What is an attacking defensive midfielder?

Chapter 57 Salary Increase! And... the true purpose of the Cause-and-Effect Reversal talent?

Bild's Erend: Ingolstadt are unstoppable this season, and Leipzig's next match looks bleak.

As the originator of the "complete metamorphosis" theory, Ellend became the most popular young journalist in the entire Bild newspaper.

Elend became famous for smearing Hao Ren, so even after becoming famous, he remained true to himself and would never let go of any opportunity to smear Hao Ren.

"Given Ingolstadt's performance this season, we can be almost certain that this team will be promoted to the Bundesliga next season. Ingolstadt will definitely be among the top two teams in the 2. Bundesliga."

During a live broadcast by Bild, Erend provided analysis for the fans.

"With that in mind, we can directly consider Ingolstadt as a Bundesliga team."

That's a bit of an exaggeration, but if you broaden your perspective, it doesn't seem to be a problem.

There's a 90% chance they'll be promoted to the Bundesliga next season, so isn't that a Bundesliga-level team?

It can only be said that Ingolstadt is indeed very strong, which will bring a lot of trouble to Leipzig, which is currently undergoing a period of transformation!

……

"Come on, come on!"

"Yusuf (Poulsen), pass me the ball more often, I'm going to shoot!"

On the training field, Hao Ren, who was practicing his skills, was very active.

Meanwhile, on the second floor of an office building not far away, a pair of eyes were fixed on the players on the training field.

This is……

Ralph Rangnick!

The Leipzig players are in high spirits after a good season, including Almas.

But Rangnick couldn't empathize; the Leipzig coach was still in unspeakable pain.

As the team's performance improved, the infamous Red Bull Group put even more pressure on Rangnick, making the German coach feel suffocated.

hiss!

Back at his desk, Rangnick violently rubbed his hair, took off his glasses, and put them back on.

I watched Leipzig's match video over and over again, carefully analyzing every detail.

"Beautiful! Goodman's flying tackle!"

"Leipzig's defensive midfielder gave the opponent no chance whatsoever!"

"Goodman makes a forward run! Goodman shoots!"

"My God, a world-class goal! That's a world-class goal!"

"..."

Rangnick scratched his head and took a notebook out of the drawer.

Rangnick's Football Rules!

1. There is no team friendship in modern football. Every team is an enemy of each other. Any top team should be ruthless and dark.

2. Gaining possession is the team's top priority...

……

5. Kimmich is the team's playmaker, but he can be dangerous. (Goodman will solve this problem.)

The "Laws of Football" have now evolved to include a fifth law.

However, this fifth point has been crossed out by Rangnick for some reason.

Now, after a month of observation and reflection, Rangnick is going to write something new!

"call……"

Rangnick leaned back and took a deep breath.

In an instant, the German felt the surrounding air rush into his body, and his mind became clearer.

It's now!

Rangnick slowly picked up his pen and began his work.

5. Modern football defenses are becoming increasingly tight, so player positioning should be blurred. Defensive midfielders need to frequently push forward to participate in attacks, while wingers need to move inside to the center to participate in defense. The primary purpose of blurring positions is to create numerical superiority in a short period of time.

……

[Carlos's outside-of-the-foot power shot template (expert)]

Proficiency: -32/140

[Makelele's Precise Interception Template (Expert)]

Proficiency: 289/300

Proficiency: 290/300

……

Proficiency: 300/300

[Makelele's Precise Steal Template (Expert) → (Replica)]

[Defense: 73→76]

[Physical contact: 74→76]

Overall rating: 73→74

Thanks to Hao Ren's tireless efforts, the third replica template was finally created.

The appearance of the top-tier template also boosted Hao Ren's stats.

His overall score is just 1 point away from reaching 75!

"Good, someone's looking for you. They're over at the office building now."

Kimmich brought him news.

"Is someone looking for me?"

"Oh, it's Lucas and the others, right?"

"You guessed that? That's impressive, Good!"

Hao Ren tidied himself up, put on his down jacket, and headed towards the office building.

"By the way, Brother Chicken, those two kids aren't my sons! I've told you that so many times!"

December in Germany is already quite cold. When Hao Ren came indoors from outdoors, a noticeable gust of cool wind, mixed with snow particles, blew in.

"Dear Mr. Goodman!"

Otto stood in the room, clasped his hands together, and muttered a few words to greet Hao Ren as he walked in from outside.

"Mr. Goodman, let us help you take off your coat!"

"Oh, it's okay, I can take it off myself."

