Super Wingstorm

He opened his eyes. It was a new day.

Yang Yang lay on his single bed. Sunshine streamed through the thin curtains of the window beside him, bringing light to the dim room.

Almere had ultimately lost yesterday’s match, but Yang Yang had won.

A brilliant goal earned him everyone’s approval.

The final score was three to one. With the Almere players powerless to resist, Ajax scored three unanswered goals in the second half. However, Babel had little to do with them; in fact, two of the goals were scored after he was substituted off the pitch.

Tom Demuure, Amrabat, and Maduro each scored a goal, showcasing the strength of the Ajax players.

Though still disappointed with the final result, Yang Yang knew there was a massive skill gap between Almere and Ajax. Just holding on for the first half and sneaking in a goal was a pleasant surprise in itself.

Perhaps out of consideration for the large crowd, the senior figures of the Ajax youth academy, including Van Basten, had already left the stadium before the final whistle, once the outcome was all but decided. This left many of the Almere players kicking themselves after the match, but Yang Yang was grinning from ear to ear.

Thankfully, he had been too impatient to wait and had run over to meet Van Basten before the match. He’d shaken his hand and even gotten a photo with him.

The Ajax scout, Fred Arroyo, said that once the photo was developed, he would get Van Basten’s autograph on it before sending it to Yang Yang. This made him look forward to it immensely, and he decided he would definitely have it framed properly and hang it on his wall.

After returning home, taking a shower, and getting into bed, he entered Super Training to review the match with Old Ice.

This had been his routine for the past two or three months. Every review session benefited him greatly, and he firmly believed that this gradual accumulation of experience would bring huge benefits to his soccer career.

A major focus of last night’s review was analyzing the series of feints and ball-drags Yang Yang used to get past Vermaelen. Yang Yang thought he had executed it pretty well, but Old Ice wasn’t entirely satisfied, believing its success contained an element of luck.

"That Belgian has the defensive skills of at least a mid-table Eerste Divisie player, maybe even a lower-table Eredivisie player. The fact that you got past him was largely thanks to the element of surprise, and that little bit of luck."

Recalling Old Ice’s words now, Yang Yang was still astonished.

’The amateur league is only for players under eighteen. Thomas Vermaelen should also be around seventeen or eighteen, yet he already has the defensive skills of a mid-table Eerste Divisie or even a lower-table Eredivisie player. That guy’s future is limitless.’

But thinking back on the match, he had to admit it was really hard to get the better of Vermaelen. The guy wasn’t tall or powerfully built, but he was incredibly tenacious. He was explosive, agile, and his ability to harry and tackle was exceptional. Being marked by him was an absolute nightmare.

But then again, Yang Yang couldn’t help but feel a small sense of accomplishment.

’Scoring a goal against a player like that... that’s something to be proud of, isn’t it?’

But more than that, it fueled his fighting spirit.

Vermaelen didn’t seem much older than him, but his skills were so much stronger. This forced Yang Yang to remind himself once again that he had to keep working hard and improve his skills as quickly as possible.

Ajax’s Talent Day trials were getting closer and closer.

"Starting today, we’re adding a new exercise to your daily training regimen," Old Ice said calmly.

"Really? That’s great!" Yang Yang asked, overjoyed.

’Adding a new exercise... that means Old Ice has acknowledged my progress.’

Of course, the wall training had to continue. But as he grew more proficient, the same exercises took far less time than they did at the start, so adding a few new ones wouldn’t necessarily take up more time.

Besides, Yang Yang was always improving.

"Grab the marker cones. Starting today, you’ll do extra practice on the most basic movements with both feet: nudging, dragging, pushing, lifting, and cutting."

The Yang Yang of today was no longer the same person he was a few months ago. Not only had he gained a lot from practice, but he had also competed against opponents in real matches and had even faced a defender like Vermaelen, who had the skills of an upper-mid table Eerste Divisie player. He naturally had a much deeper understanding.

He knew full well that any seemingly complex technical maneuver was, when broken down, just a combination of the most fundamental actions. It was like Ronaldo’s series of feints and ball-drags; if each movement was broken down, one would find they were actually very simple. The same went for the Pendulum Move.

And Old Ice was having Yang Yang practice these basic movements—nudging, dragging, pushing, lifting, and cutting—with marker cones precisely to further improve his mastery of Ronaldo’s Assault and its practical application on the pitch, allowing him to unleash its true power.

"Okay," Yang Yang agreed without hesitation. "When can you raise the level of the defender I’m up against?"

Over the past month, Yang Yang felt his skills had improved considerably, but the defender he trained against was still at level three. This left him a little dissatisfied, especially after seeing what Vermaelen was capable of.

"It’s not time yet," Old Ice refused bluntly.

Yang Yang pursed his lips in resignation, but he believed that day would come soon.

"Huh? Why are you up so early again today?"

When Yang Yang came downstairs for breakfast, he happened to catch his uncle just as he was about to head out for grocery shopping.

"I’m going to the park to practice after breakfast," Yang Yang replied with a grin.

