Chapter 332 The Deluxe Friends and Family Group

"Haha, surprise!"

"Pretty shocked, huh?"

When Ibrahimovic and Van der Vaart suddenly appeared before him, Yang Yang was so startled he thought he was seeing things. But when he took a closer look, it was really them.

"You... What are you guys doing here?" Yang Yang said, pointing at them in utter shock.

But the next moment, another group of people suddenly jumped out from behind them.

"And us!"

"Pretty surprised?"

"We haven’t seen each other in over a month. You miss me?"

"Oh my god, you’re about to become a world champion!"

"Oh, God, you actually knocked us out. I still hate you for it!"

Sneijder, De Jong, Heitinga, Vermaelen, Maxwell, Maicon, Filipe Luís, Pinaar, Niklas Bendtner...

Yang Yang realized that all of his best friends from Ajax were here.

"What are you all doing here? You didn’t tell me you were coming. You could’ve at least given me a little warning," Yang Yang said, overjoyed.

Just a moment ago, the hotel’s front desk had called him to say someone was looking for him in the lobby, which was the only reason he’d come down.

"Hey, buddy, this is exactly the reaction we were going for." Ibrahimovic walked over and slapped Yang Yang hard on the shoulder. In a mock-indignant tone, he said, "Honestly, you’re more famous than me now. That’s just not fair!"

The group erupted in laughter.

"That’s your own fault for not trying hard enough. Who else is there to blame?" Maxwell jabbed from the side.

"Hey, I’ve been working my ass off, okay?" Ibrahimovic defended himself. "I do extra shooting practice every day. I keep thinking, if I were still in the Eredivisie, I’d definitely have scored more than thirty-one goals. I could’ve taken down Henry and won the European Golden Boot."

Henry was the winner of the last European Golden Boot Award, and everyone knew Ibrahimovic famously couldn’t stand Arsenal, so he was particularly bitter about it.

"Why don’t you talk to me after you score more than twenty goals in a season," Yang Yang said, forcefully wriggling out of Ibrahimovic’s grip.

The Swedish Striker wore an expression of utter tragedy, as if mortally wounded by the verbal blow.

In his entire professional career, he had never scored more than twenty goals in a single season.

The most he’d ever scored was last season, and even that was only nineteen goals.

Overjoyed to be reunited with so many teammates, Yang Yang was in a fantastic mood. He immediately ushered them to have a seat in the hotel lobby and asked a waiter to bring some hot drinks. However, with the new season just around the corner, everyone stuck to drinking plain hot water.

This, however, sent the hotel staff into a flurry.

Every one of the Ajax stars was a household name in the Netherlands, but when had so many of them ever gathered in one place like this?

Forget Yang Yang, Sneijder, and the others—even Ibrahimovic and Van der Vaart, who had already left the club, had shown up.

’Damn, are they all here as a group to cheer Yang Yang on?’

’With a support squad like this, how much of a stir would the final cause?’

’And this was the Netherlands, after all!’

"Yang, listen. For the final against Argentina, I’ve got your back. Go destroy that Messi kid." Ibrahimovic pounded his chest, showing his brotherly support.

"It’s not going to be that easy," Yang Yang said with a wry smile.

The Chinese Team was indeed a fair bit weaker than Argentina, so their only option would be to stick to a defensive counter-attacking strategy.

"That’s true. Messi hasn’t played many first-team matches yet, but the Spanish media rates him very, very highly. He’s being hailed as Barcelona’s talent of the next decade, and many people are already excited to see him play alongside Ronaldinho in the new season," Van der Vaart added, giving a word of caution.

He played for Real Madrid, so he was no stranger to Barcelona’s players. The two teams were, after all, eternal rivals.

"I know," Yang Yang said, nodding gratefully at Van der Vaart. "I’ve watched tapes of Messi’s previous matches, as well as all his games in this FIFA U-20 World Cup. He’s incredibly good. His footwork is outstanding; it’s almost impossible to tackle him."

Many of the others present nodded in agreement.

As footballers themselves, they all knew that anyone who could play like Messi had to possess extraordinary technical skill.

"This current Argentina squad is definitely strong. Their players are very talented, and the team is well-balanced. Both their attack and defense are solid, so it’s going to be a tough match." As he said this, Sneijder’s tone shifted. "But no matter what, I’m obviously rooting for you. Bring home the FIFA U-20 World Cup trophy, and we can all bask in the reflected glory."

"Yeah, yeah, screw ’em up!" Vermaelen cheered rowdily.

"Even though you beat Brazil in the semi-finals, which broke my heart, I still support you to take down Argentina." Maxwell’s comment, combined with the look on his face, sent everyone into another round of roaring laughter.

After the Brazil Team was eliminated, Filipe Luís didn’t return home with his squad. Instead, he stayed in the Netherlands to prepare for Ajax’s preseason training camp. He had a good grasp of the Chinese Team’s abilities.

"We did a post-mortem within our team after the semi-finals. To be honest, the Chinese Team will have a tougher time against Argentina than you did against us. Argentina is more cohesive as a unit, so this match is going to be a real struggle."

After a pause, Filipe Luís added, "However, a lot of us also think the Chinese Team still has a fighting chance. It mainly depends on you. As long as you play to your potential, you’ve got a real shot."

Youth team matches are different from senior team matches; the impact of a star player is much more pronounced, especially at critical moments.

