Barcelona really signed Aguero, with a transfer fee of up to 40 million euros.
He is now tied with David Villa as the most expensive player on the transfer market.
Eto'o transferred from Barcelona to Chelsea for a high price of 35 million euros, with an annual salary of 10 million euros.
This also showed just how determined Chelsea was.
With the rise of Manchester City, all the traditional Premier League powerhouses have been challenged.
Especially after Arsenal fell out of the Champions League spots, all the top clubs began to feel insecure.
No one knew if they would be the next.
What if you fell out and couldn't get back in?
As Barcelona's biggest rival, Real Madrid wasn't idle either.
Van der Vaart went to Tottenham Hotspur, and Drenthe, Metzelder, Raul, and Guti all left the team one after another, signaling a new era of squad renewal at Real Madrid.
After Mourinho arrived, he selected Carvalho and then brought in Khedira from Stuttgart, as well as a certain player from Werder Bremen whose name couldn't be mentioned. After that, Real Madrid turned their sights to Arsenal's Adebayor.
Everyone knew Mourinho favored traditional center forwards.
In theory, Real Madrid's current strikers, Higuain and Benzema, weren't the type Mourinho preferred.
The Arsenal striker scored 14 goals in the Premier League last season, making him the second-highest scorer in the team, behind Fabregas, who had 15 goals.
In addition to being the team's top scorer, the Spanish midfielder also contributed 15 assists, making him the club's top provider as well.
This was also the main reason why so many believed that Gao Shen wanted to bring Fabregas to Manchester City.
Fabregas was undoubtedly at the peak of his career.
Adebayor's current transfer market valuation was around 25 million euros, while Fabregas was valued as high as 50 million euros.
These two were Arsenal's most marketable players at the moment.
Next was Arshavin, whose estimated value in Russia was around 24 million euros.
Van Persie had performed well, but not as dazzlingly as his teammates and had suffered multiple injuries. His market value was estimated at just 20 million euros.
As for players like Nasri, Vermaelen, and Clichy, their prices were clearly lower.
Whether it was Premier League analysts or the media, they all agreed that Arsenal's situation was dire.
On one hand, the club was heavily in debt and had no funds for signings. On the other, having dropped out of the top four, their revenue had fallen significantly.
But the problem was, to return to the top four, they had to invest in new players. And Arsenal simply didn't have the money.
In short, things were tough for the Gunners right now.
…
After returning to Manchester, Gao Shen didn't stay long. He immediately headed south to London.
Ancelotti had also returned to London to start preseason preparations. He even called Gao Shen and invited him to play cards, but this time Gao Shen wasn't in London for him.
On the evening of his arrival, Gao Shen met with his intended contact, former Manchester City chairman David Bernstein, at a high-end restaurant near Hyde Park.
He was also the man who helped Manchester City return to the Premier League from the Championship. He made great contributions to the club.
Even now, Bernstein remained closely connected to Manchester City.
However, he was no longer Manchester City's chairman. In fact, he was supposed to downplay his ties to the club because he now worked for the English Football Association.
In 2003, he had a falling out with then-Manchester City manager Kevin Keegan and resigned in frustration. Afterward, he was tasked with overseeing the preparation and construction of Wembley Stadium, eventually becoming the project's chairman. In 2008, he joined the FA as a board director.
In English football, the Premier League is run by the league itself, while the FA is responsible for behind-the-scenes matters like referee assignments, player discipline, and scheduling.
To a certain extent, the FA doesn't profit from the Premier League, so it often takes positions that annoy the league. Moreover, players need to go through the FA to obtain work permits.
Fernandinho had never played for Brazil's national team. If he couldn't obtain a work permit through the standard process, he would have to undergo a hearing under the so-called "exceptional talent clause."
This hearing was essentially a tribunal-like session set up by the FA, based on its own rules, to evaluate a specific case. The panel consisted of six members, including FA officials, government representatives, a representative from the Professional Footballers' Association, and three experts.
In short, Manchester City had to compile all the relevant materials for Fernandinho, submit them to the FA, and attend the hearing to present evidence, in hopes of winning the panel's approval.
By now, it should be obvious.
Yes, the panel's decisions could be influenced.
For example, a red card could lead to a suspension. Most small clubs had no choice but to accept it, but big clubs often tried every means to get the red card overturned.
