Chapter 47: Setting Off for Spain!

After delivering his final instructions, the Hair-Dryer Coach flicked his sleeves and walked away, looking quite furious.

Left with no other choice, Wei Lai could only pull a wry face, bring up the course panel, and begin selecting entry-level courses.

Following the Hair-Dryer Coach’s directives, he ultimately chose five basic courses:

[Basic Course: Stable Passing]
[Basic Course: Steady Ball Control]
[Basic Course: Nimble Dribbling]
[Basic Course: Precise Evasion]
[Basic Course: Rapid Footwork Frequency]

Interestingly, the instructor for all five courses was the exact same person...

[Instructor: Shinji Kagawa]

Wei Lai tilted his head slightly in confusion. "Basic-level courses don't hide the instructor's face?"

Suddenly, realization dawned on him, and he gasped in dismay:
"No talent reward?!!"

A young man wearing a yellow training kit appeared before him. He had a lean and athletic build, wasn't very tall, yet exuded a sense of absolute composure and stability.

"Hello, Wei Lai-san. I am the instructor for these five courses. I hope my lessons bring you satisfactory results."

Looking at the Japanese man before him, Wei Lai could instantly tell he was Japanese just from his name.

Still, when it came to fundamental skills, Japan truly held the top spot in all of Asia.

Wei Lai glanced at Shinji Kagawa and pouted. "Umm, is there a graduation reward? Like a talent reward?!"

He voiced the question he cared about the most.

Shinji Kagawa smiled warmly. "Basic courses offer no rewards, nor do they have a graduation test. When the instructor deems you ready, you graduate!"

"Fine!" Wei Lai resigned himself to his fate.
"Where do we begin?"
......

Early the next morning, He Chaochao got up early to prepare for his morning run.

Even though they had a long-haul flight today and he could have slept in a bit longer, he still woke up for his morning exercise as usual.

When he looked up, as always, Wei Lai's bed was already neatly made, completely empty.

He Chaochao pursed his lips. He considered himself hardworking, but compared to Wei Lai, he always seemed to fall a little short.

However, He Chaochao didn't dare copy Wei Lai's training regime.

In fact, He Chaochao deeply envied Wei Lai's astonishing recovery ability.

High-intensity, continuous training placed a massive burden on the muscles and body, which was why He Chaochao always balanced work and rest.

He rested when he needed to, and he didn't slack off when it was time to train.

Yet Wei Lai constantly subjected himself to this ultra-high-intensity training without suffering any negative physical consequences.
......

After quickly splashing some water on his face, He Chaochao stepped out of the dorm and jogged toward the pitch.

Upon arriving at the field, he spotted Xiang Ming standing by the touchline.

"What are you doing?" He Chaochao asked.

Instead of answering, Xiang Ming simply lifted his chin toward the pitch.

He Chaochao turned his head and saw Wei Lai practicing pull-and-push ball drills.

Stepping on the ball, pulling it back, using the instep to push it behind his supporting foot, and then switching feet to repeat the cycle of stepping, pulling, and pushing.

"Japanese stepping-and-pulling drills?" He Chaochao raised an eyebrow slightly.

Japanese players loved this kind of footwork drill; on one hand, it enhanced ball feel, and on the other, it trained bodily coordination.

Wei Lai's movements weren't particularly fluid yet, and each motion was relatively slow, but one could tell he was striving for maximum precision.

Throughout these drills, Wei Lai kept his head consistently lifted.

Xiang Ming turned his head. "Isn't he a defensive midfielder? Why is he practicing this?"

In Xiang Ming's understanding, didn't a defensive midfielder just need to be 'tough'?

He Chaochao looked out at the pitch. "Before stepping onto the professional stage, who dares guarantee their position will never change? Just like how you started out as a playmaker and now you've been converted into a winger."

"Wide midfielder!" Xiang Ming emphasized firmly.

Though wingers and wide midfielders occupied the same area of the pitch, their required functions were entirely different.

He Chaochao asked, "Do you know what I admire most about Wei Lai?"

"What? His tackling accuracy? Or his perpetual-motion-machine stamina?" Xiang Ming turned to ask.

He Chaochao shook his head. "None of that! It's because he has clear goals, and he progresses step by step at a pace visible to the naked eye."

