Chapter 704: I Will Go to the Scene! (Second Perspective)
"As the FIFA Ballon d'Or award ceremony approaches, there's always discussions during training breaks about who will win it this year," the players often talked about it in Werder Bremen.
Not only them, but probably all football clubs would have similar discussions at this time, after all, it's one of the biggest events in football every year.
Huang Hu didn't hesitate to support his senior, "Of course it's Wang Ge. With such explosive data and performance, there should be no dispute about him winning."
"You make a good point, but I think Thomas also has a good chance. He's been touching the hearts of European football fans, and he's backed by the World Cup," Fritz shrugged.
"And Bayern has been unusually supportive this year, with the whole team backing the players to compete for this highest honor," he added.
"I actually want Thomas to win, but if it happens, it might cause more controversy than when he won the UEFA Best Player award," he said.
On the sidelines, De Bruyne asked weakly, "Wasn't Bayern not supportive of their players winning the Ballon d'Or before? There have been very few Bundesliga players who won it, like Sammer, who won it a long time ago when I was just a few years old."
Fritz whispered mysteriously, "Team performance and player performance are certainly the most important criteria for the Ballon d'Or, but the club's support is also not to be underestimated. In the past, people only said Bayern was low-key, not as good at promoting their own players as Real Madrid."
"There's a conspiracy theory circulating within German football circles, which is that Bayern intentionally suppresses top players to avoid being controlled by them."
Seeing the surprised expressions on the young players' faces, Fritz continued, "This is not difficult to understand. Personally winning awards doesn't bring any actual benefits to the club, but it can lead to troubles like salary increases and improved status within the team."
"At least the players' value increases," De Bruyne interjected, "Value is only useful when it comes to selling players. Which big club wants to easily lose a player who is still productive?"
"I see." Huang Hu rubbed his chin, "No wonder Zuo was overshadowed in last year's Ballon d'Or voting and couldn't even make it to the top three. Besides avoiding controversies, it also had to do with the club not providing any help."
"Of course, the influence of the German-speaking world in the football world is not as strong as that of the Latin-speaking world," Fritz added. "After all, they have such a large range of influence in South America, while we only have regions like Austria, Hungary, and Switzerland."
Everyone nodded in agreement, acknowledging the wisdom of the seasoned veteran.
"I think both you and Kevin have a chance to win the Ballon d'Or in the future. Keep working hard, young lads. Us old folks don't have much hope anymore," Fritz encouraged with a hint of nostalgia.
All eyes were on these two rising stars, with a hint of envy in their eyes. Apart from them, almost everyone's biggest wish was to make it onto the initial 23-man list for the Ballon d'Or selection.
Even so, it was a luxury, as no one in Werder Bremen's team had achieved it yet.
Huang Hu waved his hand, "I'll pass on that. It would be very good if I could catch up to Dong Fangzhuo's achievements."
He understood his own talent and ability very well. Although he could continuously improve, reaching Dong Fangzhuo's level was already reaching the ceiling.
"But Kevin might. When you win the Ballon d'Or in the future, don't forget to celebrate with us," the Chinese youngster joked, and De Bruyne scratched his head shyly. He was really looking forward to winning that highest honor in football.
Predictions about the award were put aside, and there was also a lot of media hype about Wang Feng's travel plans. The British Sun boldly claimed that the Chinese superstar, feeling the unfairness of the selection environment, had decided not to attend the ceremony in Switzerland!
A stone thrown into the water caused a thousand ripples. Normally, the top three candidates for the Ballon d'Or would attend the award ceremony to await the final results, but throughout history, there were also players who felt hopeless about winning and chose to be absent.
Although regrettable, it was not a big deal. But Wang Feng was different. He was a ten-time Ballon d'Or winner, the greatest and most influential player in history.
If he were absent, it would indicate an attitude��he didn't acknowledge the outcome of the selection, and he resisted it with his actions!
This would be a serious blow to the reputation and authority of the Ballon d'Or, and it might even become an indelible stain.
The situation escalated, even FIFA President Blatter was alarmed. He personally called Wang Feng to express his invitation and emphasized that there was no bias towards European players in the selection, and all selections were fair and normal.
The Chinese superstar also felt somewhat helpless. The Sun clearly wanted to make a big news, but the shock it caused might have even surprised them.
"I will go to the scene!" Wang Feng affirmed when facing reporters. "Regardless of whether I can ultimately win the award, I will go."
"Muller and Ronaldo (the other two candidates) are both outstanding players, with good results and performances. It wouldn't be surprising if either of them won."
"Of course, I definitely hope to win it myself. Although I've won it ten times already, who can refuse that shiny golden football, haha."
Under his own denial, the turmoil gradually subsided.
In addition to discussions about the top three candidates for the Ballon d'Or, people also noticed Messi's absence from the list. This is the first time since 2007 that the Argentine has missed out on the top three.
With no awards from his club and a lack of effort before the World Cup, but more importantly, his disastrous performance in the World Cup knockout stage.
Although Argentina made it to the final, Messi's contribution was very limited, especially missing a penalty in a critical moment of the final, losing the favor of many judges.
On December 14th, in the 15th round of the Bundesliga, Werder Bremen challenged Paderborn away.
This is a historically old small-town team, founded in 1907, but has never competed in the top league, and was promoted to the Bundesliga for the first time last season.
At the beginning of the season, their performance was good, and they even ranked first for a while, but after seven consecutive losses, they dropped to 10th place. This also gave the whole team a slap in the face, waking them up from their dreams.
Yeah, where are so many miracles like Kaiserslautern? Regardless of the depth of the lineup or the strength of the players, promoted teams are far behind other Bundesliga powerhouses, and the team's most important goal is to avoid relegation!
The city of Paderborn has a population of only about 140,000, with about 10% being local university students and 8% being former British soldiers. There aren't many fans who truly feel a sense of belonging.
However, the Benteler Arena, which can accommodate 15,000 spectators, had an attendance rate of about 60%, with home fans enthusiastically supporting their local team.
In this atmosphere, Paderborn fought fiercely against Werder Bremen. In the 47th minute, De Bruyne dribbled the ball through the middle, passed it straight to the arc for Selke.
The German forward flicked the ball with his heel, sending it to the back post, where Huang Hu stepped into the penalty area with small steps, adjusted his body and position, then lifted his leg to shoot. The ball curled into the far corner of the goal, 1-0!
But in the 89th minute of the second half, with a market value of only �200,000, midfielder Bakalorz blasted a long shot to open the door for the visiting team, equalizing the score.
In the end, the match ended in a 1-1 draw, with both sides shaking hands.
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