From Arsenal to the Ball God

”Good news?”

Philip asked with a smile, his Facebook and Twitter followers were nearing 10 million. Could it be a new endorsement offer?

”I think you guessed it right.” Mendes explained excitedly, ”Recently, the number of ad and endorsement invites we’ve received is overwhelming. The market seems to know you’re on your way to becoming a superstar!

”I need to be careful when choosing endorsements, but I’ve accepted two ads for you: one from a snack company and the other from a milk company.

”You just need to make a few posts. Haven’t you been asking me about this? Now’s your chance.”

”How much per post?” Philip’s expression shifted. ”It was 80,000 Pounds before, it should have increased by now.”

Isn’t this the way to earn money passively that he’s always dreamed of? Now he finally has the opportunity.

”200,000 Pounds.” Mendes’ voice was full of delight, ”Not only has it increased, but by a lot. After taxes, you’ll get 102,000 Pounds, equivalent to a week’s salary.”

”Nice.”

”And it’s not just one post. Lay’s Chips are planning a massive ad blitz before Christmas, they booked 3 posts, and another is China’s Mengniu company, they booked 2 posts.”

”51,000 Pounds in total revenue?”

”That’s right, but they won’t be posted on the same day, it should be one every two days, and the payment will align with the posting schedule, post one and get paid for one.”

”What about the copy?”

”You don’t need to write it. They’ve already written it, and we’ll just review it. In other words, you only need to move your fingers, swipe and get 100,000 Pounds each time!”

Philip jumped up in excitement, this feeling, what’s the difference from a question he saw on Quora in a previous life?

If you had a button that earned you.....

Alright, stay calm, this is far from the end. He’s been waiting for the day when a single post earns him a million Pounds.

”Additionally, both companies are interested in having you as an ambassador, but negotiations are still ongoing.

”This time, I set a base offer of 1.2 million Pounds per year, aiming to negotiate higher, and secure a generous bonus contract.

”That way, if you win the Golden Boy Award, you’ll get a substantial bonus income at that time.”

”Really well calculated.” Philip stood by the window, feeling refreshed while on the phone. Who would refuse to earn more money?

”Keep it up, kid. Your value has skyrocketed, the next step is to truly become a superstar.

”Don’t worry about the Golden Boy Award, I’ll help you with publicity at the right time. You also have resources on Instagram and newspapers, you’ll need to ramp up your own promotion to increase the chances.

”On one hand, you’ll get familiar with the process for promoting future awards preparation... I know you’re planning on social media and newspapers, definitely with this in mind.

”This time, think of it as a strategic exercise, I’ll impart some experiences to you.

”On the other hand, it’s to be safe, even if you have an 80% chance of winning the Golden Boy, we want to eliminate the remaining 20% risk.

”Awards can sometimes be very mystical, after all, achieving absolute certainty gives peace of mind.”

”Okay.”

Philip felt a sense of gratitude rising within, considering the sharing of experiences, Mendes treated him rather well.

The other side wasn’t worried about him developing these independently, gradually accumulating his own capital to break free from the agent’s control.

Is he treating him as a friend?

If he wasn’t sure before, now he absolutely is.

He naturally also regards Mendes as a friend and won’t think about cutting ties once he grows... Trust is the foundation of a person.

As his value increases in all aspects, the cost of losing trust will also get higher.

After hanging up the phone, he didn’t think about anything else. Now, just keep moving forward!

...

”Ole...! Ole...!!”

On November 27th, the 13th round of the Premier League kicked off at the Emirates Stadium amidst cheers, marking the second-to-last game of the month.

In this match, Wenger lined up the full main squad, aiming to secure a home victory against Fulham, currently fourteenth in the standings.

But the course of the game was a bit unexpected... Fulham’s four midfielders were in superb form, their relentless running creating difficulties for Arsenal in bringing the ball forward.

”Bang Bang Bang...!”

Even when Philip occasionally took possession and dribbled past two or three players, he couldn’t create many good opportunities. The opposing defensive players were determined to guard the goal with their lives.

”Bang!”

In the 66th minute of the match, Fulham, in a counterattack, unexpectedly scored an own goal by Vermaelen with a surprise crossing ball.

The situation took a sharp turn!

Arsenal was trailing!

On the sideline, Wenger and the Arsenal coaches’ faces turned serious. They weren’t sure if it was due to a chain reaction from the last game or if players needed to adjust after returning from international duty.

But losing in the Premier League means... the undefeated streak for the season, the pride they’ve been holding onto, would be gone, and the team might enter a period of turbulence.

”Zzz... Zzz...” Wenger anxiously pulled up the zip on his jacket. In his hurry, his hands needed something to do, and zipping up was quite stress-relieving.

But for some reason, the zipper that usually zipped right up at home got stuck on the pitch.

”Zzz...!” Wenger gritted his teeth and yanked a few more times, only to find the more he pulled, the more stuck it got, with no way to move it.

He got frustrated with the zipper, bowing his head to fix his jacket on the coaching bench.

”The director’s camera caught it.”

Philip covered his mouth, pointing out to him with a glance at the big screen, Wenger’s antics were often caught on camera and turned into jokes.

”Tsk!” Wenger clicked his tongue, resignedly unzipped the jacket, and properly sat back down.

Seeing that the director’s camera stopped filming, he began fiddling with it again, having developed an obsessive compulsion because of the zipper... and again, the director’s camera switched back to him.

”Damn it.”

He couldn’t help but curse under his breath, standing up and walking to the edge of the field, pretending to direct the team.

...

I planned to have three updates, but the jet lag hasn’t passed, feeling uncomfortable all day, and writing really slowly, so just two updates today, nearly 20,000 words.