Super Wingstorm

After a win, even the air seemed to smell sweeter.

This perfectly captured the mood of Ajax’s chief scout, Tony Bruins Slotts, on Sunday morning.

Last night at the Amsterdam Arena, Ajax played exceptionally well against a visiting Graafschap.

After conceding a goal to Hans van der Hare just three minutes into the opening, the Ajax players quickly regrouped. They swiftly equalized in the sixteenth minute, with midfielder Yakubu assisting Van der Vaart.

If the first half had been an even contest, the second half was utterly dominated by Ajax. Van der Vaart, Sneijder, Galasek, Pinaar, Maxwell, and Bocari all found the back of the net, helping Ajax thrash Graafschap 7-1 at home for a resounding victory.

The victory significantly eased the pressure on Ajax. To the relief of the entire club, homegrown talents Van der Vaart and Sneijder both stepped up at a crucial time, displaying the qualities of core players.

In the four matches that Swedish Striker Ibrahimovic had missed, Van der Vaart’s performance was particularly striking. He scored six goals in four games, once again outshining Van der Meede, the Netherlands’ top winger who had been having a sensational season.

Van der Meede was Ajax’s best-performing star this season. The right winger had attracted the interest of numerous major clubs on the Champions League stage, and rumors were rampant that he would be leaving in the summer.

This was a persistent worry for the entire club, including head coach Koman.

Defense was Ajax’s biggest problem; young players like Heitinga and Qi Wu were still too green. The offense, however, was incredibly sharp, making them the best attacking team in the Eredivisie this season. With multiple players like Van der Vaart and Ibrahimovic reaching double-digit goal counts, the goals were coming from all over the field.

Van der Meede on the right flank was an especially vital attacker for the team. If he were to transfer, it would be an incalculable loss to their offense. Yet, if a major club made an offer, it would be nearly impossible for Ajax to hold onto him.

Ever since Van Gaal’s Champions League-winning squad fell apart in the mid-nineties, Ajax had been unable to retain its star players, effectively becoming a talent factory for the major clubs of Europe.

But precisely because of this, Ajax valued scouts more than ever before.

Unearthing rough diamonds, polishing them into stars, and then selling them for a hefty profit—this had become the consensus among Ajax’s management. It was Ajax’s way of surviving in the fiercely competitive world of European Football.

While Ajax celebrated their 7-1 victory, Eindhoven lost 1-3 away to Feyenoord. Kezman scored for Eindhoven, but Van Hooijdonk netted a hat-trick for Feyenoord. Two of his goals came from penalties, sparking huge controversy.

But regardless, Ajax had successfully closed the gap in the league standings to just three points.

With two rounds left in the league, anything was still possible.

It was with such a pleasant mood that Slotts walked into the scout’s office at Ajax’s training facility, De Toekomst.

Ajax’s scouting network spanned the entire globe. Beyond the Netherlands, Northern Europe and Africa were key focus areas. Every day, player information and progress reports would arrive from scouts scattered around the world, or from partners affiliated with Ajax.

An assistant would compile these reports and place them on Slotts’s desk every morning like clockwork.

As always, the first thing Slotts did upon arriving at work was to review the report.

Although Ajax no longer possessed the glory of the early nineties, they were still a force to be reckoned with. As a well-known powerhouse in European Football, famed for its youth academy, it naturally drew in aspiring young players from all over the world.

Countless player profiles were sent to the team every day, and Slotts was long used to the deluge. He gave the report a quick browse, picking out a few interesting players to look into further. Even when he reached the final item—a note about youth football matches around Amsterdam where an amateur scout recommended a winger hailed as "the second Ronaldo"—it failed to pique his interest.

’The second Ronaldo?’

’These days, far too many players get slapped with that title. How many of them are the real deal?’

’Just because he can do the Pendulum Move, he’s the second Ronaldo?’

’And he’s a right-back who’s only played two games...’

Slotts shook his head, closed the report, and casually tossed it onto the corner of his desk. He gave a wry, internal smile. ’The quality of scouts these days is really dropping. It looks like it’s time for a major shake-up.’

The Technical Director, Leo Benhak, had been caught up in a sex scandal with a young secretary at the club. The official line was that he would be leaving in the summer on amicable terms, but in reality, he had already resigned and was long gone from Amsterdam.

Management was currently searching for a suitable replacement. Rumor had it the chairman already had someone in mind. Slotts, who was temporarily handling some of the technical director’s duties, felt he should seize this opportunity to overhaul the scouting network and produce some tangible results.

’The institution remains, but the people always change.’

’Who knows what the new technical director will do when he takes over.’

...

...

While Slotts was worrying in the southern suburbs of Amsterdam, Yang Yang was finishing his morning’s basic training at a skate park in Almere. He was completely drenched in sweat, looking as if he’d just been fished out of a bucket.

