Manchester City's Champions League triumph and treble win sparked a massive reaction across the globe.
With this Champions League title, Gao Shen became the most prominent active figure in world football and the second manager in Champions League history to win three titles. What made it even more remarkable was that he achieved these three titles with three different clubs.
UEFA dedicated a large feature on its official website, detailing Gao Shen's journey and lavishing praise upon him.
Even FIFA ran a special report, publicly congratulating him.
Major media outlets across Europe and around the world rushed to cover the story. Even in the football-indifferent United States, the news made headlines. As for Gao Shen's home region, Asia and China in particular, it was a tidal wave of attention.
Although he was not a player, achieving such success as a coach was clearly more difficult.
Yet here he was: an Asian coach, with three Champions League titles. The AFC's official website even declared Gao Shen the pride of Asian football.
China reported the news extensively. From state-run publications and television channels down to local media outlets, coverage was everywhere. The reaction across the country was overwhelming. Millions of Chinese people felt a deep sense of pride in Gao Shen's achievements.
…
Neither Gao Shen nor anyone at Manchester City had the time to worry about outside news.
The morning after their title win, everyone woke up to find the bonus in their bank accounts.
This was the extra reward Mansour had promised.
The club also began processing standard salaries and the bonus payments stipulated in their contracts.
Everyone on the team counted their money happily, carried the trophy with pride, and headed north back to Manchester.
Back in Manchester, the whole celebration routine started again.
They boarded an open-top bus and paraded through the streets, holding the Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League trophies. The parade drew nearly 300,000 City fans, all chasing behind the bus.
The celebration lasted from noon until the evening, finally culminating at the Etihad Stadium.
There, another grand celebration ceremony was held.
More than 50,000 die-hard City fans packed into the stadium to witness the arrival of the three trophies. Manchester's mayor and other local government officials were in attendance.
Gao Shen followed the planned itinerary the whole time. By the time it was his turn to speak, he was already starving.
He'd only grabbed a quick bite in the morning and was now running on fumes.
Even so, he still made use of his well-known oratory skills.
This was one of Gao Shen's strengths. He knew how to fire up a crowd and make bold, stirring promises. As always, the fans roared with excitement.
At the end of the night, City booked a luxury hotel for a banquet.
That was another whirlwind.
By the time Gao Shen got home, it was already deep into the night. He collapsed into bed and slept until almost noon.
…
"You're finally up."
Su Qing, seated on the living room sofa reading a newspaper and watching the news, heard footsteps and turned toward the stairs.
She quickly stood and asked the housekeeper to bring out the lean meat congee she had prepared.
Gao Shen walked over, glanced at the newspaper and then the news report on the TV. Although the media were still covering the treble, the coverage had clearly begun to die down.
Which was normal.
In the age of information overload, even a war might only dominate headlines for two or three days. Let alone the annual Champions League final.
At most, City's treble and Gao Shen's third Champions League win held some extra weight.
"Don't worry, there are still a lot of reports," Su Qing said, noticing his reaction and pulling him toward the table.
Truthfully, she was just as proud as anyone.
That was why she had spent the last few days consuming every article and broadcast she could find.
Even though she worked in a ministry and was used to reading official papers every day, she rarely paid this much attention to the news.
Gao Shen started eating the congee but couldn't help thinking it would taste better with some preserved egg.
After Su Qing relayed what Mansour and Mubarak had offered him, Gao Shen was a little stunned.
"Ireland won't agree to play for a Championship team. He's got offers from Premier League clubs—Aston Villa, newly promoted QPR, Norwich. So forget him," he said.
Gao Shen didn't want Ireland anyway. Aside from being unaffordable, the main issue was cost-effectiveness.
Leeds United's best option, given their situation, was to develop and sell young players.
At this stage, someone like Ireland was just too expensive.
Instead, players like Courtois, Trippier, Adam Lallana, and Stones fit the bill. Their age was right, and most importantly, their market value was still under one million pounds and could be paid in installments.
"What about Keylor Navas? You mentioned him before," Su Qing asked, frowning.
