"What did you say?"
Ethan had only just returned to his office and had not even sat down when Walsh brought him the news.
"José came looking for you earlier, but you weren't here. He told me Arsenal's chief scout, Steve Rowley, secretly contacted Ishmael and Leo. Both of them made it clear they aren't interested in joining Arsenal."
Ethan's expression darkened.
"Did they approach anyone else?"
"Probably not. Our position has always been very clear, so Arsenal won't dare push things too far. As for Hleb, whom they're extremely interested in..."
Walsh laughed with obvious satisfaction.
"Frankly, Wenger doesn't have enough money to buy him."
Arsenal were preparing to build a new stadium themselves, which meant Wenger was about to enter a period of severe financial restraint.
Only a few days earlier, he had publicly admitted that Arsenal would no longer make major signings as freely as they had in previous seasons. Instead, the club intended to place greater emphasis on developing young players.
The problem was that Arsenal's academy did not yet contain the extraordinary generation of youngsters it would later produce.
Walcott and Wilshere had already been secured by Ethan ahead of them.
Aaron Ramsey had effectively been reserved as well.
Cardiff were currently struggling in the Second Division, and after New Manchester United paid a modest development fee, Ramsey would join the academy the following season.
These young British players possessed enormous potential.
By bringing them into Newton Heath early, Ethan could ensure they were developed within the club's tactical philosophy from a young age.
He believed they would eventually contribute to the first team.
From what Ethan remembered, Wenger still had some money available that summer.
Arsenal would spend around £10 million on Reyes.
But expecting New Manchester United to sell Hleb for that amount was wishful thinking.
The Belarusian had been one of the club's outstanding performers over the previous few seasons and had attracted interest from numerous teams.
Another club had already made an offer for him the previous year.
Ethan had rejected it.
His position had always been simple.
If someone wanted to buy one of New Manchester United's players, fine.
But they would have to meet Ethan's valuation.
Different players had different prices.
Meet the asking price, and negotiations could begin.
Of course, there were exceptions.
AC Milan had once offered £15 million for Kaká.
Ethan had rejected them without hesitation.
As far as he was concerned, Kaká was priceless.
"Tell José to keep the squad settled," Ethan said.
"The only thing that matters right now is preparing properly for these three decisive matches.
"I'll deal with everything else."
A dangerous smile appeared on his face.
If Arsenal wanted to play games behind the scenes, then they could hardly complain when Ethan responded.
That had always been his nature.
He remembered favours.
He remembered provocations too.
Arsenal had made the first move.
So Ethan saw no reason to hold back.
New Manchester United needed another creative midfielder.
And Arsenal were currently trying to lure one of Barcelona's brightest academy prospects to England.
Cesc Fàbregas.
Fine.
If Wenger wanted Messi, Ethan would go after Cesc.
...
Once the idea occurred to him, Ethan immediately asked Villas-Boas to contact New Manchester United's scouts in Spain.
He wanted them to monitor Fàbregas closely and quietly establish contact with the player's representatives.
Arsenal's reputation was not yet what it would become several years later.
Nor had Wenger reached the almost untouchable status he would eventually enjoy as one of Europe's greatest developers of young talent.
His reputation for identifying and signing teenage prospects had not yet become a defining feature of Arsenal.
Fàbregas was performing extremely well in Barcelona's academy.
But Barcelona were not giving him especially favourable treatment.
Xavi was already established in the first team.
Even a talent like Iniesta was still moving between the senior squad and the younger sides.
Fàbregas was younger still.
There were also widespread reports that Barcelona intended to spend heavily on established attacking stars that summer.
Several famous names had been linked with them.
Beckham.
Ronaldinho.
If players of that level arrived, the pathway into the senior team would become even narrower for Fàbregas.
Ethan flew from Manchester to Barcelona.
The moment he landed, New Manchester United's scout in Spain was already waiting to collect him.
During the drive, the scout handed him a report on Barcelona's academy.
Three names were highlighted.
Andrés Iniesta.
Gerard Piqué.
Cesc Fàbregas.
Ethan knew all three extremely well from his previous life.
Iniesta had once come close to leaving Barcelona because of limited opportunities.
Piqué and Fàbregas actually did leave.
By the time Ethan had left his previous life behind, Piqué had already returned to Barcelona, while Fàbregas was still with Arsenal.
At this stage, all three could theoretically be recruited.
Even Iniesta might be tempted if another club offered the right opportunity and guaranteed him meaningful first-team football.
But Ethan had one concern.
Would his style adapt to the Premier League?
Fàbregas had not yet turned sixteen, but he already seemed unusually mature.
Although primarily a midfielder, he possessed excellent goalscoring instincts.
In Ethan's previous life, he would finish as the top scorer at the Under-17 World Cup later that year.
At Barcelona's academy, Ethan watched Piqué and Fàbregas training alongside several other talented youngsters, including Giovani dos Santos and Bojan.
Under the coaches' guidance, the players were already beginning to receive increasingly specialised positional instruction.
Fàbregas was nominally used as an attacking midfielder, although his role was fluid.
He often dropped deeper to participate in build-up play and defensive work.
