Football giants

Chapter 767 The Land of Miracles
Southampton and Atletico Madrid will go on an expedition to Lisbon, Portugal, and there is a lot of preparation work that needs to be done.

For example, choosing a hotel is also a very important job.

I still remember that when Ferguson led Manchester United to Rome and lost the Champions League final, he pointed the finger at the poor hotel accommodation in Rome, thinking that the poor hotel accommodation affected the rest of the players, which in turn affected Manchester United's results.

Of course, many people will scoff at this, but they have to admit that board and lodging are very important.

Not just the players, but the Saints supporters' association, as well as sponsor representatives and guests from Southampton and Atletico Madrid.

Yang Huan has always pursued what he does. Either he doesn't do it or he does it best.

So, this time he personally came to Lisbon, Portugal, and personally selected hotels for the two teams.

How to choose?
simple!
Wouldn't it be OK to stay in every five-star hotel?

After a few days of comparison, Yang Huan inspected several five-star hotels in Lisbon that were recognized as the best, and finally hand-picked the two top hotels.

These two hotels are very close to each other, and it is very convenient to travel between them. It takes only a few minutes to walk.

More importantly, the transportation is convenient. It is only 10 kilometers away from the airport, about [-] minutes away, and it is also very close to the Lisbon Stadium of Light. Moreover, the hotel's facilities are very complete, such as gymnasium, meeting room, swimming pool and so on.

What satisfied Yang Huan the most was that the Lisbon branch of Wangjiangge was nearby the two hotels.

Of course, the family property is to take care of their own family. When the time comes, the three meals a day between Southampton and Atletico Madrid will naturally be handed over to Wangjiang Pavilion.

But this is not what Yang Huan values ​​most, what he values ​​most is the number of rooms in the hotel.

Both hotels have more than 300 rooms, which is quite large.

And Yang Huan's idea is...

"Nicolas, Ferran, go talk to the hotel. We have covered both hotels for two or three days before and after the game!"

Yang Huan sat in the car and made a video call with Nicola Cortez and Ferran Soriano using WeChat on his mobile phone.

The two were obviously moved when they heard Yang Huan's words.

"All inclusive?"

"Master Huan, there are more than 300 rooms, we may not be able to live in so many!"

"Yeah, according to what you just said, on average, even if they give us a discount, a room costs at least 200 euros. The two hotels have six to seven hundred rooms, and a day is 10,000+ euros, not including other expenses!"

After calculating this account, it is indeed a considerable expense, so it has to be carefully considered.

"I know, but what I mean is that players, family members, sponsor representatives, club staff, and guests we invite all stay in these two hotels."

Oh!
The two people in the video suddenly realized.

No wonder Master Huan paid so much attention to it this time, and even went to inspect the hotel in person. It turned out to be the case.

Among other things, among the guests, the Saints fan club alone has 1000 people. According to the normal arrangement, if two people have a deluxe double room, then [-] rooms will be used, and the rest will be reserved for the players and club staff, as well as the invited players' families and guests. It may not be enough.

It is also because of this that Master Huan chose two hotels next to each other!

"I've checked. There is a four-star hotel nearby, which is pretty good. If there is not enough, our club staff will quit and stay in a four-star hotel. After all, we are our own people, so let's talk!"

Yang Huan's ideas were also shared by Nicola Cortes and Ferran Soriano.

In fact, the treatment of Southampton and Atletico Madrid is good enough.

"By the way, Ferran, how is the discussion between Tesiki and Sporting Lisbon?" Yang Huan asked with concern.

"I just contacted him this morning, and the conversation is almost over. I guess he will contact you, Master Huan later." Soriano quickly replied.

If the team wants to come to Lisbon to play the Champions League final, they have to come early, and then they need a training ground.

Therefore, Atletico Madrid intends to borrow from Sporting Lisbon, while Southampton is to borrow from Benfica.

This is also a very common thing, and it is just a matter of a training class, and basically there is no objection.

"Master Huan, how is the situation at Benfica?" Nicola Cortez also asked with concern.

Although Southampton and Atletico Madrid are both young master Huan's industries, Nicola Cortez and Soriano represent Southampton and Atletico Madrid respectively, so it is naturally impossible that there is no rivalry.

After all, this is a Champions League trophy!
In the history of these two teams, neither has won the Champions League!

"I'm on my way to the Stadium of Light now. I called before, and it's not a big problem!"

Upon hearing this, Nicola Cortes was also relieved.

"Last night I had a meal with the mayor of Lisbon and representatives of the Portuguese government. They mentioned that it is estimated that more than 15 fans will flock to Lisbon. The scale is very large, and Lisbon is also very nervous."

"For the sake of safety, we must do a good job as fans, and at the same time maintain good communication and contact with Lisbon. There must be no mistakes, understand?"

"Understood!" Both people in the video nodded in unison.

They also know how important safety is!

15 fans frantically flocked to Lisbon in just one or two days, which is a heavy burden for any city, especially in recent years, the economy of Lisbon and Portugal has been so bad, and public expenditures are constantly being cut, so the pressure is not insignificant.

Therefore, at this time, it is necessary for the club to take due responsibility and take care of its fans.

