Host Family

Klaus Fisbry is an experienced veteran who recognizes Guardiola's high regard for Lucas and acknowledges his strengths.

Given Guardiola's character, Klaus believes that lying is not in his nature, But while Lucas possesses good strength, it doesn't necessarily guarantee suitability for the team.

Werder Bremen's poor performance can be attributed to their offensive style of play.

Under Coach Thomas Schaaf's 442 formation, both full-backs push forward during attacks, and even the central defenders join the offensive efforts.

This often leads to an excessive number of players upfront, leaving their defense vulnerable to counterattacks and resulting in conceding goals.

In the previous Bundesliga season, Werder Bremen had the highest number of individual defensive errors, which is not praiseworthy.

To address this issue, Werder Bremen is in need of a strong midfielder with exceptional defensive abilities and good interception skills.

Ideally, someone in the mold of Makelele or Vieira, although it's unlikely to acquire a player of such caliber for Werder Bremen.

As a result, they have been exploring loan options from wealthy clubs and secured an organizing midfielder from Barcelona, which has left Bremen somewhat uncertain about their approach.

Considering they already have De Bruyne on loan from Chelsea, the team's primary organizer is the attacking midfielder, allowing the defensive midfielder to focus more on defensive duties and require minimal involvement in the offensive play.

Hence, Klaus and others express concerns about Lucas's integration into Werder Bremen's tactical system.

They avoid discussing Lucas's role within the team, playing time, and other tactical matters, instead assuring Guardiola that the club will take good care of him to provide reassurance.

For financially constrained clubs like Werder Bremen, relying on loan players to bolster the team is common practice.

However, if the club's reputation is tarnished, it may hinder future cooperation with other clubs.

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Therefore, Guardiola still believes in Klaus' guarantee.

So, he discussed with the club about the arrangement of Lucas' residence.

The club gave two options. The first one is to let Lucas live with the club's young players.

The second was to put him in a boarding house with a die-hard fan of the club.

Guardiola respected Lucas' choice and agreed to the second option.

So Klaus asked sports director Essien to drive them to a host family near the stadium.

This family is a family of four, a couple in their 37s and 18s.

The man's name was William Victor, a distributor of a local brewer.

The hostess is named Anna Victor, a civil servant who works in the city hall.

This is a typical upper-middle-class family in Germany. The combined annual income of the couple is about 100,000 euros. The income is good, and they have a certain social status.

The couple has a pair of lovely children with blond hair and blue eyes. The daughter Angel is 12 years old, which is about the same age as Guardiola's eldest daughter. The son Greni is 10 years old and is still in elementary school.

All four members of this family are diehard fans of Werder Bremen. As long as there is a home game of Werder Bremen, they will hardly be absent, and it is the kind that the whole family goes out to watch together.

The age of the couple is about the same as Guardiola, and Lucas is currently a player of Werder Bremen.

As soon as the two sides met, they talked very happily. Guardiola and Serra were very satisfied with this host family.

Before parting, Guardiola enthusiastically presented a football signed by himself to Greni.

The William family gave Guardiola a barrel of pure grain beer from his collection.

In order to adapt to the team as soon as possible, Lucas did not choose to go skiing in Switzerland with Guardiola and others but chose to stay in Bremen and train in advance before the team started training.

There is a big gap between the youth team's game and the Bundesliga's game intensity. If he plays the Bundesliga with the mentality of playing for the youth team, he will definitely be abused and unable to find many chances to play.

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"So, he still has a lot of work to do before the league starts.

For instance, he needs to improve his physical endurance to ensure sufficient fitness for adapting to the intensity of the Bundesliga.

Moreover, it's crucial to enhance his body's ability to withstand tackles, so as not to lose balance when coming into contact with opponents.

Additionally, he should watch the team's game videos from the past few seasons and study their technical and tactical approach to integrate better into the team's system.

Lucas wasn't overly concerned about the worries of Klaus.

Although he played as a defensive midfielder in the Barcelona youth team, he has the versatility to play in various positions after emulating the attributes of peak Messi.

He can play as a winger, shadow forward, attacking midfielder, and even as a center forward on occasion.

Of course, he can also revert to his previous role as an organizing midfielder without any issue.

After joining Paris, the experienced Messi played a vital role as the core of the team's organization.

Hence, his responsibilities won't clash with De Bruyne's, and De Bruyne can handle the task of organizing the team's plays.

Lucas, on the other hand, can take on the role of the final goal scorer.

If the opponent restricts De Bruyne, Lucas can also drop back and assume the responsibility of organizing the attack, forming a double midfield.

Naturally, all these decisions are not within his control. His objective is to demonstrate to the head coach that he is capable of fulfilling these positions.

The host family's residence is conveniently located in close proximity to the team's training base, less than 2 kilometers away.

Since he is currently too young to have a driver's license, there is no need for him to drive such a short distance.

Therefore, Lucas purchased a bicycle for 200 Euros as his means of transportation to and from training.

That evening, Anna prepared a lavish meal at home, extending a warm welcome to Lucas.

"Lucas, feel at ease here. Consider this place your own home!"

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Anna smiled as she poured Lucas a glass of juice, recognizing that he was underage and not allowed to drink.

It was considered an inappropriate behavior for professional players to consume alcohol as well, as it could affect their competitive state.

"Thank you, Mrs. Victor!" Lucas expressed his gratitude politely and accepted the glass of juice.

Meanwhile, William poured himself a glass of beer and took control of the conversation, saying, "Our team, Werder Bremen, has always been very supportive of young players. Our team captain, Fritz, is a truly honorable individual.

With him around, you won't have to worry about being mistreated."

As William spoke, a touch of sadness clouded his eyes, and he let out a sigh. "It's a shame that Wiese is no longer with us."

The person referred to as Wiese, whose full name is Tim Wiese, was the previous season's main goalkeeper for Werder Bremen.

Known as the successor to the legendary goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, Wiese possessed a rebellious yet passionate spirit.

A person like Wiese easily became the team's spiritual leader, and he fulfilled that role exceptionally well in Bremen.

With his remarkable skills and long-standing commitment to Werder Bremen, he earned immense adoration from the fans.

His departure left many fans deeply saddened and longing for his return.

Realizing that his emotions had impacted everyone present, William decided not to dwell on the topic any further.

Instead, he raised his glass and toasted to Lucas, saying, "Lucas, I hope you establish yourself firmly in the team and become a source of pride for all of us as soon as possible!"

(End of this chapter)

Did anyone know why Mourinho did not want to play De bruyne in Chelsea?