Capítulo 184: Lin's Investment
After defeating Finland, the Spanish national team flew out of Helsinki the next day.
Since Group I only has five teams, Spain got a bye after this World Cup qualifier.
So, they arranged a friendly match with another team that also had a bye.
On September 10, the Spanish national team arrived in Geneva to face the South American team, Chile.
Since they had already qualified from their group, Spain was now mainly focused on practice.
In this game, Del Bosque made significant changes to the starting lineup, with many key players, including Lin, sitting on the bench.
Chile, on the other hand, played with their full-strength squad, eager to learn from the world champions.
During the match, Chile's star player from Valencia, Vargas, scored first, breaking Spain's defense.
Today, Barcelona's keeper Valdés was starting for Spain, and this goal couldn't be blamed on him. The opposing player was too fast, shooting suddenly after beating the defenders, catching the goalkeeper off guard.
"This kid is good, with that shot and dribbling!"
On the bench, Spain's key players were impressed by the goal.
The way Vargas dribbled and scored was oddly familiar, reminding them of someone on their team.
"Why are you all looking at me? I'm not as fast as him!"
Lin laughed, noticing his teammates' stares.
"If you had his speed, you'd be unstoppable!"
Casillas imagined facing an even faster Lin in front of the goal and shivered at the thought.
Just the thought was terrifying!
The other teammates nodded in agreement. For a winger, speed was a critical asset. For teams that rely on fast wing play, having a fast winger was essential. A slower player couldn't execute such tactics.
But Lin's dribbling was already exceptional; speed or no speed, he had numerous ways to get past defenders. However, if his speed improved, he'd become even more formidable!
...
Spain didn't rush despite being behind. The young players on the field were initially nervous, but calmed down after reassurance from the veterans.
In the 37th minute, Pedro assisted Soldado, who scored, equalizing the match.
But Vargas was in top form today. Seven minutes later, from nearly the same spot, he used his speed and dribbling again to break through Spain's defense, changing the score again.
2-1, Chile led by one.
At halftime, the young players looked tense, worried the coach would blame them for their poor performance.
Before this friendly, Spain had maintained a 30-match unbeaten streak in all competitions over the past two years.
In official matches alone, their last loss was in their opening game of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa against Switzerland. That match had been over three years ago.
The dominance of the Spanish team was evident.
Because of this, being part of the team meant they didn't want to tarnish its honor.
If Spain's unbeaten run ended due to their poor performance, they'd face criticism from fans and feel guilty themselves.
"Don't stress too much. This is just a friendly. You were all too tense in the first half, and playing like that only makes things worse!"
Del Bosque was clearly not satisfied with their first-half performance. He knew these players weren't weak.
Their lack of effectiveness and being outplayed by the opponent was mainly due to their mindset.
The unbeaten record was both an honor and a burden.
Bearing this burden, players naturally wanted to protect it.
This led to overthinking, playing cautiously, and easily falling into a passive state.
"The coach is right. This is just a friendly. Relax and play freely. If things go bad, give us thirty minutes at the end. As long as we're not down by three goals, we can equalize."
Seeing the young players unmoved by Del Bosque's words, veteran players like Xavi stepped in with smiles.
As the world's top team, they needed the confidence to match.
Spain's attacking power might not have been this impressive before, but since Lin joined, their offensive capabilities had upgraded significantly.
So, they had every reason to make such claims!
The young players, initially nervous, felt relieved hearing the veterans speak.
Yes, with the veterans backing them, what was there to fear?
Thinking this, they shook off their mental burden.
In the second half, the young players performed much better, showcasing various Spanish-style combinations.
Seeing this improvement, Del Bosque felt reassured.
Having seasoned veterans in the dressing room, like Xavi and Casillas, was indeed valuable.
In the 65th minute of the second half, after twenty minutes of attack, Spain finally equalized.
Isco scored the goal.
After equalizing, the young players excitedly hugged each other.
With few key players on the field, they had managed to suppress a strong South American team and tie the game after twice falling behind.
This was no easy feat!
Del Bosque recognized their effort, making eight substitutions at once, taking all the young players off the field.
The key players took over.
Though Del Bosque claimed not to care about the unbeaten streak, his actions spoke otherwise.
Substituting the entire team with less than thirty minutes left showed his true intent.
Seeing Spain's substitutions, Chile's coach winced.
Even though it was a friendly with unlimited substitutions, don't players need to warm up?
Substituting everyone at once, weren't they afraid Chile would capitalize on their unaccustomed players?
