It was the last day of June 2004.
Gijón, the northernmost port city in Spain, was in a state of unrest.
This was a very ordinary bar, and it was full of people.
These were the fans who did not get tickets. They could only squeeze into the bar to watch the game and cheer for their beloved team.
The TV on the hanging shelf in the bar was broadcasting the news.
"The Spanish Football Federation has rejected Sporting de Gijón's appeal of the red card received by the team captain, Miguel Cobbs, in the first leg of the game against Getafe. Sporting de Gijón's manager, Li Ang, refused to comment on the result!"
"The famous referee expert, Christopher, expressed his opinion on Cobbs's red card. He said the red card was too harsh."
"Getafe's manager, Essedra, expressed his dissatisfaction with the referee's performance in the first leg of the game. He insisted that Getafe's goal was disallowed by the referee."
"Getafe's chairman, Torres, fiercely attacked the referee's performance. He said that he would keep his eyes open and watch the referee's performance in the second leg of the game."
"Sporting de Gijón's manager, Li Ang, said that he doubted that Torres and Essedra had problems with their eyes."
"Sporting de Gijón's chairman, Manuel Arango, expressed his support for Manager Li Ang. He said that everyone saw that Getafe's goal was offside. Only people with bad eyesight would insist on the wrong view."
*****
"Well done!" The fans in the bar applauded Manager Li Ang and Chairman Arango's words. At the same time, they criticized Getafe's shamelessness.
"The Spanish Football Federation's referees committee appointed Lahoz to referee the second leg of the promotion playoff final between Sporting de Gijón and Getafe. Lahoz has refereed five La Liga games and fifteen La Liga games this season. In addition, in the El Clásico between Real Madrid and Barcelona, Lahoz served as the referee for the game …"
Before the game between Sporting de Gijón and Getafe was about to start, the referee's performance became the focus of the media's attention and hype.
Herta did not take advantage of the situation and used the referee's performance as an excuse. Clearly, he wanted to affect the referee's performance in this away match.
On the other hand, Sporting de Gijón's manager, Li Ang, and the club's chairman also joined the fray. However, they did not directly attack the referee. Instead, they targeted Getafe and engaged in a verbal battle with the Getafe people.
"There are still two hours before the match begins. Let's take a look at some other news." On the television, following the voice of the announcer, the scene changed.
"The Alavis club announces that the team's manager, Michael Connell, has been dismissed. The most direct reason for this gentleman's dismissal is the team's crushing defeat to Sporting de Gijón in the semi-finals of the promotion playoffs. This is the second time that Alavis has fired their manager after losing to Li Ang's team. Michael Connell's predecessor, Sporting de Gijón, was fired by the club after his team was eliminated from the Copa del Rey by Li Ang's team! Sporting de Gijón's manager, Mr. Li Ang, deserves the nickname of 'Fellow Killer'. "
"Below, there is another piece of news related to Sporting de Gijón. Sporting de Gijón's B team's talented rising star, Francisco Pallada, has been terminated by Real Madrid's under-17 A team. This former Sporting de Gijón's rising star only scored one goal in 11 games for Real Madrid and did not have any assists … "
Seeing this news, Sporting de Gijón's fans sighed. At that time, because Pallada had been expelled by Li Ang, the fans had clashed with Li Ang. Many fans insisted that Pallada was another superstar after Sporting de Gijón's David Villa. However, Li Ang insisted on exchanging Pallada for the former Real Madrid player, Juan Mata. This deal was questioned by HIA at that time, but what about now? Mata was already a main player in Sporting de Gijón's first team. He was the sharpest weapon in Sporting de Gijón's offense and was deeply loved by the fans. Pallada, on the other hand, had been terminated by Real Madrid …
"Finally, the weather report. The highest temperature at night in Gijón is 31 degrees and the lowest temperature is 27 degrees. There is a possibility of rain, moderate to heavy rain."
Hearing the weather forecast, many fans began to worry. If it was really going to rain heavily, this game would become difficult for the team.
*****
The rain had already started to fall.
"Damn this weather," Pepe complained in one of the dishes.
He and Mendes had just left the hotel and were about to set off for Sporting de Gijón's home stadium, El Molinon, when it started to rain.
The rain by the sea had a fishy smell.
The two men got into a taxi. Mendes looked at the rain outside the window and wondered how Manager Li Ang would deal with this game.
"Hey, you guys are so lucky," the taxi driver said. "After this trip, I'll get off work."
Mendes looked at the time. It was not even six o 'clock in the evening. "Do all the taxis in Gijón get off work this early?"
"No, no, no. Today is a special day," the taxi driver said.
"Are you a Sporting de Gijón fan?" Mendes immediately understood and asked.
