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Chapter 234: Cristiano Ronaldo

His goal was clear—snatch up the 16-year-old Andrea Barzagli.

Although Millwall had significantly cut back on the weekly wages they offered to young players, Aldrich still wanted to provide at least ￡500 a week for any promising talent. For Barzagli, who was on an amateur contract and barely getting by, that was a tempting offer.

In the current state of international transfer rules, Aldrich technically didn't have to pay a dime to Rondinella since Barzagli had an amateur contract and was still young, meaning there was no legal obligation. Yet, Aldrich, acting on good conscience, offered them ￡100,000 for training fees, which elevated his status to VIP at the club.

After a two-hour conversation with Barzagli, he instructed him to head straight to London to report to the team, assuring him that the club would handle everything else. All Barzagli needed to do was board a plane to London.

Having spent nearly ten days in Italy, Aldrich felt excited overall. Sure, he faced numerous setbacks that brought him down, but acquiring both De Rossi and Barzagli was something to be grateful for.

As they drove to Florence Airport, De Rossi, sporting a cap and holding a camera, turned to Aldrich and asked, "Are we going to London?"

Aldrich opened the European map in his hands and shook his head, "London? No, not yet. We're flying to France."

De Rossi perked up, "Great! I've never been to France!"

"Ha, I'll take you around all the major countries in Europe—well, except Germany."

For the next month, Aldrich and De Rossi did a whirlwind tour of France, then headed south to Spain, and finally made their way to Portugal.

Throughout the journey, Aldrich faced rejection after rejection, but there were still some wins along the way.

In eastern France, in the town of Audincourt, he signed the 16-year-old Benoit Pedretti.

Aldridge crossed paths with Auxerre coach Guy Roux when he met with financially strapped Philippe Mexes in Toulouse. Rue has been watching Mexes keenly and is interested in bringing him on board. However, Millwall's offer was much better and Rooks decided to step aside out of friendship with Aldridge. As a result, Millwall signed the 14-year-old Mexes and even provided him with a year's salary from his apprenticeship contract in advance to support his family. After arriving in London, the club ensured his living arrangements so that Mexes could devote himself to training without any distractions.

During his travels through France, Aldrich bumped into quite a few familiar faces. In Toulon, while negotiating the transfer of 16-year-old Sebastian Squillaci with a local club, he got a call from Monaco's coach Tigana, expressing interest in the young player. Aldrich, acting like a gentleman, explained the situation to Squillaci: "You can choose between Monaco and Millwall."

Squillaci didn't think much and directly asked Aldridge for the contract.

Who knows when Monaco will actually come to Toulon to pick him up? By then, who can say whether Tigana will still be in power?

Millwall is simple. Their head coach was present in person and the contract was finalized. It would be ridiculous not to sign.

After leaving France, Aldrich headed to Spain, where he signed only two players but spent more time there, working hard to convince them.

One of them was Xabi Alonso, who was about to sign with a lower-tier Spanish team, Eibar.

Just shy of turning 16, Alonso had spent some of his early years at Barcelona, where he made several friends, including Arteta. However, he didn't carry the distinct Barcelona mark because that was all from before he turned ten, and there were hundreds, if not thousands, of kids trained there during that time.

The challenge in convincing Alonso stemmed from his Basque heritage. His brother played for a team in the Basque region, and most of Alonso's family believed he should follow in his brother's footsteps and play for a Basque team.

Aldrich put in a tremendous effort, showing 300% sincerity before Alonso agreed to go to London.

The situation was somewhat similar to that of De Rossi.

At this age, Alonso wasn't particularly quick, nor was he extraordinarily skillful, which made it difficult to spot any remarkable talent among his peers.

Eibar or the Premier League champions, Millwall?

In the end, Alonso chose the latter.

The other young Spanish player Aldrich signed was Vicente, who would later earn the title "King of the Left Flank" at Valencia.

Having just turned 16 in mid-July, Vicente was considering an offer from Levante at the time Millwall entered the fray.

Aldrich personally visited Vicente to convince him to join Millwall.

As his European tour came to a close, Aldrich arrived in Portugal in early July, sending a relishing De Rossi back to London while he began to make his purchases in this small country.

