On May 20th, Maël received a call from Mendes at the gym, who told him that the house had been selected and was waiting for him to inspect it in person.
"It's time to go."
He turned to look at Gilbert next to him and asked, "Have you found a house yet?"
"Not yet."
Gilbert's eyes flickered slightly. He turned his head and wiped his sweat with his right hand. "I'll stay in a hotel first, and train with the team for a few months."
Maël noticed his abnormality and tentatively asked, "I'm planning to rent a big mansion this time. You can move your things in and live with me first, and then move out when you find a house."
"No need." He replied quickly, as if afraid Maël would persuade him again.
Maël stopped his movements, hesitated, and stared at him seriously, asking, "You're not afraid you won't be able to play and want to transfer, are you?"
"How is that possible?"
Gilbert's reaction was a little more normal this time, his eyes firm. "Arsenal has cultivated me for five years, and gave me the opportunity to train in the sixth year. How could I think about leaving the team at this time?"
He sighed and said truthfully, "Last season, I had 9 goals and 5 assists for Sheffield United. This means I can be a starter in an EFL Championship title-contending team, and maybe a starter in a Premier League relegation team."
"But returning to Arsenal, I have no confidence at all. I'm not even sure if you can compete with them, let alone me."
"My agent Barnett is contacting potential loan destinations for me. There's a high probability I'll participate in the pre-season training and leave on loan."
After Maël heard him say this, combined with his current situation, he didn't have any other emotions. "That's great, so why didn't you say so earlier? Try to get loaned back to Sheffield United for another season?"
"I still want to try it myself."
Gilbert raised his head, his eyes filled with longing. "I want to play football in North London, I want to wear the Arsenal jersey and play at the Emirates Stadium."
"But knowing that I probably won't stay, I won't rent a house first, and I won't live with you either."
Speaking of this, he put on a gay-like appearance and joked, "After all, I have to get used to living alone."
"Get lost."
Maël slapped away his outstretched hand, his eyes full of disgust, but he knew that both of their sexual orientations were normal.
It's just that they've been together for too long, and their nerves are sometimes abnormal.
He didn't say anything more, acquiescing to Gilbert's choice. Anyway, they still had to train together for a while, so there was no need to rush to say goodbye.
[Skill: Strong lv3]
[Proficiency: (537/2000)]
[Skill: Flexibility lv3]
[Proficiency: (268/2000)]
[Skill: Power Side Foot lv3]
[Proficiency: (148/2000)]
[Skill: Judgment of Situation lv3]
[Proficiency: (982/2000)]
[Skill: Stamina lv2]
[Proficiency: (752/800)]
Maël brought up all the physical and mental skills he was going to train next, observed their proficiency, and found that the gap between the skills was still relatively large.
The highest were Judgment of Situation, Stamina, and Strong, all above 500.
He would practice these skills more or less in his daily training and matches.
Especially Stamina and Judgment of Situation, every match and every training session would stimulate them and increase their proficiency.
As for Strong, it was mostly trained during his speed training, plus the special training in the gym these days, it slowly improved.
Power Side Foot and Flexibility, probably because there was less stimulation in normal times, so the basic proficiency would be lower when training them.
"Depart tomorrow."
Maël made a decision. He had obtained his driver's license a few days ago, and there was nothing else to worry about here. It was time to go back and meet his Arsenal teammates.
Arsenal's matches this season are almost over, so the training intensity before the off-season will definitely not be high.
He can take this time to improve his various abilities and re-establish a regular training schedule.
Then, wait for the official off-season to begin a full sprint to improve his strength, striving for a significant all-around boost!
He hopes that when he stands on the Premier League stage next season, he will be a completely new version of himself!
...
On May 21st, two business vehicles from Colney Base arrived in Sheffield City and parked on the side of Cherry Street.
Maël and Gilbert came out carrying large and small bags, loading all the luggage into one car, preparing to send it to Colney Base first.
Harry and Safina were also there. They also loaded their few belongings into the car and got directly into the luggage-filled vehicle, setting off first.
"I'll keep an eye on things for you."
Safina was wearing a low-cut top and shorts today, highlighting her voluptuous figure to the fullest, with a bit of a mature woman's soft charm.
She waved to the two and smiled, "Don't worry, just contact us when you've found a good house."
Maël bid farewell to the two in the car, watching them drive away, and got into the second business vehicle with Gilbert.
