Chapter 253 246: Blueprint

In the depths of winter, the world seemed to turn bleak.

The once lush trees were now bare branches, and the verdant grass had become dreary and desolate.

Even Oude Kerk Lake, connected to the Amstel River by a tributary, was covered in a thin layer of floating ice.

Beneath the ice, the calm water was still faintly visible.

Having learned from last year, Yang Yang was much better prepared with warm clothes for his winter morning training.

He left his house, juggling a ball as he ran swiftly along the deserted path by Oude Kerk Lake.

As he juggled, the soccer ball became wet and slippery, making it difficult to control. This actually increased the difficulty of his training, forcing him to become more focused. He was afraid of making a careless mistake and losing the ball; that would be embarrassing.

He was no longer the boy from the Almere Youth Academy who couldn't get any playing time. His control over the ball had long since reached a point where it felt like an extension of his own limbs.

This was all thanks to his persistent, arduous training every day for the past year and a half.

After dribbling quickly around the lake three times, his body warmed up.

When he returned home, he happened to see a club-arranged Fiat parked at his doorstep and immediately pushed the door open with a smile.

The club had begun its Christmas holiday, and most of the players had gone home.

Vermaelen and Niklas Bendtner had returned to their home countries. Even Maxwell and Maicon had gone back to Brazil.

In Europe, this holiday was as important as the Chinese New Year.

Yang Yang had already told his parents that since he'd just be training hard by himself if he went back for Christmas anyway, he might as well stay in Amsterdam. At least De Toekomst had all the facilities and equipment he needed.

"Good morning, Winston."

As soon as Yang Yang entered, he greeted Winston Bogard, who was sitting in the living room.

Bogard glanced at the time, nodded, and smiled. "Right on schedule, as expected."

"I'm going to take a shower first."

"I've prepared breakfast for you. It's on the dining table."

"Thanks."

Yang Yang hurried upstairs to shower and change.

Today was Winston Bogard's first official day as Yang Yang's personal coach.

After becoming Yang Yang's personal coach, Winston Bogard was not only responsible for his daily strength training but also for his three meals a day. This was to better help Yang Yang train his body.

Bogard's training plan would continue the one he had customized for Yang Yang when he was with the team, but with targeted adjustments and enhancements, mainly to fine-tune his condition.

Yang Yang hoped to perform better in the second half of the season and also wanted to improve his physical strength for challenges on the pitch as quickly as possible.

'Sometimes, I can't even tell myself if it's just a psychological effect, or if I've actually improved.'

In any case, he felt that after starting strength training, his speed and agility had indeed improved, and his performance on the field was getting better and better. This made him trust Bogard's training methods even more.

More importantly, Bogard was Ajax's fitness coach. He had all of Yang Yang's data and would also be involved in the team's upcoming winter break training in Portugal, ensuring that Yang Yang's individual training was closely integrated with the team's overall program.

This was something that hiring an outside personal trainer could never achieve.

After breakfast, Yang Yang rode in Winston Bogard's car to De Toekomst.

After the team returned to Amsterdam from Tokyo, the coaching staff informed Yang Yang and Bogard that Yang Yang was allowed to train at De Toekomst during the winter break, but Bogard had to accompany him.

According to their prior agreement, they would rest on Christmas Day and the day after, but train as usual on all other days.

Upon arriving at De Toekomst, the two went straight to the gym, just like any other day.

After a period of training, Yang Yang's bench press weight had increased to fifty kilograms. The muscles on his body were also beginning to show the results of his strength training, making him look less frail.

Yang Yang was convinced that as long as he kept training, it wouldn't be long before he no longer feared physical confrontations on the pitch.

During this one-on-one training, Bogard unreservedly instilled in Yang Yang all his theoretical knowledge and personal insights about strength training.

As a fitness coach who graduated from a prestigious university program, Winston Bogard also had a wealth of practical experience. He had a very systematic and complete framework for how to train the body.

From muscle structure, body fat, and build, to resistance, flexibility, and explosive power...

He unreservedly taught Yang Yang everything he had learned and understood over the past decade because he believed that only by understanding these things could Yang Yang train his body more effectively.

Someone with only a partial understanding could never execute his training program properly.

Yang Yang had initially known nothing about physical training, but after learning from Bogard for a few months, he was like a greedy sponge, constantly absorbing knowledge. At the same time, a blueprint was faintly taking shape in his mind.

He hoped to develop the perfectly balanced body of a soccer player.

Bogard was both pleased and exasperated by Yang Yang's idea.

He was pleased because he saw Yang Yang's ambition, but exasperated because he felt Yang Yang was oversimplifying things.