"I already offered Albacete €300,000 for him, just like you suggested. They accepted. So now… we've got two goalkeepers?" Gao Shen smiled bitterly. He hadn't expected that, but he wasn't too worried.
Only children make choices. Adults want both.
Courtois and Navas—this was a goalkeeper setup usually reserved for clubs like Real Madrid. It was a luxury.
Navas had been playing for Albacete in the Segunda División, but the club had just been relegated to the third tier. Leeds offered €300,000, and they accepted without hesitation.
To be honest, Navas hadn't played many games for them and hadn't yet proven himself.
Courtois, by contrast, was match-ready. Navas would still need time to adapt.
Although Navas looked older than Courtois, he was already part of Costa Rica's national team.
…
Manchester City's unexpected generosity disrupted some of Gao Shen's original plans.
Take right back, for example. Gao Shen originally wanted to loan Carvajal from Real Madrid.
It had to be a loan, not a buy. Carvajal had captained Castilla and proven his worth. He wouldn't come cheap—at least three to four million euros.
Even if Gao Shen used his connections to get a discount, Madrid would likely insist on a buy-back clause at a low price.
What was the point then?
Compared to that, Trippier was a better and more affordable option.
Gao Shen had said he wanted to build a lineup that suited Sarri not just lip service.
Sarri had been his assistant for three years, and Gao Shen understood his tactics and preferences inside out.
As a coach who never played professionally, Sarri rose through the lower leagues by trial and error, eventually creating a tactical identity of his own.
Over the past three years, he had been learning from Gao Shen while molding his own philosophy. He frequently discussed problems in his system with Gao Shen.
Take midfield, for example.
European football had already developed a mature structure for building a midfield. Think of it as a formula.
Manchester United in 1999: Giggs driving forward, Beckham launching long switches, Scholes with late runs and long shots, and Roy Keane covering ground and dictating tempo.
Benítez's Liverpool had Mascherano for interception and circulation, Xabi Alonso for long switches and control, and Gerrard for surging runs and goals.
See the pattern?
Compared to United's golden midfield, Liverpool lacked ball progression, which always hindered their attack.
Barcelona's trio was also classic: Busquets for coverage and link-up, Xavi for orchestration and passing, Iniesta for dribbling and ball progression.
Barcelona didn't need long passes. Their system didn't call for a Beckham or Alonso.
Look at Manchester City now.
Javi Martínez for coverage and organization. David Silva for dribbling and deep passes. Rakitic for long shots and ball distribution. Silva and Rakitic shared the creative role.
You could say this is modern football's midfield template. Different teams just apply different combinations based on personnel.
This was why Gao Shen predicted that Ancelotti's Chelsea would flourish once Joe Cole returned.
Chelsea's midfield also lacked progression. Joe Cole could solve that.
Now take Real Madrid's iconic Champions League midfield:
Casemiro for coverage and link-up. Kroos for long switches and long shots. Modrić for progression and incisive passes. Kroos and Modrić shared orchestration duties.
That trio replicated what United once did with four players.
Of course, this is purely about functional roles—not which group is stronger.
Sarri's ideal midfield was similar: one technical player for control and progression, one all-rounder for box-to-box work, and one deep-lying playmaker for coverage and transitions.
You might ask: If the formula is so well known, why don't all teams use it?
Because formulas are formulas. People are complex.
If Manchester City had a chance to sign Messi right now, Gao Shen would turn it down.
Yes, Messi is better than Robben. But he wouldn't bench Robben for him.
Same with Xavi. He wouldn't replace Rakitic just because Xavi was more famous.
And what about Yaya Touré? So powerful, yet hard to fit into that formula.
Sometimes, building a team is a series of compromises and decisions.
It's never as easy as following a recipe.
If it were, everyone would be a world-class manager.
(To be continued.)
***
Junkdog's Note: Congrats to PSG on winning the CL, they deserved it tbf.
Quick fun fact: Mbappé left PSG to win the CL, and they won it immediately afterward 😆.