For a big brand like Mercedes-Benz, what they really care about is exposure.
The Champions League, the biggest stage in global football, is what they care about.
Therefore, Tendou, who has no existing contracts but is young and talented, has become Mercedes-Benz's target.
They are very optimistic about Tendou's future, so they plan to intercept him ahead of time. The first offer was in the tens of millions of Euros, for a duration of 5 years, striving to reach an agreement.
To be honest, Mercedes-Benz's offer was very fair. But five years later, in 2024, Liverpool would have been very competitive for several years.
By then, Tendou might have already won various Champions League titles. If he performs well, he might even be crowned the Golden Ball winner.
So 12 million Euros was far from his limit.
In fact, it was because Mercedes-Benz saw this possibility that they had made such a big offer.
Tendou's current stats were already at a historic best level.
And, this year, Tendou had a very good chance to compete for the Golden Boy award.
Because in this world, Loki had already won the Golden Boy award last year. Among the players under 21, there was no one who could compare to Tendou.
There is no rule that prohibits winning the award consecutively, but in history, no player has ever won the Golden Boy twice.
Therefore, it has been tacitly accepted by the fans that the Golden Boy award can only be won once in a lifetime.
Looking at Tendou's current stats, double digits in league goals and assists, and 7 goals in the Champions League, his chances of winning the Golden Boy award were very high.
Whether in the league or the Champions League, the outside world was generally optimistic about Liverpool.
They were the big favorites to win the title.
As long as they win one of them, Tendou's chances of being crowned the Golden Boy will greatly increase.
If they win both the league and the Champions League, then his chances of winning the Golden Boy award are 100%!
The first Asian Golden Boy!
This is a history-breaking topic!
Of course, Steffen was not willing for his cooperation with Tendou to be short-term.
"I understand your thoughts, TJ!"
"12 million does not represent your market value, but have you thought about it? What if, and I'm just saying what if, your subsequent performance is not good? Anything is possible on the football field!"
"I think a long-term contract is more beneficial for you!"
Steffen's face was filled with a benevolent smile, his words full of the wisdom of an elder.
Tendou's tone was firm. "There are no what-ifs. At least, the what-if you're talking about will not happen to me."
"..."
Steffen was silent. He looked at Jonathan, who just smiled, making him unreadable.
"I like to deal with confident young people."
The benevolent look on Steffen's face disappeared, and his eagle-like eyes stared at Tendou.
"This is the second plan I have prepared for you."
Mercedes-Benz had come prepared this time.
They had also considered the possibility that Tendou would refuse, so they had prepared a second contract.
Jonathan took it and looked at it, a hint of surprise in his eyes.
The contract duration was still 5 years. Mercedes-Benz had no intention of signing a short-term contract with Tendou.
However, compared to the first offer of 12 million Euros per year, this contract could reach a maximum of 16 million Euros per year.
If Liverpool could ultimately win either the Champions League or the Premier League title, Mercedes-Benz was willing to spend 14 million Euros a year for Tendou.
But if Liverpool won both the Champions League and the league, then Mercedes-Benz was willing to spend 16 million Euros a year for Tendou.
In addition, there were bonuses for the Golden Boy, the Golden Ball, the Golden Boot, the Champions League Golden Boot, the league's top assister, the Champions League's top assister, and so on, all in the millions.
The conditions were very generous, but also very demanding.
The Premier League and the Champions League are both top-tier titles; they are not so easy to win.
Didn't Real Madrid get eliminated in the round of 16 this year?
"But at the same time, TJ, if Liverpool ends up with no trophies this year, our contract with you will be 9 million per year, for a duration of 5 years."
Steffen's gaze was full of aggression, as if he were a wolf that had cornered its prey.
Tendou was unperturbed. After Jonathan signaled that there was no problem with the contract, Tendou took the pen and signed his name directly.
"You're not even going to consider it?"
Steffen couldn't hold it in anymore. This was too decisive.
So decisive that it made him a little nervous.
After closing the pen, Tendou stood up and extended his hand.
"Prepare the check, Mr. President."
"You can prepare the press conference now. Tell those reporters that you're spending 16 million Euros a year to sign me!"
...
Mercedes-Benz moved quickly.
In Blue Lock, after finishing their training, Isagi and the others, as usual, opened the football news hotspots to watch.
Now, the major leagues had all entered their final stages.
What kind of results their favorite teams would achieve this year would depend on the last few rounds of matches.
But just as they sat down, a surprised gasp came from the side.
"16 million Euros a year?!"
"What 16 million Euros?"
The others all looked over.
Chigiri Hyoma held up his phone screen to everyone.
"Just now, Mercedes-Benz announced that they have signed Tendou as their global brand ambassador for 16 million Euros a year!"
"What?!"
Even Itoshi Rin's expression changed at this moment.
How much is 16 million Euros?
Converted to yen, it's 2.758 billion.
And Itoshi Rin and Isagi Yoichi, the offers they received after the Neo Egoist League were 240 million yen...
"So... so amazing..."
Hiori Yo and the other players who had been selected for the U-20 team were rooted to the spot.
Then the question came.
"With a player like Tendou, will he still play in the U-20 World Cup?"
It was unknown who asked this question, but everyone present fell silent.
Ego Jinpachi happened to use this opportunity to tell them a piece of news.
"I have already spoken with Tendou. He will not be playing in this U-20 World Cup."
"What? Why?!"
"He's not playing? Then what should we..."
At first, everyone was quite confident about the U-20 World Cup.
Because they had Tendou.
A core player who was playing for a giant club like Liverpool at the age of 18.
And then there was the genius midfielder from Real Madrid's youth academy, Itoshi Sae.
And the result?
Itoshi Sae only planned to play against Spain and would not play in the knockout stage.
Tendou was even more decisive, not even playing in the U-20 World Cup at all.
"The reason?" Chigiri clenched his fists. "He has to give us a reason for not playing!"
Chigiri's biggest wish at this stage was to lift the cup with Tendou, to show him his growth, that it wasn't just Tendou who was moving forward, that he also hadn't been standing still.
Ego was silent for a moment and then said, "He asked me what the ultimate goal of the Blue Lock project was."
The original purpose of launching the Blue Lock project?
To cultivate the world's number one striker!
To solve the national team's lack of firepower!
And to help the national team win the World Cup!
"So, do you understand? Tendou is already on another level. If you don't want to be left behind by him, if you want to fight alongside him in the Qatar World Cup in 4 years, then hurry up and prove yourselves."
"The current head coach of the national team has already confirmed that he will call up Tendou to the national team and has announced that he will be the absolute core of the future national team."
...
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