland!"
"Yeah, did you forget? David's wedding!" Walsh reminded him from the side.
"No, of course I remember. July 4th. Isn't today only July 3rd?" Ethan suddenly noticed that Bruce was wearing a sharp suit, and Walsh was also dressed very formally.
"Oh, heavens, you didn't forget the stag night, did you? It's an English tradition for a man getting married, held the night before the wedding," Bruce said, slapping his forehead.
(To be continued.)