Technically, he stood out even among Barcelona's academy players.
His first touch was excellent.
But his greatest quality was his passing.
"His distribution is exceptional," the Spanish scout said.
"And his reading of the game is even better.
"His vision is probably his greatest strength.
"When you watch him play, some things other players spend years learning seem completely natural to him."
Villas-Boas agreed.
At the same time, he believed Michael Johnson at Newton Heath possessed talent of a similar level.
The difference was that both players were still far too young to carry responsibility in the Premier League.
No matter how gifted a youngster was, development still required time.
Two or three years of gradual adaptation was normal.
How many teenagers could move directly from academy football into the senior side of a major club and immediately become an undisputed starter?
There were exceptions.
But Ethan believed forcing that level of responsibility onto an undeveloped teenager could do more harm than good.
Overusing players before their bodies had fully matured could damage their long-term development.
Professor Fryer had discussed the subject with Ethan more than once.
In his view, players should generally reach eighteen or nineteen, when their physical development was much closer to completion, before being asked to shoulder major responsibilities consistently.
By then, their mentality would also have matured considerably.
Before that, the ideal approach was to allow exceptional youngsters to train occasionally with the first team and appear in selected matches, giving them exposure to the speed and atmosphere of senior football without overloading them.
"See that man over there?"
New Manchester United's Spanish scout suddenly pointed towards someone standing farther along the fence.
Like Ethan and the others, the man was watching the academy session through the wire fencing.
Unlike them, however, he was making a clear effort not to attract attention.
"Arsenal scout?" Ethan asked with a smile.
"No.
"Manchester United."
Ethan looked surprised.
"Manchester United are interested in Fàbregas too?"
Then he immediately realised there was nothing strange about it.
Every major club wanted elite young talent.
"Of course," the scout replied.
"And it has a lot to do with the difference between English and Spanish regulations.
"In England, a player can sign a professional contract at sixteen.
"In Spain, clubs can't offer the same protection until eighteen.
"Those two years create an opportunity for English clubs."
Ethan looked back at the report.
"If I'm calculating correctly, Cesc turns sixteen in May."
The document listed his birthday as May 4.
"Exactly.
"So he'll be making an important decision about his future very soon."
"Then we can't waste time.
"I want to meet him.
"And his agent.
"Does he already have one?"
"Of course.
"A player this highly rated has had representatives circling him for years.
"His agent is José Díaz.
"I know him.
"I'll contact him and try to arrange a meeting with both him and Cesc."
Ethan nodded approvingly.
He was impressed by the scout's efficiency.
Then he glanced towards Villas-Boas.
Villas-Boas immediately understood what that look meant.
Ethan had always attached considerable importance to Spain and Portugal.
Both countries produced large numbers of technically gifted footballers.
Just as importantly, because they were EU members, signing players from either country avoided the work-permit complications associated with talent from elsewhere.
Ethan had nothing against recruiting African players.
Quite the opposite.
The problem was international scheduling.
He did not want too many key players from the squad disappearing simultaneously whenever the African Cup of Nations arrived.
That could cripple a team at the worst possible moment.
For precisely that reason, expanding the scouting network throughout Spain and Portugal had become increasingly important.
And the scout currently handling the Fàbregas situation had just made a very favourable impression.
His name was Ramón.
Ethan had a feeling Ramón would be receiving a promotion soon.
Knowing Ethan had little time to waste, Ramón immediately contacted José Díaz.
He explained New Manchester United's interest and made it clear that Ethan had personally flown to Barcelona to discuss Fàbregas's future.
They wanted to meet the player face to face.
Ramón also made another point during the conversation.
If Díaz helped facilitate the move, Ethan would make sure his efforts were properly rewarded.
Ethan had a reputation for being generous with people who worked constructively with him.
The world of football agents was not especially large.
Stories travelled quickly.
Díaz had already heard about Ethan's previous dealings with Jorge Mendes during Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer.
Mendes had done extremely well out of that arrangement.
And because Spanish and Portuguese football circles were closely connected, the story had inevitably reached Díaz.
Ethan Yu was internationally famous and enormously wealthy.
More importantly from an agent's perspective, he had a reputation for honouring agreements.
Work within his rules, help him complete the deal he wanted, and he rarely begrudged anyone their share.
Díaz immediately found himself comparing that approach with Arsenal's.
It could hardly be worse.
Arsenal's representatives had already contacted him.
But their attention had been almost entirely focused on persuading the player.
The agent himself had largely been treated as an inconvenience.
Steve Rowley in particular had simply told Díaz that there would be "something in it for him."
What exactly did that mean?
£10,000?
£20,000?
Who knew?
Díaz did not consider himself especially greedy.
But he certainly had no intention of refusing legitimate benefits that came with doing his job.
For that reason, he quickly agreed to Ramón's request.
Fàbregas had no training the following morning.
Díaz could arrange for him to meet Ethan then.
However, he also gave them a warning.
Cesc was unusually mature for his age.
He had strong opinions and already thought seriously about his own career.
Whether New Manchester United could persuade him to leave Barcelona would depend entirely on the case they presented.
Ethan did not seem worried.
He was confident he could convince him.
(To be continued.)