Football: I can see player entries.

Chapter 116 Star Players

After Jamie and Biwat left, Ogradi and Turner were also informed that they could find new jobs on their own.

Turner had anticipated this day and did not react excessively to it.

But Ogradi, the 6'6" big guy, was on the verge of an emotional breakdown when he learned that he was not in the plans for the next season.

He was one of the first players to recognize Li Yanqing's talent.

If it weren't for his terrible skills, the latter would have been reluctant to let go of this very loyal teammate.

“It’s alright, Ogradi.”

"I assure you, my coaching team will always reserve a place for you."

"We will meet again then."

Li Yanqing said this while pointing to his heart.

He certainly hopes all his players can develop into superstars, but that's unrealistic.

Ogradi is 31 years old this year, the same age as Jamie.

At this age, there's not much room for him to improve.

Aside from heading the ball, he doesn't have any other role on the field.

This level of performance would be disastrous in the Premier League.

"Ok!"

"I'll be back, boss!"

Ogradi himself knew that this was because his skill level was not high enough, so he didn't complain much.

It's mainly my own fault for not being ambitious enough.

As for the others, Li Yanqing still intends to continue using them.

He divided the players into three groups.

First, let's look at the main team.

Joe Hart, Bradford, Quinn, Matthias, Enzo, Baselli.

Then came the rotation of key players, including Murphy and Sun Yan.

Finally, the substitutes are Nasri and Miller.

This grouping wasn't entirely based on ability. Bradford was a starter because he was the captain and his skills were passable, but he relied more on his mental fortitude.

Murphy is decent, but he can only be used in rotation because the starting lineup needs a dominant center.

Nasri's substitution was entirely due to physical reasons.

This makes it clearer what kind of players the team needs to add.

The good news is that, including himself, almost everyone received a new contract with a significant pay rise.

Correspondingly, the contract terms were renegotiated, and the penalties for breach of contract were also increased.

He certainly doesn't want his players to be signed by big clubs with buyout clauses as soon as they develop.

As for Joe Hart, Burton Albion has already submitted a formal buyout request to Manchester City.

The other party did not make things difficult for him, but only symbolically accepted two million pounds, which made Hart the highest-paid player in Burton Albion for the time being.

His final professional contract offered a very good annual salary, which was more than enough to justify his hard work over the years.

What surprised him most was that Blinder, whom he hadn't been able to sign before, contacted him.

His contract with Manchester United is about to expire, and the club doesn't seem to be planning to exercise its one-year extension option.

He's about to become a free agent.

"I still want to stay in the Premier League, and I will prove my worth, Lee."

“Of course, no problem, Daley!” Li Yanqing was very happy that the other party wanted to join Burton.

Even if he joins Burton on a free transfer, he won't be able to enjoy the high salary that Joe Hart received.

He needs to explain this beforehand.

"But our finances are still tight, and our wages will probably be lower than when you were at Manchester United."

"You can only join us by taking a pay cut..."

"..."

Burton isn't a top club, so it's normal that they can't afford the same wages as Manchester United, but he doesn't want to leave one of the top five leagues.

As for Barcelona, ​​who previously wanted him, they already have someone in his position.

"Okay, I can accept that."

After thinking for a while, Blinder agreed to the request.

He regretted it a little. If he had agreed to the invitation back then, he could definitely have transferred here freely as a meritorious employee and received a high salary.

But he didn't come; instead, he stayed at Manchester United and spent half a season on the bench...

After dealing with player contract renewals and Blind's issues, Li Yanqing began preparing for his own trip.

He needs to go to the site to observe Bojan, Danny Rose, and others before deciding whether to sign them.

Just then, Barker found him.

"plum!"

"I've looked at your list of signings."

"I will do as you ask, but there is a small problem."

"What's the problem?" Actually, apart from not having enough people, Li Yanqing didn't think there was anything too serious a problem.

"Most of them are veterans or upstarts; it seems there aren't many people with enough commercial influence."

"Uh, I mean the kind that's in their prime."

"Robinson and I need a player like that in the team."

Clearly, this is for commercial reasons; they need a super popular player who can stay with the club for a long time in order to attract long-term investment.

Nasri is no good, Joe Hart is no good, and Pepe and Cazorla on the transfer list are no good either...

"You can choose who to buy. If you can't find a suitable candidate, then we can handle it."

"Li, you only have one month..."

“I will go look for it.” Li Yanqing nodded.

Barker's request wasn't too unreasonable; at least he had informed me beforehand, and I could choose the person to represent me.

The only question is, among the stars in their prime, who can they afford?

“What about the budget?”

"I've already made arrangements for the money for now."

“No, we’re not talking about those superstar players, there’s no need for that.” Barker shook his head.

"A fairly average star player will suffice."

"Like Brahimi of Porto, or Andy Carroll of West Ham."

"You know, it would be best if he were a striker."

"Understood." This time he had no further questions.

If you look around, you can still find some strikers of this caliber who offer good value for money.

But if he could wait another season, he was confident that Quinn and Murphy would be able to take on the responsibility.

They will become Burton's own star players...