"Do you have goals like that? How to improve your technical flaws, what your strengths are, what your weaknesses are—facing these issues head-on and correcting them!"

"When we play football, we always rely on the style of play we enjoy, while turning a blind eye to our shortcomings or making excuses for them. It's precisely these unaddressed flaws that will be infinitely magnified in the future, until they become insurmountable chasms!"

With that, he turned and walked toward the low building nearby.

"Where are you going?" Xiang Ming called out.

"Pumping iron!" He Chaochao replied.

Xiang Ming's eyes widened. "Don't you want to grow taller? It's way too early for strength training!"

He Chaochao retorted, "Who says everything they tell us is absolute truth? I'll adjust the intensity, but I know that right now, physical strength is my weakness, so I need to make up for it."

He pointed back at the pitch and said, "Right now, he's pacing alongside us, but if things keep going like this, one day he'll leave us so far behind we won't even see his tail lights!"

Watching He Chaochao walk away, Xiang Ming opened his mouth slightly.

Face his own shortcomings?
What were his own weaknesses?

Xiang Ming bit his lip, turned around, ran back to the equipment room to grab a net of footballs, sprinted to the pitch, and began practicing his shooting.
......

In the morning, at the cafeteria.

Wei Lai polished off a large steamed bun in one bite, stuffed a boiled egg into his mouth, and then took a massive gulp of rice porridge.

In front of his seat stacked five bamboo steamers, three empty bowls, and a pile of eggshells.

"Hiccup!"

With the final bun safely in his stomach, Wei Lai let out a hearty burp. He was finally full.

Resting his chin in his hands, Xiang Ming stared at him. "Big bro, five steamers of buns, four eggs, three bowls of porridge—you really can eat!"

"My training volume is too high; I need to take in enough nutrition!" Wei Lai laughed, taking a sip of water.

Lately, his appetite had indeed grown tremendously, but that was good news.

Smacking his lips, Wei Lai remarked, "Jiazhou's big steamed buns still taste the best. Xiao long bao are a bit lacking; they just don't hit the spot!"

Xiang Ming rolled his eyes.

"I saw you practicing ball feel, coordination, and footwork frequency this morning?"

Wei Lai nodded. "I need to work on those. They're my glaring weaknesses, and if I don't train them, I'll definitely suffer for it in the future!"

"The pace of professional leagues is blindingly fast, especially the top leagues in Europe. Opponents won't give you much time to react or think. Therefore, I not only need to train, but also develop a conditioned reflex for passing. Otherwise, if an opponent presses right into your face, you won't even be able to react in time."

Yang Fan chimed in, "Is it really that exaggerated? It's not like you've actually played there."

Just then, Tong Xianfeng walked over, clapping his hands. "Alright, everyone go back to your rooms and bring your luggage to the dormitory entrance. We'll be loading the vehicles together shortly!"

Wei Lai checked the time—it was only seven in the morning!
Their flight wasn't until one in the afternoon.

"Heading to the airport this early?"

"It's not early!" Xiang Ming stood up. "You need to arrive at the airport two hours in advance, and the drive from here takes another two hours. Plus, it's morning rush hour, so we might hit traffic. Factor in all the other miscellaneous tasks, and we have to leave by eight!"

Yang Fan stretched lazily. "We're going to be traveling all day today!"

From Shanghai to Madrid, the capital of Spain, the total flight time alone was ten and a half hours. At least sixteen to seventeen hours of the day would be spent in transit.

The 'Little Green Lions' delegation consisted of fourteen people in total.
Ten young players, plus Tong Xianfeng, Liang Xu, a coach, and an assistant.

At Shanghai Airport, Tong Xianfeng held a bag while Wei Lai and the rest of the youngsters lined up in two rows.

"I'm handing out your passports now. Once you finish passing through departure customs, hand them back to me. Understood?"

The group chorused, "Understood!"

Each passport was encased in a plastic sleeve marked with the respective player's name.

Wei Lai received his own passport.

Flipping it open, besides the personal information page, the second page contained his visa.

Wei Lai only had a single visa page, whereas everyone else's passports were filled with numerous stamps and visas. Clearly, aside from Wei Lai, everyone else here was a seasoned traveler.