Spain wasn't afraid!
The key players quickly took control of the game.
Chile's attempts to catch them off guard backfired, running into a solid defense.
Not only did Spain neutralize Chile's attacks, but they also pushed back aggressively.
The intensity brought by Spain's key players was entirely different from the earlier match against the substitutes.
The last twenty-five minutes of the second half turned into a Spanish attacking drill.
They besieged Chile's goal for over twenty minutes, winning the match 4-2.
The substitutes watched in awe as the key players dominated the field, scoring two goals in just over twenty minutes.
The veteran players indeed hadn't been boasting!
Even if the substitutes hadn't equalized, the key players could still easily win.
After the friendly with Chile, Del Bosque announced the team's disbandment.
The players dispersed, returning to their respective clubs.
The next national team match was a month away, but with Spain already qualified, Del Bosque might not call up many key players for the trip to Eastern Europe.
So, it could be months or even half a year before they reunited.
...
Back in Manchester, Pere approached Lin.
"You mentioned investment before. I did some research. Here are some projects you might be interested in."
Pere handed Lin a detailed report on various investment projects.
Curious, Lin browsed through it.
Pere had clearly put effort into this.
The report was comprehensive, covering many types of investments, including real estate, futures, and stocks.
"After the 2008 financial crisis, European real estate hit rock bottom and has been recovering, with prices rising over the past few years.
"Middle Eastern investors have been buying large tracts of land in Europe, further inflating real estate prices.
"I've calculated that based on the past five years' returns, real estate investment yields about 10%, which is a good return."
Lin remembered his experience buying property in Munich, noting frequent collaborations with Middle Eastern investors.
Oil magnates had made a lot of money with high oil prices over the past few years, spending it on real estate globally.
However, Lin knew that with the upcoming Eastern Ukraine crisis, Europe's economy would decline.
This investment boom would quickly fade, and entering now could mean buying at peak prices.
So, he dismissed this project.
"Real estate is too risky. With our limited capital, it's best to avoid it."
One billion pounds might seem like a lot, but it's not much in the face of high property prices.
Hearing Lin, Pere understood his concern.
Lin preferred low-risk investments.
So, Pere suggested, "French wineries are a good option. Global demand for wine is growing, and the market looks promising. Plus, the buy-in isn't too high. Interested?"
Many Spanish players were investing in wineries.
"Sure, we can invest in a medium-sized winery. How much would it cost?"
"A few million euros."
"Okay, get one with a vineyard!"
Making money was secondary; owning a vineyard was the main goal.
"What about the rest of the money?"
Only a small fraction of the funds had been allocated.
"Divide the remaining funds in two. Invest half in this company's stock. I'll handle the other half myself."
Lin had some investments he didn't want to share with Pere, not out of distrust but to avoid complications.
Telling Pere meant telling Guardiola, who could be quite nagging, and Lin didn't want to hear his lectures.
"Alright, I'll handle it."
Pere noted the company Lin wanted to invest in and nodded.
It was a US internet company, and investing in internet companies was trendy.
Though he didn't know much about the internet, such investments were considered solid in Europe. Plus, the US stock market had been rising recently.
Unless the company collapsed, this investment was unlikely to fail.
Thinking this, Pere was tempted to invest himself.
He planned to research the company thoroughly. If it had a high market evaluation and good prospects, he might invest alongside Lin.
...
After Pere left, Lin opened his computer to check the latest Bitcoin prices.
Currently, Bitcoin was priced at $112 each, a figure that would be dirt cheap in a decade.
However, at this time, the price was high, twelve times last year's price.
Many experts claimed Bitcoin was overvalued, with low transaction volumes, calling it a Ponzi scheme.
A quick online search showed most media outlets had negative opinions, with few positive views.
Lin understood. He also found Bitcoin unreliable
.
However, his knowledge from his previous life indicated no higher return investment in 2013.
Though its price had risen sharply over the past year, it wasn't the end of Bitcoin's surge.
This virtual currency would skyrocket in a few years. Buying now and selling in 2017 could yield nearly 200 times the return.
Being greedier and waiting until 2021-2022 at its peak could mean returns of 500-600 times.
Still, like mainstream views, Lin saw it as a potential Ponzi scheme.
So, he planned to invest only half his funds in Bitcoin, using the rest for more stable investments.
Some internet companies' stocks were still low, and holding them for seven or eight years could yield significant returns.
Estado de energía semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Piedra de
Poder