[
At noon on the 22nd local time, Real Madrid officially announced that they had finalized a contract extension with Ho-young.
The new deal runs until 2014, with an agreed weekly wage of €20,000. Including additional options, the total can rise to as much as €28,000 per week.
The release clause has been set at €15 million.
Ho-young's weekly wage of €20,000 exceeds what Lionel Messi (21, FC Barcelona) earned when he signed his first professional contract with Barcelona, and the release clause is among the highest ever for a youth player.
This is widely seen as a swift move by Real Madrid to protect Ho-young, especially amid growing interest from several clubs, including AC Milan.
Since making his first-team debut, Ho-young has already scored nine goals this season… ]
The contract extension had been considered after the Atletico Madrid match and was finalized immediately the day after the Juventus match.
Later on, with transfer market inflation, figures in the hundreds of millions would start to feel ordinary, but at the time, a €15 million release clause for a youth player was extremely high.
In other words, any club that wanted to sign Ho-young would have to pay €15 million to Real Madrid as a buyout fee.
It was effectively a declaration that Real Madrid intended to fully back Ho-young as the club's future.
Under Pérez, Real Madrid planned to rebuild the team with Ho-young as a central pillar.
They could not rely forever on players well past thirty, such as Zidane, Guti, Carlos, Van Nistelrooy, Míchel Salgado, Cannavaro, and Raúl.
However, there was significant disagreement within the club regarding next year's rebuilding plans.
Some executives aligned with Pérez believed they should offload the Dutch connection, Robben, Sneijder, and Van Nistelrooy, and instead sign Kaká and Cristiano Ronaldo to pair with Ho-young.
Quiet negotiations were already underway for that purpose, with discreet talks involving Manchester United and AC Milan.
But there was also strong opposition.
The pro-Dutch faction wanted to position the rising star Klaas-Jan Huntelaar as Van Nistelrooy's successor and continue building around Ho-young and the Dutch core.
On top of that, with budget reviews approaching, Pérez was under increasing pressure from opposing voices.
As a result, the club's future was far from certain.
That was the extent of Lucci's explanation.
Listening from his bed, Ho-young frowned deeply.
"It sounds really complicated."
"How could it not be," Lucci replied. "Real Madrid is the highest-earning professional sports club in the world."
Lucci was right.
Since the Galácticos policy, Real Madrid had consistently topped global revenue rankings.
They were the only club generating close to €500 million in revenue per season at the time.
At one point, David Beckham's shirt sales alone accounted for nearly half of the club's annual merchandise revenue.
That was precisely why Pérez wanted to turn Ho-young into a superstar among superstars.
The higher the club's value, the more lucrative its sponsorship deals with kit manufacturers would become.
"At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if President Florentino sends you to a beauty clinic soon."
"He's a greedy old man," Lucci said. "He's never satisfied with your looks. You'd think he was trying to make you an actor."
"My goodness. I might as well head to Hollywood."
"What?"
"Haha. Nothing."
Ever since realizing that Ho-young was no ordinary talent, Real Madrid had begun paying close attention to his appearance.
Popularity, after all, often depended more on looks than ability.
Not only that, but his diet, sleep schedule, and daily habits were all being closely managed.
It was a full-scale project to turn Ho-young into a football god.
"You remember when the nutritionist Pavon argued with my grandmother, right?"
"He told her not to put sauce on your spaghetti."
"And she asked what kind of nonsense that was, saying footballers eat to live. They argued for almost an hour."
Usually, footballers ate spaghetti on matchdays, but recently Ho-young's personal nutritionist, Pavon, had told him to eat it without sauce.
He claimed it was better for an athlete's body.
"So, did you try it?"
"Yes."
"How was it?"
"Like chewing on an eraser."
"At least the table survived."
"I almost flipped it, but I held back."
"Hahaha."
"Haha…"
It wasn't really funny.
It felt like his every move was being monitored around the clock.
Still, if it was for his goals, he had to endure it.
To gain something, giving something up was inevitable.
"I noticed all the soda at home disappeared. Fine, I get that. But why did they get rid of the beer too?"
"Hehe. Looks like the club's managing me as well. Be careful. If you want to keep working with me long-term, you need to live a long life."
"I do want to live long, but not at the cost of giving up beer."
"I understand completely."
"Anyone would think you actually drink. You're not secretly sneaking one now and then, are you? I swear bottles keep disappearing."
"That's my grandfather. Not me."
