Chapter 11 Rental Contract

Five million euros is not a small amount, and Luis definitely can't afford it out of his own pocket.

Guardiola can afford this money, but Luis doesn't want to give Barcelona an advantage for free.

After all, Guardiola's fortune isn't particularly abundant.

In 2008, when Guardiola had just come up from Barcelona's youth team, his salary was very low, less than 2 million euros.

He received a big contract after coaching at Barcelona for two years and winning six championships.

In July 2010, after Guardiola renewed his 1+1 contract with Barcelona, his annual salary increased fivefold to 10 million euros.

With this contract, he became the highest-paid coach in European football, second only to Mourinho.

This contract's duration was relatively short and didn't accumulate much for him.

During Guardiola's playing days, players' salaries weren't high, and he wasn't Barcelona's top star, so he didn't earn much.

Considering expenses over the years, buying properties, funding children's education, and other costs, his current savings might be around 20 million euros.

Taking out a quarter of that to buy out a one-year remaining youth training contract doesn't seem profitable.

So, when Guardiola suggested helping Luis buy out the contract, Luis declined.

Luis's contract is only for a year, and when his loan period ends, the contract expires.

He won't need to spend a penny; he'll become a free agent, so there's no need to waste this money.

Moreover, it's Enrique who's in a rush to get rid of him, not his own decision to leave.

Given the situation, he definitely shouldn't spend his own money.

"Well then, what's your idea?"

Seeing Luis looking confident, Guardiola asked.

"Enrique probably agreed with Rosell to get rid of me, so I think I can use this to blackmail him and force him to compromise on the loan contract!"

Guardiola nodded. Since Rosell had spoken, Enrique, if he wants to take over, will surely try to fulfill the chairman's task.

Usually, loan contract amounts aren't large, especially for young players like Luis, the loan fee generally won't exceed 500,000 euros.

Sometimes, the borrowing team might even ask the owning team to cover a part or all of the player's wages during the loan.

Werder Bremen is a team in decline, and their wage situation hasn't been great in recent years.

Hence, Luis wants to pressure Barcelona to compromise on the loan contract to secure more playing time at Werder Bremen.

Having experienced the Bundesliga before, he can't just sit on the bench and watch teammates play.

He needs enough playing time; otherwise, he'd rather stay at the youth team instead of going on loan.

While the intensity of the Segunda División might not match the Bundesliga, at least there's a chance to play in the youth team.

Of course, if a deal can be reached, it's better to go on loan, because under the club's targeting, his future playing time with the youth team becomes uncertain.

"Indeed, you've thought it through well. Young players do need more playing time to accumulate experience in major competitions."

"Here's what we'll do. While I'm still Barcelona's head coach, let me handle your loan contract arrangements!"

Guardiola's contract with Barcelona won't expire until July, but after the Copa del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao on May 26, he'll be leaving the team, leaving the rest of the work to his successor.

Hearing Guardiola's offer, Luis pondered for a moment, shook his head, and declined his kindness:

"I think it's best if you don't get involved!"

"Hmm? What's the reason?"

Guardiola was somewhat surprised. If he got involved, he would naturally lean towards Luis's side and help him sort everything out.

This unexpected refusal left him quite puzzled.

"Because you're about to leave Barcelona soon. If you arrange for me to go on loan now, and later the club leaks the details of this arrangement, it might lead to criticism."

"Especially when I gain fame in the Bundesliga and become a rising star in football, coinciding with the expiration of my contract. At that time, if Barcelona can't bring me back, they could use this loan contract against you, which wouldn't be good for your reputation."

Upon hearing Luis's words, Guardiola couldn't help but smile:

"It seems like you're quite confident about your future in the Bundesliga, already convinced you'll become the next generation star!"

"Of course, also consider who I learned football from. That man is a legend of Barcelona and one of the hottest coaches in football today!"

Flattery will get you everywhere. Guardiola appreciated Luis's compliments because they helped dispel some negative emotions lingering from the club's situation.

"Haha, young man, during my playing days, I didn't achieve anything particularly remarkable. I only won a Champions League trophy and a European Super Cup."

Luis smirked: Two out of the three major European trophies isn't worth mentioning?

In the end, Guardiola accepted Luis's suggestion, refraining from intervening and pretending not to know anything externally.

He continued with his regular work routine, studying opponents' data, preparing for the last league match, and the Copa del Rey final a few weeks later.

In the meantime, he even made a trip to the youth team due to work reasons. He greeted Enrique as usual, without mentioning anything about Luis and his loan, acting as if he were completely unaware.

Enrique breathed a sigh of relief but at the same time grew a bit suspicious: Could this kid really not have spilled the beans?

As for Luis, the next day he visited the youth training camp and directly approached Enrique and the sporting director in charge of transfers, Zubizarreta, to discuss the club's loan matter.

Zubizarreta was Rosell's close associate and knew that Rosell wanted to clear out players closely connected to Guardiola. So, he was very eager about loaning Luis, aiming to demonstrate loyalty in front of Rosell.

Enrique, eager to send Luis away quickly, didn't waste time and directly presented the club's loan contract to him.

Luis took a cursory look at it. Barcelona's loan fee to Werder Bremen is 300,000 euros per year, and Werder Bremen would cover his salary. The fixed annual salary remains the same as Barcelona's, at 22,000 euros per year.

Furthermore, there are appearance fees, goal bonuses, assist bonuses, winning bonuses, and appearance bonuses.

The value of these bonuses isn't particularly high. The appearance fee is 200 euros, the goal bonus is 500 euros, assist bonus is 200 euros, and the winning bonus is 500 euros. Additionally, there are appearance milestone bonuses of 2,000 and 3,000 euros respectively when reaching 20 and 30 appearances.

Given that it's a youth team's contract, Luis didn't have high expectations for the bonus amounts.

However, he felt that the money should be covered by Barcelona, at least his salary. After all, he's still a Barcelona player. As for the loan fee, since Barcelona wants to send him out, they can't expect Werder Bremen to pay for it.

So, Luis presented his conditions.

"What? No loan fee? How's that even possible!?"

Zubizarreta immediately objected vehemently to Luis's request.

Barcelona is no ordinary team; they're giants!

Even players from rich teams, even youth team players, aren't exempt from loan fees!

Are you suggesting they'd give you players without cost? While they've always been getting something for nothing, they couldn't possibly allow others to get something for nothing, right?

Enrique was a bit caught in the middle. He certainly wanted to get Luis off his hands, but he also didn't want to violate the team's operating principles. Moreover, Zubizarreta had more authority in this matter than he did as the coach of the youth team.

If Guardiola, the first-team coach, were sitting there, Zubizarreta wouldn't dare to be so audacious. After all, the head coach can decide the fate of a player.

So, Enrique tried to persuade Luis:

"Luis, I think it's better not to waive the loan fee."

"Consider this: if you join Werder Bremen for free, they won't have invested anything, and they might not value you properly. They could even doubt your abilities and wonder why Barcelona would let you go without a fee. This could seriously impact your experience at Werder Bremen!"

Enrique aimed to make his argument more persuasive and quickly resolve the situation.

He continued, "At Barcelona, we treat our players well. I've had a new loan contract drawn up with improved bonus terms. If you're agreeable, go ahead and sign the contract!"

Luis was puzzled by how much they could improve the terms. Could bonuses in the hundreds of euros really make a significant difference?

However, after a glance at the figures, Luis was stunned. Enrique was in an immense hurry to get rid of him!