"It’s good to be diligent with your practice, but don’t overwork yourself. You’re still growing. You just played a match last night, so why don’t you just take a good rest at home today? I’ll whip up something good for you for lunch," his uncle, Shen Ming, said with a chuckle.

Nowadays, Yang Yang was like a walking advertisement for Shen’s Chinese Restaurant. Not only did the Almere Youth Team players like to come, but many locals also came, drawn by his reputation. The restaurant’s business was booming like never before. Even the usually bleak lunch service had started to get busy, which made Shen Ming incredibly happy.

But what made him happiest was his nephew’s progress. Not only had he earned the recognition of Almere, but even teams like Eindhoven and Ajax were showing interest in him. Who knows, maybe one day he’d really become a professional player in the Eredivisie. Then he, as the uncle, would also share in the glory.

Shen Ming now treated this nephew even better than his own daughter. He was mulling over hiring more staff so that Yang Yang could focus solely on his soccer and not have to help out at the restaurant anymore.

"Don’t worry, Uncle. I know my own body. After a good night’s sleep, all of last night’s fatigue is gone. I’m full of vim and vigor now, and I just want to go let off some steam," Yang Yang joked with a chuckle.

"Vim and vigor? Let off some steam?" Hearing this, Shen Ming immediately inspected his nephew carefully. There really seemed to be signs of a mustache growing on his upper lip and chin. "Looks like you’re growing up. It’s time for some... restorative food."

"Huh?" Yang Yang didn’t understand. ’What does he mean?’

"Later, your uncle will specially prepare a dish for you: stewed bull penis and old duck. It’s a Shen’s specialty, the ultimate restorative dish."

’Bull... penis... stewed with old duck... What the hell?’

Yang Yang was baffled and creeped out. ’Why do I feel like I can’t quite follow what Uncle is saying today?’

"Ahem, you’re almost seventeen, turning eighteen soon. You should consider getting a girlfriend. You can’t just think about training and matches all day. With your parents not around, it’s up to your uncle to worry about these things for you."

Yang Yang forced a smile. ’Aren’t we getting a little off-topic here?’

’A minute ago we were talking about training, then that got derailed into some... "ultimate restorative dish," and now we’re on to girlfriends...’

’Uncle, your train of thought jumps around way too fast. I can’t keep up.’

’Time to make a strategic retreat. Uncle, you take your time... I’m outta here.’

And so, Yang Yang bolted, leaving his uncle Shen Ming behind, just shaking his head and sighing.

’Kids these days... *sigh*...’

’Still, playing a full game last night and then getting up at the crack of dawn to train... When it comes to pure hard work, you can’t fault the kid. He’s been at it for months, rain or shine.’

’If a kid like this still doesn’t make it, then all I can say is that life is unfair.’

While Yang Yang was training against the wall and with marker cones in the skate park, over twenty kilometers away in the Southeast New City of Amsterdam, Ajax’s training ground, De Toekomst, finally welcomed its new technical director.

The famous Dutch manager, renowned throughout European football, Louis van Gaal, had officially decided to return.

This was Van Gaal’s first time returning in the capacity of technical director, and the entire complex treated the occasion with great importance.

Club president Michael van Praag personally accompanied him, along with head coach Ronald Koeman, youth team head coach Van Basten, two youth academy assistants Luther Carroll and Patrick Radru, and chief scout Tony Bruins Slotts, among others.

The entire core management team of De Toekomst had gathered to welcome them. After a round of pleasantries at the entrance, they ushered the president and the new technical director into the conference room, kicking off Ajax’s first high-level sporting meeting of the new season.

The main agenda of the meeting was to present the progress of Ajax’s transfer dealings. Van der Meede and Qi Wu had both decided to leave, which would bring Ajax an income of 30 million euros, a huge sum in the Eredivisie.

But Ajax couldn’t use this money for new signings, because many young players on the first team were clamoring for contract renewals and raises from the club. This was the price of retaining their players.

As for signings, Ajax had currently only finalized the deal for Julien Escude, a French central defender. And because his contract with Rennes had expired, Ajax didn’t need to pay any transfer fee for him.

On the other hand, the salary the player would receive was far higher than what he earned at Rennes. This was the price Ajax paid to entice him.

This twenty-three-year-old French central defender could be considered a real career winner. Four years ago, after shooting to fame playing one season of Ligue 2 at Cannes, he made a free transfer to Rennes. In his first season, he helped Rennes get promoted from Ligue 2 to Ligue 1. After playing three seasons in Ligue 1, he was now making another free transfer to the Eredivisie’s European powerhouse, Ajax.

In just a few short years, he had climbed steadily up the ranks, one step at a time.

Everyone at Ajax, from top to bottom, had complete confidence in a player like this, because Escude knew very well what he wanted. He would give his all in every match for Ajax and work his hardest in every training session.

To put it bluntly, Ajax was just another stepping stone for his continued ascent.

The next step was one of the Four Major Leagues, that was for sure. But which team he could get into would depend on his performance at Ajax.

In this respect, the team’s and the player’s interests were aligned.

After they finished discussing Escude, Van Gaal suddenly realized that the next item on the agenda was someone he knew.

Yang Yang.