"Hm…"
It sounded like a joke, but just in case, Lucci emphasized something important.
"Do you know how many people's efforts went into making Messi who he is today? You know he used to follow Ronaldinho around everywhere."
"Yes. He almost went off the rails."
"Exactly. Last year, when Guardiola was still coaching Barcelona B, he called Messi in and gave him an ultimatum."
"What did he say?"
"Either keep living like that and get kicked out of Barcelona, or quit drinking, focus on training, and become the best player in the world. That's how Messi became what he is today."
"I see. Thanks for the advice. Still, spaghetti without sauce is a bit much."
"I agree. I'll talk to them."
With that, Lucci stood up.
"Get some sleep. It's already 9:30."
"Yes. Thanks for today."
"Oh, one more thing. Adidas contacted us regarding a contract renewal."
"Are we renewing?"
"They want to, but we'll wait until December. Nike will reach out soon. We should secure better terms."
"Haha. Very thorough."
"There's no reason to take a loss."
Ho-young liked that answer.
Lately, he felt he had grown closer to Lucci.
"By the way, why are you always so formal with me? I think we're close enough now."
Honorifics weren't unique to Korean.
Spanish and Portuguese also distinguished levels of formality.
Yet Lucci always spoke to Ho-young with respect.
Lucci answered matter-of-factly.
"You're my client."
"My client, huh."
"Yes. A client I value and respect. I don't want to neglect that relationship. Changing how I speak wouldn't make much difference, but why do you ask?"
"Because I'm grateful."
"Haha. I told you. It's business. I'm investing in your future."
"You won't regret it."
A calm smile spread across Ho-young's face.
Looking back, he realized how many good people he had met.
Cha Bum-kun, Carlos, Kaká, Zidane, Lucci.
And his parents.
He wanted to repay everyone who had helped him.
As the weather grew colder, the league heated up.
Matches came every three days, and teams began reaching their physical limits.
This was the time of year when upsets often happened.
And a chill settled over Madrid.
It was the final week of October.
Real Madrid hosted Athletic Bilbao at home.
Representing Spain's Basque region, Athletic arrived at the Bernabéu ready to give everything, true to their fierce anti-Madrid stance.
They were in strong form, battling Valencia for third and fourth place, and had recently lost a close 4-3 match against Barcelona.
They were not an opponent Real Madrid could take lightly.
From the start, there was an ominous feeling.
And the match unfolded in an unexpected way.
Despite thorough preparation, Real Madrid were caught off guard by Athletic's sharp tactical setup and conceded two goals in the first half alone.
Athletic showed why they were a historic club that once went undefeated in La Liga.
"Hey! Wake the hell up!"
Inside the home dressing room at halftime, Casillas shouted, lining up Marcelo, Ramos, Pepe, and Miguel Torres.
Only after his scolding did they regain their focus.
The second half turned into a bloodbath.
The physicality was so intense it hardly resembled a La Liga match.
In the end, eleven yellow cards and one red card were shown.
Still, after one Athletic defender was sent off, Raúl scored a lobbed goal to pull one back.
Substitutions followed as Madrid looked for a final push.
Then, with Van Nistelrooy struggling in the battle of pace, Ho-young was brought on, and the match took a new turn.
[Many thought he would be left out of the squad entirely today, but he's on the pitch. He must be exhausted after the Juventus match.]
That was true.
Even though Italy was close, crossing the continent by plane was no easy task.
But once again, Ho-young flew.
He injected youthful energy into the attack and, near the end of the match, made it happen.
[Goal! Raúl González scores the equalizer!]
[Ho-young with a brilliant assist. He beat two defenders in an instant before threading a perfectly timed through ball.]
[His decision-making is incredible every time. A fifteen-year-old rescuing his team in a crisis.]
The final whistle blew.
The result was 2-2.
Real Madrid recorded their first draw of the season.
In truth, even that felt fortunate.
There were several controversial decisions, and many believed that had this not been the Bernabéu, Real Madrid might have lost.
Athletic fans complained that Madrid had bought the referee, but the result stood.
Whether bribery had occurred, no one knew.
What was certain was that the calls had favored Real Madrid.
The nearly 78,000 fans who had hoped for a fiery home performance left with bitter disappointment.
At least Raúl winning La Liga Player of the Month for September offered some consolation.
But the real problem was only beginning.
And the team would soon need someone to pull them out of crisis.
(To be continued.)