Capítulo 282: Chapter 282 Do World Superstars Want To Challenge Su Luo? The New Season Is Coming!
Su Luo was a bit puzzled. It was already July, and most clubs had started preparing for the new season. Last season was over, so why was everyone still talking about the Champions League final?
They were still discussing Chelsea's historic quadruple win, Su Luo's Champions League Golden Boot with 27 goals and 11 assists, and how Chelsea's victory was hailed as one of the most impressive in history.
Starting from the knockout stages, Chelsea defeated Bundesliga champions and Champions League semifinalists Union Berlin in the round of 16. In the quarterfinals, they beat the defending champions Atlético Madrid at their home ground. The semifinals saw them take down Barcelona, the 2014-15 Champions League winners. Then came the unforgettable final, where Chelsea, with only nine men on the field, staged a remarkable comeback against the mighty Real Madrid.
The Western media dubbed Chelsea "the champions of champions," highlighting the incredible weight of their victory.
French newspaper L'Equipe wrote:
"Chelsea are on top of the world simply because they have the best players. The first half of the final between Chelsea and Real Madrid was cautious on both sides, but once Chelsea had players sent off, everything changed. The game became unbalanced. Only a true hero could rise and turn the tide."
"That hero was Su Luo. He scored a hat-trick in the final and provided a key assist, leading Chelsea to an extraordinary comeback."
"Scoring a hat-trick in any major final is rare, especially in the Champions League. Only legends like Di Stefano, Ferenc Puskás, and Pierino Prati have achieved it. And in modern football, where tactics and skills have evolved, it's even harder for one player to dominate a game."
"But Su Luo did it, under absolute adversity. It's clear—he is the only superstar in world football who surpasses even Messi and Ronaldo!"
Renowned football outlets like Germany's Kicker and Italy's Gazzetta dello Sport shared similar sentiments after reviewing the final in detail.
"If it had been Messi or Ronaldo in that situation, they might have scored goals, but they wouldn't have been able to lead a nine-man team to score three goals in the last five minutes," one analysis noted.
Su Luo's market value had skyrocketed. According to Germany's Transfer Market, his worth had reached an astonishing £250 million. While that number seemed outrageous, it was actually justified.
Many clubs have spent billions without winning a Champions League, but Chelsea only spent £155 million and ended up with four trophies.
Meanwhile, the wealthy owners behind Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain were eager to spend over £300 million just to have a shot at the title. But as they quickly learned, winning a championship isn't just about money.
Since the Champions League final, Chelsea's fax machine had been constantly busy. Clubs like Manchester City, PSG, Real Madrid, and Barcelona were all sending offers. PSG even went as far as offering £220 million to buy Su Luo.
When Abramovich heard this, he just laughed.
"You want to poach my star after just one season? Sorry, but the release clause is £2 billion. Unless Su Luo himself wants to leave, no one can take him!"
Initially, Su Luo's release clause was £1 billion. But after Chelsea crushed Atlético Madrid in the Champions League quarterfinals, the club immediately offered him a new three-year contract. His weekly salary was bumped up from £500,000 to £600,000—the highest in the world! The release clause was also raised to £2 billion, with the condition that if Su Luo wanted to leave, Chelsea wouldn't stop him.
Abramovich had an understandable fear: what if one of the oil-rich tycoons from Manchester City or Paris really did drop £1 billion on a whim?
In the end, Manchester City and PSG had no choice but to look elsewhere in the transfer market.
Even as the summer transfer window heated up, the aftershocks of the Champions League final lingered. Without international tournaments, fans were glued to transfer news, desperate for updates.
And then, before July even began, the first big transfer was revealed.
Neymar officially signed with Paris Saint-Germain! After a season of rumors, Barcelona and PSG finally made it official. This marked the end of Barcelona's legendary MSN trio, signaling the close of an era.
Barcelona fans were stunned by the announcement. But there was no denying it—Neymar was already in Paris, attending the signing ceremony at his new home ground. The transfer fee? A jaw-dropping €220 million!
It was the first major move of the summer, and possibly the biggest transfer of the entire window.
Back in La Liga, Barcelona had finished three points behind Real Madrid last season, ending up second in the league without a single trophy to show for it. The loss of Neymar only deepened their woes, and their future looked even more uncertain.
With the sale of Neymar, Barcelona suddenly had a massive transfer budget at their disposal.
This summer, Barcelona spent €105 million on Dembele and €40 million on Paulinho from Super League club Evergrande. They also signed Semedo from Benfica for €30.5 million.
However, most of their other signings were minor, without any notable star players. In the new season, Barcelona will likely have to rely on Messi and a few veterans from their glory days to keep them afloat.