Both of them had been a bit tired recently, and they fell asleep as soon as they got into the car, only waking up when they were about to reach London.
"Let's go see Emirates Stadium."
Gilbert suggested. Since they weren't going back to Colney Base tonight anyway, they could wander around a bit longer and get a sneak peek at the stadium they had dreamed of reaching.
"Let's go."
Maël nodded in agreement. After coming to this world, he had been staying at Colney Training Base and hadn't been to Emirates Stadium yet, so it was a good opportunity to take a look.
The driver quickly changed course, heading towards Emirates Stadium, and soon arrived near Holloway, where they could see a magnificent stadium standing in an open space from afar.
The sky was a bit dark at this moment, and Emirates Stadium had already turned on its lights, illuminating the surrounding area. Even when it wasn't a match day, there were still many tourists and fans visiting the fan shop.
As the vehicle drove parallel to the front of the stadium, Maël leaned against the window, carefully examining the third-largest stadium in England.
Watching it move horizontally and recede from his sight, and thinking that it would soon be the place where he would step towards the center of the football world, Maël couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement, constantly turning his head back.
He had been thinking about it for so long, and he was finally back in London, heading towards this place!
He could already imagine himself playing in it, imagining the shock of over sixty thousand fans filling the stadium on match days.
He would begin his four-pronged campaign here in the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, and League Cup.
He would compete in the same events as the world's top players, vying for the final championship trophy, vying for the best crown!
"It's beautiful."
Gilbert was next to him, not knowing whether he was admiring the exterior or imagining the feeling of playing here.
"I will conquer it." Maël smiled and said a slightly arrogant sentence. There were no reservations between the two of them.
"Me too."
Gilbert briefly put aside the pressure of competition and worry, simply imagining the future, "I want to win the Champions League title here."
"Together."
Maël turned his head, gave him an expectant high-five, and turned back to look again, until it disappeared from his sight.
Looking ahead again, he was really a bit impatient.
...
At five o'clock in the afternoon, Maël and Gilbert parted ways in the city center. The latter was going to find a hotel to stay in first.
Maël came to a pre-arranged location to meet Pepino, who Mendes had entrusted to find a house for him.
The two had met before. Pepino was probably responsible for Mendes' business in the UK, and any important matters were entrusted to him.
"Long time no see."
Pepino drove an Audi sedan, greeted Maël to get in the car, and sighed with a smile, "It's really unexpected that you can achieve such success now, returning to Arsenal in this manner."
"When you signed that day, I originally thought I would be responsible for all your business in the UK. Unexpectedly, Mr. Mendes' frequency of coming to the UK has increased since then, and he handles almost everything for you personally."
"All that's left for me is miscellaneous work like finding a house, it's really bittersweet, haha."
Maël remembered that he was French and communicated with him in French. Counting it, he now knew three languages.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the car started, and Pepino was about to take him to view some properties in the vicinity.
"Mr. Mendes told me your requirements. I've selected three properties in total, and I'll take you to see the best one first."
Pepino drove with one hand and handed some photos to Maël with the other, introducing them along the way, "This house is one of the most luxurious in North London, with an annual rent of £650,000."
Maël looked up at him, a bit bewildered, and asked, "Did Mr. Mendes perhaps misunderstand? I just need a place with large spaces and many rooms, not necessarily the most expensive."
An annual rent of £650,000 was definitely a sky-high price in this era, over £10,000 a week.
"Don't rush."
Pepino anticipated his reaction and smiled, "Take a look at the photos first. This is definitely the most suitable house for you. Even considering the sky-high rent, it's the most appropriate. Otherwise, I wouldn't have put it first."
Maël flipped through the photos of the property, and his eyes instantly lit up on the first page, somewhat captivated.
So big! That was his first reaction, followed by admiration for the spaciousness and beautiful greenery surrounding it. From the pictures, it looked like a comfortable and pleasant place.
"This mansion has four floors in total, with over twenty rooms, nine bathrooms, and seven toilets."
Pepino's introduction continued patiently, "In addition, it has a luxurious spa center, a large swimming pool, a large gym, a private cinema, a treatment room, and a viewing platform, among other things."
So many features... Maël was a bit tempted. Despite the expensive rent, the comprehensive facilities could save him a lot of later investment.
He flipped to the second page, seeing the interior decoration and style of the villa, which were quite satisfactory to him.
The open space in front of the first floor could even be laid with turf for practicing ball skills. While long passes and shots might be out of the question, passing and dribbling training would definitely be possible.