For example, in the match between the Chinese Team and Brazil, both goals came from Yang Yang using his individual skill to turn the tide and score.

Of course, bringing out Yang Yang’s full potential wasn’t just up to him alone; it depended on the coordination of the entire team.

At this stage of the competition, the pressure was immense. The key was being able to handle it.

"Don’t even mention it, man. I took special leave just to come cheer you on. If you lose, and I have to go back and face that old bastard Capello’s sourpuss, do you think you’ll have done right by me?" Ibrahimovic was trying to light a fire under him.

Back when he was at Ajax, Ibrahimovic couldn’t stand Van Gaal. After transferring to Juventus, he’d ironically ended up with the equally hard-nosed Capello. One could only imagine his frustration.

But for the Swedish Striker, it was also a form of trial by fire.

"Don’t worry. I’ll give it my all," Yang Yang promised solemnly.

"Then all of us are coming to the final to cheer for you!" Ibrahimovic shouted.

Everyone else roared their approval.

Ajax’s training camp was scheduled to start the day after the FIFA U-20 World Cup final. That was why everyone had chosen to visit Yang Yang today, so they could be there in person to cheer him on at the final tomorrow at noon.

As Yang Yang chatted enthusiastically with the group, they soon drew the attention of others, particularly the players from the Chinese Youth Team.

Chen Tao was the most familiar with the visitors. Thanks to his connection with Yang Yang, he had trained with the Ajax squad for a few months and gotten to know several of their players well, especially Vermaelen and Maxwell.

Spotting them from a distance, Chen Tao immediately walked over to say hello.

The other National Youth Team players had long admired the Ajax stars by reputation, so when they heard who was here, they all rushed over.

Ibrahimovic, Sneijder, Van der Vaart...

Holy cow, every single one of them was a huge star in European football!

As a fellow center-forward, Gao Lin was clearly the most interested in Ibrahimovic and couldn’t stop staring at the Swedish Striker.

Thanks to Yang Yang, Ibrahimovic knew a bit about the Chinese Youth Team and was aware that this center-forward was Yang Yang’s partner. Noticing Gao Lin staring at him, he pointed and said, "You. You’re not aggressive enough."

"Huh?" Gao Lin was taken aback.

Yang Yang immediately translated what Ibrahimovic said, and Gao Lin looked a little indignant.

"I’m telling you, as a center-forward, you have to take more charge, be braver, and be more aggressive. Those center-backs are all pushovers. If you see one you don’t like, just go after them. Once you’ve got them pinned down, you create chances for your teammates behind you."

Yang Yang had to stop himself from covering his face and snickering. This was classic Swedish Striker logic: simple, direct, and brutal.

When he translated for Gao Lin, however, he phrased it a bit more tactfully, but he made sure the core message got across.

Feng Xiaoting, meanwhile, confidently approached Heitinga and Vermaelen. Yang Yang had previously told him that both of them were Ajax’s ball-playing center-backs.

Yang Yang could only relay things secondhand, and his advice couldn’t compare to the experience of those who lived it, like Heitinga and Vermaelen. So, seizing the rare opportunity, Feng Xiaoting immediately went to ask them for advice in person.

They covered everything from defending to playing the ball out from the back. Vermaelen even ended up revealing the secret hand signals he and Yang Yang used for corner kicks.

"I’m telling you, this kid’s corner kicks are nuts. He’s always trying something different..."

Vermaelen held nothing back in his complaints about Yang Yang, making Yang want to launch a flying kick and take his head off.

With some of the National Youth Team players joining in, the atmosphere in the lobby immediately became even more boisterous.

Soon, everyone from Head Coach Klauen and the team manager to the accompanying officials from the Football Association and the General Administration of Sport heard the news and hurried down to the lobby.

Even more unexpectedly, Chinese National Team Head Coach Arie Haan arrived shortly after, along with his assistant coach, Dejan. And with them, incredibly, were Dutch National Team Head Coach Van Basten and Ajax Head Coach Ronald Koeman.

What was even more shocking was that Ronald Koeman’s brother, Erwin Koeman, had come along as well.

The lobby of the Mitland Hotel had become practically star-studded.

At the same time, it made everyone in the National Youth Team, from the officials of the General Administration of Sport and the Football Association down to the players, realize the extent of Yang Yang’s connections in European football, especially in the Dutch football scene.

When Yang Yang introduced Feng Xiaoting to Erwin Koeman, the National Youth Team’s captain was visibly nervous.

But Yang Yang could tell that Erwin Koeman thought very highly of him. Koeman personally promised to give him more opportunities for match experience in the new season and encouraged him to keep up the hard work and put on an even better performance in the FIFA U-20 World Cup final.

Van Basten, for his part, praised Yang Yang’s performance over the past season and in the current FIFA U-20 World Cup, but he also expressed his belief that Yang Yang could do even better.

"You’re on the right path. Take your time, build up your experience, and keep progressing. First things first, win this FIFA U-20 World Cup. Get off to a flying start, and then for the new season, aim to do even better than you did last season," Van Basten encouraged.

Even though Yang Yang had only played under him for half a year, Van Basten had truly taught him a great deal. That, combined with the fact that he had made a special trip to cheer Yang Yang on the day before the final, made Yang Yang feel incredibly grateful, and he thanked Van Basten profusely.

But even Yang Yang himself couldn’t have imagined that the biggest surprise of the day was yet to come that evening.