Whenever the South American football scene was mentioned, the first word that came to mind was always "genius." However, in Diego Milito's life creed, this word was never associated with him. He started his professional career at the age of 20 and scored single-digit goals in the first three years. If someone had predicted that Diego Milito would one day win the La Liga Golden Boot when he was 23 years old, no one would have believed it.
In the summer of 2002, Diego's younger brother, Gabriel Milito, who was two years younger than him, was the first to receive an invitation from a European team and immediately joined Real Zaragoza. Half a year later, the 24-year-old Diego finally received an invitation from the other side of the ocean, but it was only from the League One team, Crystal Palace. Although Diego Milito still chose to go alone without hesitation and played 13 games and scored nine goals in six months, it was not enough for him to attract the managers of Europe's top leagues.
After returning to the Argentine league, Diego Milito was obviously no longer satisfied with this narrow stage. He was determined to play for the national team and top honors, and he knew that playing in Europe was the best way out.
Later, Milito represented the team in Genoa and performed well in Italy's Serie B, but still, no one thought that this player could have a great future. At this time, Li Ang appeared. The Chinese manager brought the Argentine to Sporting Gijón, and then a new Milito appeared!
In the season after he came to Sporting de Gijón, the whole of Spain and Europe knew the name of the Argentine striker.
Diego Milito was one of the most consistent goalscorers in La Liga at the moment. He was also the Golden Boot of La Liga in the 20042005 season. He was definitely the darling of the transfer market. Many powerhouses, including La Liga powerhouse Barcelona and English Premier League powerhouse Liverpool, extended an olive branch to the Argentine.
Catalonia's El Mundo Deportivo even reported that Diego Milito had accepted an invitation from Barcelona, and the two sides were discussing the contract.
*****
Sporting Gijón.
Milito's residence was a garden apartment. Milito looked at his children playing in the garden and smiled. Then he calmed down and thought about things.
Although Mundo Deportivo's statement was not entirely true, it was true that he had received an invitation from Barcelona. His agent had also tried to persuade him to join Barcelona. However, Milito was still hesitant.
In fact, even Milito himself did not know what he was hesitating about. The salary that Barcelona offered was good. It was a high salary that he could not get at Sporting de Gijón. Barcelona was a powerhouse in La Liga. Now, this Barcelona team was called the Second Dream and was rising. Everything looked good, but Milito was indeed hesitating.
"What are you thinking, my dear?" His wife put her arms around Milito and kissed him on the cheek.
"How about we go to Barcelona?" Milito asked.
Before his wife could answer, his phone rang.
Seeing the caller ID, Milito's eyes widened.
He gently waved his hand to signal his wife to be quiet and then picked up the phone.
"Diego, it's me." The familiar and long-lost voice came from the other end of the phone.
"Sir!" Diego Milito said excitedly.
"Would you like to come to Inter Milan and accept a new challenge?"
There was no need for polite greetings, nor was there a need for a long talk about the blueprint of a beautiful future. The person on the phone was concise and comprehensive.
Diego Milito's eyes were full of excitement and he said loudly, "I would like to, Coach!"
Li Ang's call made Milito realize the reason why he had been hesitating. Perhaps, he had been waiting, waiting for the call of the man who had changed his fate …
"Very good. Diego. Later, Inter Milan will contact Sporting de Gijón to start the transfer. Someone will also contact you to discuss personal benefits, "Li Ang said happily. He was very happy that his former subordinate had given him face.
"Yes, Sir."
Diego Milito was specifically requested by Li Ang, and the player himself had already agreed to come. Personal benefits were not a problem. Moratti had always been very generous when it came to the treatment of players.
In this way, with a phone call from Li Ang, Inter Milan's first transfer in the summer of 2007 was finalized.
*****
That afternoon, Sporting de Gijón's chairman, Manuel Arango, had a fax placed on his desk.
Inter Milan's fax asking for Diego Milito's offer.
Picking up the price list, Manuel Arango's expression kept changing. There was shock, anger, and puzzlement. In the end, it all turned into an inexplicable sigh.
The negotiations between Inter Milan and Sporting de Gijón regarding the signing of Diego Milito were progressing quickly. The main reason was that Sporting de Gijón saw that Li Ang had sent an invitation to Diego Milito and knew that they could not keep Diego Milito.
Even if Barcelona had rushed to recruit Milito, Sporting de Gijón might have been able to struggle and try to keep Milito. However, with Li Ang's poaching, Sporting de Gijón knew that they could not keep Diego Milito no matter what. Everyone knew about Li Ang's prestige at Sporting de Gijón. Even though Li Ang had left Sporting de Gijón for two years, there were still legends that belonged to him. His influence on the players of Sporting de Gijón, especially those who had experienced the miracle of winning the Treble in 2005 and were still at Sporting de Gijón. His influence did not fade with time, nor did it fade with the decline of Sporting de Gijón in the last two seasons. Instead, it made many Gijón people miss Li Ang even more.
*****
On July 9, 2007, Inter Milan's official website released news that the team had reached an agreement with La Liga club Sporting de Gijón for the transfer of Diego Milito. The Golden Boot of La Liga from two seasons ago would join Inter Milan from Sporting de Gijón for a high price of 26 million euros.
This was explosive news. The Spanish side did not expect Diego Milito to go to Inter Milan at all, because all the previous signs seemed to indicate that Diego Milito's future was in Barcelona. Now, Diego Milito had joined Inter Milan without warning, which really shocked many people.
However, if one thought about it carefully, it was Inter Milan who had sent the invitation to Milito, and it was Li Ang. Perhaps only Li Ang, who had brought Milito from Italy to Sporting de Gijón, could have done it so quickly and without warning.
With Milito settled, Inter Milan's forward line would have Adriano, Agüero, Borriello, and Milito, four strikers. This configuration seemed a little thin, but … considering Adriano's strong physical fitness, the other players seemed to be able to compete for the other starting striker position.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