"Of course. Everyone in this city is a Gijón fan!" the driver said proudly. At the same time, he asked, "Where are you guys going?"
"El Molinon," Mendes said.
"Really? That's great, "the driver said happily." That's great. I can go directly to the stadium to watch the game. "
*****
Pepe was silent at the side. It was not that he did not want to interrupt, but it was because he did not understand Spanish!
Brazil was a Portuguese-speaking country. Pepe only knew Portuguese because he left Brazil to play football in Portugal. His mother tongue was Portuguese, so Pepe did not even know how to speak English. There was no need to learn.
"You'd better learn Spanish as soon as possible." Mendes glanced at Pepe. "Mastering the language of the league countries will be a great help to you."
Pepe scratched his head. Obviously, he felt that learning and mastering a new language was difficult. However, he also knew that Mendes was right. If he wanted to establish a foothold in Sporting de Gijón, he had to pass the language barrier.
Yes, Pepe had now accepted and acknowledged the result of the transfer to Sporting de Gijón. Mendes's previous self-confidence was right. Mendes analyzed the benefits of the transfer to Sporting de Gijón for Pepe. For example, the coach appreciated him very much, he could play in the UEFA Europa League, and the team might play in La Liga next season. In addition, Mendes did not hesitate to tell Pepe that the new manager of Porto, Adrianse, might not appreciate his judgment. The whole process took five minutes, and Pepe agreed to the transfer to Gijón …
When they arrived at the square platform outside the El Molinon Stadium, it was already crowded. Everyone was waiting to enter the stadium.
"We can't drive in," the taxi driver said. "This is the only place we can go. You'd better line up now. The stadium is full today."
"Thank you," Mendes thanked him, then turned to speak to Pepe in Portuguese.
Pepe's eyes were wide open, and his face was full of confusion. Do we really have to do this?!
Mendes glared at Pepe, who scratched his head as if he had accepted his fate.
*****
"Hello, what's your name? I can see that you're a big fan of Gijón, "Mendes suddenly asked the taxi driver.
"Bader Kurey," Bader Kurey nodded proudly, "I'm Coach Li Ang's full-time taxi driver."
Mendes's mouth was wide open. He did not expect that the taxi he called casually was the Sporting de Gijón's head coach's full-time taxi driver. This was really … interesting.
He could see that Mr. Bader Kurey was so proud when he said that he was "Coach Li Ang's full-time taxi driver."
"Mr. Bader Kurey," Mendes said, "Can you teach the boy next to me to speak a few words of Spanish?"
Bader Kurey was stunned. You speak Spanish so fluently, why do you want me to teach him?
"Because your identity may be very suitable," Mendes said. "I hope he can become a supporter of Sporting de Gijón. It's best for a super fan like you to teach him how to speak."
"Ah, of course." Bader Kurey smiled, "It's my pleasure." He felt that the two passengers he had brought today were really interesting.
*****
"What should I teach him?" Bader Kurey asked Mendes.
"I love Sporting de Gijón!" Mendes said.
"I love Sporting de Gijón," Bader Kurey said to Pepe.
"I love …" Pepe said.
"You should speak slower," Mendes said.
"Okay." Bader Kurey shrugged helplessly, "I love Sporting de Gijón!"
"I love Rafa —" Pepe said.
"Idiot," Bader Kurey scolded, then continued to teach his stupid apprentice.
In this way, it took about two minutes for the stupid Pepe to learn Spanish: I love Sporting de Gijón!
Bader Kurey was so tired that he was sweating. He felt that doing this was more tiring than running a long distance. He must have been out of his mind to agree to do such a troublesome thing.
"I love Sporting de Gijón!" Pepe said again, then said thank you to Bader Kurey in English.
Bader Kurey naturally understood the thank you in English. When he heard the thank you from the other side, Bader Kurey's annoyance disappeared. Well, does this mean that I have developed a new fan?!
*****
When he was leaving, Pepe suddenly took out a notebook from his backpack, picked up a pen, and wrote a line of words crookedly. Then he tore off the piece of paper and handed it to Bader Kurey.
"What is this?" Bader Kurey asked.
Pepe mumbled in Portuguese.
"He said this is his signature," Mendes translated.
"Signature?" Bader Kurey was confused. Who do you think you are? Do I need your signature?!
By the time he reacted, Mendes and Pepe had already walked away.
Bader Kurey looked at the piece of paper in his hand and the crooked Portuguese that he did not recognize. He wanted to throw it away, but for some reason, he did not throw it away in the end. Instead, he stuffed it into the glove box.
It was almost time. He had to hurry and line up to enter the stadium. The game was about to start.
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