The weather had been getting progressively warmer since the start of May.

Scoring his first goal since arriving in the Netherlands had given Yang Yang a huge boost of confidence. But the real impetus driving him to train even harder last night and this morning was the Amsterdam Arena.

The mere thought of it was breathtaking, and it made him acutely aware of the vast gap between himself and the young players at Ajax.

After returning to Almere last night, he had made a point to watch the live broadcast. Van der Meede’s performance on the right wing left him feeling inadequate by comparison, while Van der Vaart’s skill and talent were so dazzling he felt like bowing down in worship.

But these two players weren’t much older than him.

The gap was immense, and those players had such an incredible platform to develop on. If he didn’t strive to catch up, he would only fall further behind.

"Have some water."

The middle-aged Dutchman who often came to watch Yang Yang train was back. As usual, he brought two bottles of water and sat in the same spot without saying a word. Only after Yang Yang had completed his special training regimen did the man hand him a bottle.

"Thanks," Yang Yang said, taking the water while wiping the sweat from his face with a towel.

"You just played a full match yesterday, and this morning you not only doubled your training but also increased the intensity. Are you sure you can handle it?"

Sensing the hint of concern in the man’s tone, Yang Yang gave a light laugh. "I know my own body. It’s not a problem."

His training regimen had been approved by Old Ice from the Super Training. If he couldn’t handle it, Old Ice would never have let him do it.

"Something’s weighing on your mind," the middle-aged Dutchman said confidently.

Yang Yang was a bit surprised. "How do you know?"

"It’s written all over your face," the middle-aged Dutchman said playfully.

Although he knew the man was joking, Yang Yang couldn’t help but reach up to touch his own face. The gesture made the usually stern Dutchman crack a smile.

"I heard you had a great game yesterday. Two assists, one goal, and a high success rate with your one-on-one dribbling. It seems like your recent special training has paid off, and your fundamentals have improved significantly. So what’s bothering you?"

At first, Yang Yang had been wary of this stranger whose name he didn’t even know. But over time, after more interactions, he realized the man meant no harm. He just watched him train and made small talk. Gradually, Yang Yang let his guard down. So now, when the man asked, he hesitated for a moment before voicing what was troubling him.

"That’s perfectly normal. Those guys have been getting the most formal, professional football training since they were little kids. The fundamentals you’re working on now? They had already mastered them by the time they were eight or nine. It’s only natural for there to be a gap."

"I understand that," Yang Yang nodded, a flicker of defiance on his face. "But I just can’t accept it."

"Then what do you want to do about it?"

Yang Yang mulled it over for a moment, then asked earnestly, "Do you think I still have a chance to catch up to them?"

"Like I said before, it’ll be next to impossible. But since you can see the gap and still want to try, then you might as well give it a shot."

"You mean..."

"What you said when we first met: you never know until you try."

Yang Yang felt much better after hearing that. Looking at the middle-aged Dutchman, his curiosity was piqued.

"Back when you were at Ajax, what position did you play? Were you as good as Van der Vaart, Van der Meede, Sneijder, or Litmanen? What did it feel like to play at the Amsterdam Arena?"

"When I played, Ajax’s home ground was still the Olympic Stadium. They only moved to the Amsterdam Arena in ’96, so I don’t know what it feels like to play there, but..."

A flicker of bitterness crossed the Dutchman’s eyes before he quickly continued, "I never made an appearance for the Ajax first team. I played there as an opponent, but it didn’t feel all that different."

"Oh, I see," Yang Yang nodded, but a new question quickly popped into his head. "Why do I see you here so often?"

"Because I like coming here to watch you train," the middle-aged Dutchman was quite frank.

"Why?"

"Trus, my girlfriend, and I made a bet."

"What?"

"I bet that you couldn’t stick with this tedious basic training for a month. She believed you could."

"And?" Yang Yang found it amusing. He had become the subject of a bet between the couple.

"We agreed that whoever loses has to do one thing the other person wants."

"So now you’re..."

"I hope you make it," the Dutchman said with utter sincerity.

His frankness left Yang Yang speechless. He was dying to ask what the loser would have to do, but he felt it would be too forward, as it was a private matter between the two of them.

"Well, it’s about that time. I’ve got a tee time, so I should get going."

The Dutchman stood up from the bench, but before he could walk away, he turned to Yang Yang.

"At your current rate of progress, you should probably start reducing your juggling practice in about a week. Focus on maintaining your feel for the ball. Don’t just juggle for the sake of juggling. Being good at keep-ups alone won’t win you any matches."

He took one step, then seemed to remember something and turned back. "Oh, right. And one more thing: work on your left foot."

With that, he left without a backward glance.