They'd file an appeal, leading to a hearing, which would then be judged by a panel. So, theoretically, if you had enough connections and were willing to invest in PR, there was a chance the suspension could be revoked.
But David Bernstein, former chairman of Manchester City, wasn't someone to be underestimated at the FA.
How powerful was he?
Manchester had invested heavily in the construction of the City of Manchester Stadium, now known as the Etihad Stadium.
Originally, the stadium was meant for the 2000 Olympic Games, but after Manchester's bid failed, it was used for the 2002 Commonwealth Games. The total investment was nearly £200 million.
Later, in 2003, Manchester City moved from Maine Road to the new stadium.
Though it was said to be a lease, in reality, there were no restrictions on Manchester City's ability to renovate or expand its facilities. In effect, the club owned the stadium. Manchester City even moved their administrative offices there.
What would you call that?
Openly acquiring public assets.
And it was all legal and above board, without causing any controversy.
David Bernstein was the one who handled the entire process. One could imagine how many connections he had to pull to make it all happen.
After falling out with Keegan, he left Manchester City and joined the Wembley Stadium project.
Everyone knew that Wembley had been demolished in 2000, but the rebuilding process had faced constant delays and budget overruns. The original budget of £300 million eventually soared to nearly £800 million.
In 2003, as the new stadium's construction was about to begin, Bernstein came on board. He initially served as a director, then quickly took full charge of the project.
When Wembley was completed and put into use in 2007, he was promoted to a role within the FA in 2008.
Everyone knew the FA was a messy place.
Don't think the "zippergate" scandal involving former England manager Eriksson was an accident—it wasn't.
Just this May, the then-FA chairman David Triesman, 67, was exposed by his personal assistant Melissa. She claimed Triesman accused Spain of bribing referees to ensure favorable outcomes at the South Africa World Cup that summer.
Triesman had been leading England's bid to host the 2018 World Cup. The main competitors were Spain and Russia. According to him, Spain and Russia had made a deal.
If Spain withdrew from the bid, the Latin American countries that originally supported them would back Russia. In return, Russia, which didn't qualify for the World Cup, would bribe referees to help Spain win the title.
Besides this bombshell claim, there were many leaked private conversations, which caused a huge uproar. Triesman resigned, and Roger Burton became acting chairman.
If Gao Shen remembered correctly, in his past life, Burton didn't stay in the position long either. He stepped down due to the failed World Cup bid, and Bernstein succeeded him.
This man was truly no ordinary figure.
…
Since Gao Shen had something to ask for, he was naturally very polite when meeting Bernstein.
Bernstein didn't come across as an arrogant bureaucrat. He wore glasses and appeared friendly and easy-going.
They met in a private high-end club. After some small talk, they sat down to dinner and chatted intermittently.
Gao Shen used some skills he'd picked up in his past life when entertaining clients. Though a little rusty, he was more than capable of handling Bernstein, and he took great care of the future FA chairman.
He talked about how Manchester City was Bernstein's home, how they had always had his strong support…
In short, he said whatever was appropriate.
Manchester City would, of course, be happy to establish ties with the future FA chairman.
At the very least, in future matches, even if the referees weren't biased in City's favor, they would at least be less likely to lean against them.
Flattery isn't about how well it's said, but who's saying it.
Given Gao Shen's current standing in European football, and with a financial giant like Manchester City backing him, Bernstein had to be thrilled hearing this, right?
Of course, this man was no fool. He wasn't dazzled by the sudden praise and remained composed, but the delight on his face was hard to hide. This made Gao Shen even more certain—he had ambition.
Once the food and wine had been enjoyed and the atmosphere was set, Gao Shen began subtly shifting the conversation to the FA, pretending to know nothing and just wanting to ask for some professional insight.
"Alright, Gao, stop beating around the bush. I know what you're talking about—it's Fernandinho's work permit, right?" Bernstein, clearly in a good mood, brought it up directly.
Gao Shen smiled inwardly. He'd been waiting for him to say it.
"Yes, David. I've asked a lot of people about this, including Ferguson, but no one had a good answer. After thinking it over, I felt I needed to turn to one of our own and figure out the ins and outs of this process. That's the only way I can feel confident."
Calling him "one of our own" clearly pleased Bernstein, who burst out laughing.
"You've come to the right person!"
(To be continued.)