"Mr. Mendes said,"
Pepino continued, "This is the most suitable place for football players, especially those with high demands on themselves. They can complete most of their training and all their physical therapy and recovery here."
"Alright."
Maël handed the photos back to Pepino. Now that he heard this, the house didn't seem so expensive anymore. "Let's go take a look. If I'm satisfied, there's no need to see the other two."
Pepino tilted his head slightly and gave Maël a thumbs up, seemingly praising his decisiveness.
He mentioned something else, "Also, you should be getting your third pay raise soon, so you don't really need to worry about this rent."
"Yeah." Maël now indeed felt it was a good deal, but he hadn't initially planned to rent such a luxurious place, so he needed some time to accept it mentally.
...
A little over ten minutes later, the two of them walked into the luxurious villa together.
At that moment, Maël realized that photos couldn't fully capture the luxury of such a large villa; it was truly shocking up close.
The two of them spent over twenty minutes exploring the entire place before returning to the car.
"How is it?" Pepino turned to look at Maël, expecting him to have an answer.
"Rent it!"
Maël didn't hesitate at all. After seeing this place, he couldn't imagine living anywhere else. "It must come with a right of first refusal, and I'll pay a year's rent in advance."
Before leaving, he looked at the mansion, which was over 20 meters tall, and thought about how he would be driving his Ferrari to training and living here in the future, silently cheering himself on.
Since he was living the life of a superstar ahead of time, he had to play well in North London and strive to become a true superstar as soon as possible!
He needed to make his status match all of this, so he could feel at ease.
He wasn't worried; he believed he could definitely do it, he just wanted it to happen sooner.
...
On May 22nd, Maël and Gilbert went to the Fulham district of London together to watch Arsenal's final game of the season.
Arsenal would be playing against Fulham in this match, concluding their 38-round Premier League journey for the 10-11 season.
"I heard the vacation starts on June 1st."
Gilbert and Maël walked into Craven Cottage Stadium, Fulham's home ground, and Gilbert laughed, "Before the vacation, we can train with the team for a few days, get to know the club teammates in advance, and prepare for next season."
"I've wanted to meet Van Persie for a long time. He's the best Premier League striker in my mind."
In fact, if you had asked Gilbert who he wanted to meet most a year ago, his answer would definitely have been the Spaniard Fabregas. But after the jersey incident, all his love for Fabregas turned into hatred, and now they were completely irreconcilable.
Luckily, Fabregas had gone on strike, otherwise, he really wouldn't know how to interact with him after meeting, and whether a conflict would break out.
"Let's go."
Maël called Gilbert to enter the stadium. He also wanted to see these new teammates of his play live.
The two sat in their seats, and the match soon kicked off. Arsenal deployed a 4-4-2 formation, going all out to deliver a brilliant victory in their final game.
But fate didn't favor them. Arsenal, who consistently maintained high ball possession, were repeatedly hit by Fulham's efficient counter-attacks.
In the 26th minute, Sidwell blasted a goal in, followed by Diaby assisting Van Persie to equalize.
In the 56th minute, Arsenal's paper-thin defense made another mistake, with Zamora receiving a pass from Greening and smashing it into their net again.
2-1!
Wenger made three consecutive substitutions, and finally, in the 89th minute, Walcott equalized, securing a draw.
Whether from the result or the process of the game, this match failed to satisfy Arsenal fans.
"Boo! Boo! Boo!"
The Arsenal fans in the South Stand erupted in boos, clearly dissatisfied with the result. Their accumulated resentment poured over Wenger like a tidal wave, and calls for his dismissal echoed through the stadium once again.
Maël felt Wenger's pressure for the first time. He watched the old man pacing the coaching area for a long time, and in the end, he couldn't bear to leave directly. He withstood the pressure and walked towards the South Stand to thank the fans.
A skilled woman cannot cook without rice.
He thought of this saying, which was Wenger's current situation. But some fans didn't care how difficult it was for the skilled woman; they only cared whether they could eat.
"Being a daughter-in-law is hard."
He used 'Lord Yan's' words to express his feelings to Gilbert, and then hopefully said, "I hope we can do something next season."
"Yeah." Gilbert also felt sorry for Wenger and turned to walk off the field.
Tomorrow, after reporting to the team, they will officially join the training of this powerhouse team!
ps: A simple transition, it would be too dry without writing it.
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