Real Madrid, on the other hand, had been eliminated by Su Luo for two consecutive years. Despite having a strong team, they failed to win the Champions League, which was a huge blow to the club. Florentino Pérez, the club president, was eager to sign a superstar to compete with Su Luo. But the question remained: who, besides Ronaldo or Messi, could surpass Su Luo?
Real Madrid searched the market for options but couldn't find a player who fit the bill. Meanwhile, they were busy offloading several players. Morata, who was initially set to be sold to Chelsea for €65 million, was eventually sent to Juventus. Danilo and James Rodríguez also left the club.
Florentino, however, remained confident and said in an interview:
"Su Luo is an incredible player, but we've signed a young star with the potential to surpass him. His talent is remarkable."
According to Spanish media, the 17-year-old wonderkid Real Madrid signed is named Vinicius.
When Su Luo saw the news, he wasn't surprised. After all, Real Madrid had simply secured him a year in advance. The future Vinicius would indeed become a great player, but Su Luo remained unfazed.
It was also rumored that Real Madrid had their eyes on other Brazilian talents like Gabriel Jesus, Richarlison, and Rodrygo.
Meanwhile, in the Bundesliga, Ancelotti led Bayern to reclaim the league title last season. But Union Berlin gave them a hard time, beating Bayern 3-1 at their home stadium and drawing 2-2 at the Allianz Arena—without Su Luo.
Salah's outstanding performance in those matches had caught the attention of top clubs worldwide. Liverpool, in particular, were eager to sign him, and the two sides were in contact.
Despite Bayern's defeat in the Champions League, they didn't make major signings. They missed out on Ronaldo from Real Madrid and settled for Tolisso from Ligue 1 for €40 million, while securing French winger Coman for €21 million.
In Serie A, the transfer market was much busier. Juventus, consistently competitive in the Champions League but always falling just short, strengthened their squad with players like Bernardeschi, Matuidi, Cuadrado, Benatia, and Bentancur.
AC Milan, determined to reverse their fortunes, spent heavily too. They brought in Bonucci for €42 million, Thiago Silva for €38 million, and Çalhanoğlu for €22 million. They also loaned rising star goalkeeper Donnarumma. Milan aimed to challenge Juventus's dominance in the new season.
As for Inter Milan, their rebuilding process seemed slow, with no significant signings in sight.
In contrast, the Premier League's competition was fiercer than ever. Chelsea, fresh off a historic season, hadn't made many changes yet. There were rumors that Hazard might be in talks with Real Madrid, and Su Luo wasn't sure if he'd get another season alongside the Belgian star. Matic, however, was on his way out.
Chelsea sold Matic to Manchester United for £40 million, as his frequent mistakes and declining physical ability had caused him to fall out of favor with Conte. Chelsea brought in French midfielder Bakayoko to replace him and were in negotiations with Napoli over Jorginho. If they could secure Jorginho, it would be a major upgrade over Matic and a better link-up with Su Luo.
Manchester United had originally targeted Lukaku, but now that Lukaku was a Champions League winner and one of Chelsea's key players, his value had soared to over £130 million. Lukaku chose to stay at Chelsea because of Su Luo, admitting that without him, he wouldn't have been as successful.
With Lukaku out of reach, United would have to rely on Rashford, Martial, and Pogba to compete in the Premier League. Mourinho's situation at Manchester United was growing increasingly precarious.
At Arsenal, it looked like the upcoming season could be Arsène Wenger's last. The club was gearing up for a major push, but their familiar issue remained: lack of funds. Arsenal had only brought in Lacazette, signing Ligue 1's top scorer from Lyon for £47 million.
Meanwhile, Liverpool were more ambitious. Klopp's side refused to be overshadowed by Chelsea and Manchester City. After lengthy negotiations, they finally secured Salah from Union Berlin for £50 million. Originally, Union Berlin hadn't planned to let Salah go, but the player insisted on leaving. No one could understand why, considering Salah had thrived in Berlin.
Later, Salah revealed in an interview:
"I want to surpass Su Luo. I hope to face him in the Premier League. In Berlin, even though he left a season ago, people still talk about him. I've been living in his shadow, and now I want to beat him."
In addition to Salah, Liverpool also signed Chamberlain and broke the transfer record for a defender, bringing in Van Dijk for £75 million.
These signings proved Klopp's determination to compete at the highest level.
Chelsea's biggest rival for the title, Manchester City, had also made significant moves. They brought in Bernardo Silva, French defender Mendy, Samba goalkeeper Ederson, and Real Madrid full-back Danilo. Guardiola was clearly focused on reinforcing his squad in line with his possession-based philosophy.
With most of the major transfers finalized before the summer training camps, the stage was set for a thrilling Premier League season.
As the Daily Mail put it:
"The new Premier League season promises to be a fierce battle between giants! Whether Chelsea can defend their title and build a new dynasty remains to be seen."
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