Hao Rengang said that Lucas had already run over and taken the down jacket that Hao Ren had taken off.

"You all came despite the cold weather today, aren't you tired?"

Hao Ren sat down on the sofa in the activity room, and Otto brewed him a cup of hot tea: "Warm tea, West Lake Zhenlong tea (Longjing tea). It is said that Chinese people like it, Mr. Goodman, you should like this too."

Actually, I don't drink tea much.

Hao Ren laughed.

But since it was Otto's kind offer, he naturally didn't mind having a cup of hot tea.

Hao Ren took a small sip of tea, noticing Lucas's excitement, and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Mr. Goodman, we have brought you something. Something very good!"

Lucas took out the backpack he had hidden behind his back, pulled out a very thick book, and handed it to Hao Ren.

"This is……"

Hao Ren's German reading ability is not particularly good, but he is still able to translate the words in the book.

The Insect World – Jean-Henri Fabre.

Lucas gripped Hao Ren's hand tightly: "Mr. Goodman, the weather's getting colder, and there'll be snow on the training field, so we might not be able to visit you as often. That's why I'm giving you this book; it contains a lot of information about complete metamorphosis. When reporters try to trick you with complete metamorphosis, you can use the knowledge in this book to defeat them!"

Lucas and Otto looked serious, seemingly very worried about Hao Ren.

"Damn... but my German isn't good enough to read a book..."

Hao Ren's lips twitched, but he still accepted the gift.

Otto clasped his hands together and said, "Mr. Goodman, if you encounter any other reporters who try to harass you and don't know how to deal with it, please contact me via Facebook. Lucas and I will help you find a solution."

"Ha ha!"

Although the German version of "The Insect World" wasn't exactly a practical gift for Hao Ren, he was still very happy, after all, it was a gift from his good student.

"You're saying we can't train because of the snow, right?"

"Yes, Mr. Goodman, you may not know this, but it snows in Germany for several months."

"That's not a problem. Do you know of an indoor training facility near that training ground?"

"I've already rented that place, you can go there to train anytime."

In order to avoid the heavy snow affecting his progress in leveling up, Hao Ren made thorough preparations before the snow season arrived.

"Really? That's amazing!"

Lucas jumped up: "Shit, if I train for another winter, won't I easily surpass my peers?"

"Wow! Mr. Goodman, after you rent that place, it will belong to you alone? Is that what you mean?"

"nonono".

Hao Ren shook his head: "It belongs only to Mr. Goodman and his two apprentices."

Otto clasped his hands together and said, "Bravo, Mr. Goodman!"

"Great job, Mr. Goodman!"

Lucas then added.

"Wait a minute, Mr. Goodman, won't this be very expensive? Renting the entire training ground?"

"Hmm, it's alright."

Hao Ren gestured for Lucas and Otto to lean closer: "I'll tell you a secret, but don't tell anyone else."

"Wow, is it a secret?!"

Lucas rubbed his hands together. "Come on, Mr. Goodman, we're ready."

"I'm getting a raise soon!"

……

The next day, Hao Ren went to the second floor of the office and began their formal negotiations with the Leipzig Council.

Strictly speaking, it can't really be considered a negotiation, because Hao Ren's salary increase was proposed unilaterally by the council.

Many European clubs do this: when a club feels that your salary doesn't match your performance, they will proactively offer you a raise.

This is partly out of respect for the players themselves, and partly to cultivate a sense of belonging among young players.

"Our initial plan is a weekly wage of 6000 euros, which is 1500 euros more than your original 4500 euros. This is already in the upper-middle range in the entire German Second Division. We have also calculated that even after deducting the high income tax, you will still take more than 3000 euros per week."

"Um."

Hao Ren nodded seriously.

Germany's high tax rates are indeed a problem; half of your salary is deducted every time you receive it.

Hao Ren's original weekly salary of 4500 euros was reduced to just over 2000 euros after taxes!

"However, we also took into account the positive impact you have on the team's reputation."

Gibson flipped through the documents he had prepared beforehand: "Leipzig is in its early stages of development, and reputation is extremely important to us. Therefore, after careful consideration, we have decided to increase your basic weekly wage to 8500 euros, with a bonus of 2500 euros for starting and winning games."

Do you have any objections?

"No problem, that's fine."

"Um?"

Gibson was stunned for a moment, as was his assistant next to him.

"Goodman, aren't you going to negotiate with us? Try to get a higher salary?"