He secured 18-year-old Paulo Ferreira for ￡300,000 for Millwall.

Another 17-year-old, Miguel, cost the club ￡200,000.

With these transfers complete, Aldrich packed his bags and dressed formally in a suit with a neat haircut, ready for the planned acquisition of the final player.

Portugal—the edge of Europe, Madeira Island—the edge of Portugal, and Funchal—the edge of Madeira.

Aldrich arrived at a rundown area on the fringe of the island: the Santo Antonio neighborhood.

Like every glitzy city, this neighborhood had its dark and shabby sides, and Santo Antonio was no exception—a dilapidated and deserted area.

The streets were filled with drunks, and outside every door Aldrich passed were piles of empty alcohol bottles.

He felt no discrimination against the locals, but the impression these people made on him reminded him of an old saying: "Poverty breeds cunning folk."

Even the teenage boys eyed him like wolves watching their prey. If Aldrich showed even a hint of fear, they would band together to rob him.

But Aldrich strode through without batting an eye, appearing confident and like a seasoned traveler.

Eventually, he stopped in front of an old house.

The roof was askew, the paint on the door had long peeled off, yet the small yard was overgrown with various flowers and plants.

Aldrich walked up to the door and knocked gently. After a moment, a middle-aged woman opened the door, her worn face looking older than her years.

"Sir, who are you looking for?"

Seeing Aldrich's attire, she spoke coldly, her eyes filled with suspicion.

Perhaps, in her eyes, he resembled a government employee.

She had her issues with local authorities; had she not made a scene, she would probably have nowhere to shelter her family of six.

"Is this Mrs. Dolores?"

"Mrs.? Ah, yes, I am. May I ask who you are?"

Dolores didn't expect such a formal introduction, and while surprised, she sensed that Aldrich lacked the haughtiness associated with the powerful. Instead, he left a steady and reliable impression.

Aldrich introduced himself, "I am a coach from London, England, representing Millwall, and I'm also the owner of the club. I came by today to discuss signing your son."

Upon hearing this, Dolores hurriedly opened the door wider, inviting Aldrich in. Flustered, she began tidying up the living room, repeatedly apologizing for the humble state of her home. Compared to Aldrich's stylish Armani outfit, her space felt even more shabby.

After she poured him some water, Aldrich took a beautifully bound brochure from his briefcase. The cover prominently displayed a photo of Millwall's club office.

He handed the brochure to Dolores, saying softly, "Please take a look at my club's introduction. I'm not sure if you've heard of Millwall, but if you have any doubts about who I am or what I'm saying, feel free to ask anyone familiar with the football world. I have plenty of time."

Dolores took the brochure and murmured, "Millwall? Millwall? That sounds familiar..."

She got up and went into another room, returning with a stack of old newspapers and magazines. After some digging, she pulled out a Portuguese newspaper, showing it to Aldrich. "Is this the Millwall you're talking about?"

Aldrich looked at the paper, which was probably two months old, featuring a report on Millwall's treble win with a cover photo of them lifting the European Cup.

Aldrich nodded and said, "Yes, unfortunately, this cover image is too large. I'm standing at the far left of the group, but you probably can't see me clearly."

Dolores took a look again, but couldn't spot the young man on the far left, who was wearing just a shirt and trousers without a suit jacket.

However, after putting down the paper, she pulled out a magazine from the pile, focused on the cover, and turned to Aldrich with a smile, "Now I see, your name is Aldrich Hall."

With that, she handed the magazine to Aldrich.

This magazine was also an old one, published last month, likely with little influence in Portugal. It featured a pirated cover from the UK's "442" magazine, which was clearly infringing copyright, but Aldrich couldn't help but feel thankful for the bootleg material.

On the cover, the lower half displayed three trophies—the FA Cup, the Premier League, and the European Cup—while the upper half featured Aldrich looking sharp, arms crossed and smiling slightly, capturing the young coach's piercing eyes and playful grin perfectly.

After Aldrich set the magazine aside, his identity was confirmed without question, putting him at ease about being suspected of being a fraud.

"Mr. Hall, which of my sons is your club interested in?" Dolores asked with a more serious and anxious tone.

Aldrich replied solemnly, "I'm here for your youngest son, Cristiano Ronaldo!"