It doesn't mean to take care of everything, but to provide some necessary help and guidance within our ability.

For example, Atlético de Madrid, in cooperation with a travel company in Madrid, launched a package for fans of the UEFA Champions League final. At that time, the travel company will use a bus to transport fans to and from Madrid and Atletico Lisbon, departing in the early morning and returning in the evening.

Moreover, because of the large number of people, the fee is very cheap and very popular with fans.

The same is true for Southampton, but because the UK is farther away from Portugal, the club chooses to cooperate with the airline.

Two or three days before and after the game, there will be more than 150 flights from Southampton and London to Lisbon, which is unprecedented in Europe. Among them, Qatar Airways, Southampton's official sponsor, is the main force of this plan.

In addition, some fans chose to drive by themselves, taking advantage of the opportunity of the Champions League final, playing all the way from Madrid, London to Lisbon.

Even before, there was a group of Saints fans composed of fanatical University of Southampton students. They issued an initiative on Southampton's official website, proposing to use bicycles for a self-driving tour, and planned to make a documentary.

This initiative has been supported by hundreds of young fans, and the club has also given strong support, and even invited professionals to participate in the filming and recording with the team.

If Yang Huan remembered correctly, they should have already set off!

Just last night, the Lisbon city government also promised to strengthen its vigilance and even dispatch multiple drones to patrol to keep an eye on the fans. The Portuguese government also stated that they will pay close attention to the two teams as soon as they enter Portugal.

But even so, Yang Huan still didn't dare to be careless.

Again and again, I told Nicola Cortez and Ferran Soriano to be cautious and cautious.

The safety of 10,000+ fans is more important than anything else!

Even after hanging up the phone, Yang Huan still couldn't rest assured.

He's done everything he can to the best of his ability, just hope nothing major goes wrong.

Just as he let out a long sigh, the car drove out of the main road and saw Benfica's Stadium of Light in the distance.

The location of this stadium is not remote, it is located in the urban area of ​​Lisbon, and the transportation is very convenient.

There is even an overpass around the stadium. There is quite a lot of traffic, and there are many cars parked on the side of the road.

On the west side of the stadium, across a road, there is an unused space overgrown with weeds, while on the south side of the stadium, there are many tower cranes of high-rise buildings, but it seems that none of them are under construction.

This can't help but remind people of the downturn and decline of Portugal's economy in recent years.

The Stadium of Light is the second European five-star stadium in Lisbon besides Sporting Lisbon's Alvalade Stadium.

The capacity reaches 4000 people. The upper layer of the court adopts a steel frame structure, and the shape is very novel.

This is the [-] European Cup final, where Greece staged a dark horse miracle!
Therefore, many media are talking about it now, thinking that this stadium will perform another miracle soon.

Because whether it is Southampton or Atletico Madrid winning the championship, it is a dark horse miracle.

Perhaps, the feng shui here is very unique, it is the so-called miracle land!
But this is not just a football field, there is also a supermarket and some other shops, as well as other facilities and venues such as a gym, a basketball court and a small open-air football field.

This is because Benfica is not just a football club, but also other branches such as basketball, ice hockey, and volleyball. This is similar to Atletico Madrid, except that football is the main core industry of Benfica.

Surrounding the court and arriving at the entrance at the southeast corner, Yang Huan discovered that there was also an underground parking lot here.

But the driver turned directly from another passage, drove directly in, and finally parked in the administrative parking lot in front of the office.

When Yang Huan got out of the car, the first thing he saw was the vacant land on the east side of the stadium that had just been demolished, and the row of commercial houses in the southeast. He couldn't help shaking his head and smiling wryly.

In recent years, more and more Chinese people have come to Portugal to invest, mainly to buy houses.

At Lisbon International Airport before, he also saw many Chinese billboards promoting luxury houses.

It can be said that investors from China have made great contributions to the real estate in Lisbon and Portugal.

But even so, there are still quite a few unfinished buildings.

Of course, the situation in Portugal is not bad, and the ability to withstand the economic crisis is not bad.

Turning around, raising his head, he saw the magnificent Stadium of Light.

This is the most popular stadium in the Portuguese football market, with an average of 5 people per game, which is not easy in European football.

But who would have thought that behind such a hot football market is Benfica's poor finances?

When Yang Huan led Long Wu to the gate of the stadium office, the chairman of Benfica, Luis Felipe Vieira, had already stepped forward to welcome him.

"Haha, welcome to the Stadium of Light, Mr. Yang Huan!"

Next to it, the staff of the club hurriedly took pictures, as if Yang Huan was leading a visit to the countryside.

"Hello, Chairman Vieira!" Yang Huan could only shake hands with him with a smile, and then generously let the staff take pictures.

Otherwise, how else can it be fixed?
But Yang Huan recognized the middle-aged man next to Vieira at a glance.

"Rui, Rui Costa!" Yang Huan shouted in surprise.

This is a generation of midfield master-level superstars!

Now he is the general manager of Benfica club.

"Hello, Mr. Yang Huan!"

Rui Costa, dressed in a light gray suit, quickly held Yang Huan's hand with a sincere and enthusiastic attitude.

(End of this chapter)