"Haha, I was thinking of negotiating, but 8500 euros a week is already quite good in the German second division. So, could I add an assist bonus clause to the contract?"

"Hmm, this..."

Gibson was taken aback at first, then realized what was happening.

Yes, this kid in front of us may be a defensive midfielder, but his assist numbers are really impressive.

For young players like Goodman, increasing assist bonuses is worse than increasing basic weekly wages, as the latter can have a better incentive effect.

"That's no problem, but I need to discuss it with the council. Assist bonus clauses are relatively rare, but... based on experience, I think 4000 euros per assist is appropriate, of course, this only applies to league matches. Um, there's also a 7000 euro bonus for each goal."

With Red Bull Group as a major backer, Leipzig offers significantly better player treatment than other teams of similar caliber.

"That's settled then."

Gibson stood up and shook hands with Hao Ren: "Just like what's said online, you're a very confident player, otherwise you wouldn't have asked for a special clause like an assist bonus."

"I won't say anything else, young man, I wish you good luck with your bonuses. This is no easy feat!"

……

Snapped!

Snapped!

[Carlos's outside-of-the-foot power shot template (expert)]

Proficiency: -11/140

Proficiency: -10/140

……

Proficiency: 0/140

You have repaid all your loans and are now free to start taking out new ones.

[Ding! Your credit rating has improved due to consecutive timely repayments, and you can now have access to two loan programs simultaneously.]

"Hmm!"

Good deeds are rewarded, and now it seems that this saying is absolutely true.

Hao Ren made timely repayments each time, which allowed him to increase his loan capacity.

Since that's the case...

Hao Ren swallowed hard as he looked at the progress bar for the [Carlos Outside Foot Heavy Cannon Template].

Although he repeatedly emphasized that he was a defensive midfielder, but...

Now that it's possible to take out two loans at the same time, why not...

hiss!

This is the last time!

This is absolutely, positively, the very last time!

Hao Ren gritted his teeth, but in the end, the young Mr. Goodman could not resist the temptation of the outside of his foot.

[The powerful Mr. Goodman reverses cause and effect...]

[Carlos Outside-of-the-Foot Cannon Template (Expert) → (Reissue)]

Proficiency: -140/0

[Remaining loan attempts: 1/2]

[Shots on goal: 66 → 68]

[Set piece: 52→60]

Shooting attribute increased by 2 points, and set piece attribute increased by a whopping 6 points. Although this loan went against Mr. Goodman's inner discipline, the returns were still very good.

With one loan opportunity remaining, Hao Ren looked at the templates he currently had.

[Caesardo Meat Grinder Tackle Template (Expert)]

Proficiency: 67/450

[Frenzy de Jong's Ball-Dribbling Advancement Template (Expert)]

Proficiency: 387/400

Hao Ren is really hardworking; currently, only two templates haven't reached the highest level.

In that case...

Hmm, wait a minute!

Hao Ren suddenly remembered something and quickly opened the system store.

[Balance: Contribution Points * 98]

Hao Ren is just 2 contribution points away from buying a random template chest, but that's not his goal.

With a little thought, Hao Ren manipulated his consciousness to arrange the system store according to "price from high to low".

1. Forbidden Treasure Chest (Rewards are given based on the user's characteristics; limited to one purchase), 355 million contribution points.

2. Bailey Enhancement Template (Growth Type), 244 million contribution points.

3. Diego Maradona Enhancement Template (Growth Type), 230 million contribution points.

4. Beckenbauer & Eusébio Standard Fusion Template (Growth Type), 180 million contribution points.

5. Johann Cruyff Enhancement Template (Growth Type), 150 million contribution points.

6. Group Amplification Talent Chest (King Level), 86 Contribution Points.

7. Talent: Brutal Power (King-level), 44 contribution points.

……

hiss……

High-priced items do look intimidating.

Pele enhancement template, Maradona enhancement template...

Judging from the name, this template is not just a typical legacy template; it's an enhanced version.

In other words, if Hao Ren buys the Bailey Enhancement Template Chest, he can have a talent ceiling that exceeds Bailey's.

Shit!

It's so arrogant!

However, judging from the price, the top-ranked [Forbidden Treasure Chest] is clearly the most powerful item in the system shop!

Taking a deep breath, Hao Ren held his breath and began his operation according to his previous plan.

[Activated talent for "Forbidden Treasure Chest": Reversal of Cause and Effect]

You have obtained a new item: Forbidden Treasure Chest

Account Balance: Contribution Points -3549902

!!!

……