"You're not wrong at all. A high degree of self-discipline, combined with scientific training, can indeed maximize a player's career longevity. But don't forget, there is no 'perfect' in this world, only 'most suitable.'"

"Take you, for example. At different ages, with different playing styles and different tactical roles, the demands on your body will also be different. You need to make subtle adjustments based on these factors."

"But you are right about one thing: long-term, consistent strength training can protect your body from injuries to the greatest extent possible."

What Winston Bogard said certainly made sense, but Yang Yang was still determined to work hard on strengthening his body.

He firmly believed that as long as he built up his physical strength for on-field challenges, his performance would be even better than it was now.

Of course, he couldn't neglect his training in other areas like speed, fundamentals, and Star Skills.

And this training would take up all of his time.

From morning till dusk, Yang Yang stayed at De Toekomst to train. Winston Bogard took full responsibility for his lunches, strictly monitoring them to ensure a balanced and reasonable nutritional intake, aiming to maximize the effects of Yang Yang's physical training during the winter break.

It wasn't until nightfall, after Yang Yang had eaten dinner, that he received a phone call and finally left De Toekomst.

The call was from the famous Dutch agent, Guido Alberts.

This agent wasn't well-known in Europe; few fans would recognize him outside the Netherlands. However, he possessed an extraordinary network of connections and influence in the Dutch football world, as well as in neighboring countries like Belgium and Germany.

His clients included the De Boer Brothers, Sneijder, Van der Vaart, and Heitinga, among others.

Although Yang Yang's agent was Raiola, and he wasn't currently considering a change, Guido Alberts was interested in getting closer to him. This was partly because of Sneijder and the others, and partly because Yang Yang's career was clearly on a steep upward trajectory.

Who knew when Yang Yang might dump Raiola and find another agent?

Moreover, after several interactions with Yang Yang, Guido Alberts had also become very interested in Chinese players.

In early December, Yang Yang's National Team teammate, Zheng Zhi, was invited for a trial with Bundesliga powerhouse Hertha Berlin. However, during his trial, Hertha Berlin signed another player in the same position, making Zheng Zhi's chances of staying in the Bundesliga extremely low.

During his trial at Hertha Berlin, Zheng Zhi had called Yang Yang to explain the situation.

Yang Yang could sense his hesitation and helplessness. He consulted several friends he knew, including Alberts, and learned that Hertha Berlin's interest was more about tapping into the Chinese market than a genuine desire to sign Zheng Zhi.

Alberts seized the opportunity to suggest he could arrange a trial for Zheng Zhi with the newly promoted Bundesliga team, Mainz, because Mainz was in great need of a player like him.

Yang Yang had a good read on Alberts' character. He knew that Alberts was trusted by many Dutch players, was reliable, and had a good reputation. So, he asked for Zheng Zhi's opinion, and the latter decided to stay in Germany for another two weeks for the trial.

Now, it was time for him to return to China after finishing his trial.

When Yang Yang walked out of the gates of De Toekomst, he saw a black Audi parked outside. Guido Alberts and Zheng Zhi were standing by the car, waiting for him.

"Hey, Zheng Zhi, Guido," Yang Yang said with a smile as he walked over.

Seeing Yang Yang in his training gear, the two of them knew immediately that he was using his vacation to put in extra practice.

Zheng Zhi deeply admired Yang Yang.

It wasn't just for his performance on the field, but also for his hard work and diligence off it, as well as his generous and helpful nature.

"So? How did the trial at Mainz go?" Yang Yang asked with concern.

Zheng Zhi and Guido Alberts exchanged a smile and both nodded in unison.

"Come on, talk! How did it go?" Yang Yang pressed anxiously, not understanding.

Seeing the unconcealed anxiety on Yang Yang's face, Zheng Zhi could clearly feel his national teammate's concern. He was immensely grateful; this whole Bundesliga trial was entirely thanks to Yang Yang pulling the strings for him.

"Thank you!" Zheng Zhi didn't answer directly. Instead, he walked over and gratefully hugged Yang Yang. "You helped me achieve my dream of playing abroad. Thank you so much!"

"Huh?" Yang Yang was momentarily stunned.

Guido Alberts, standing to the side, explained with a smile, "The Mainz coach, Klopp, really admires Zheng. He can play multiple positions—midfield, holding midfield, and center-back. He's very versatile, exactly the kind of player Klopp wants."

Hearing this, Yang Yang beamed. "So that means..."

"It's a done deal!" Zheng Zhi said with a nod.

Yang Yang let out a huge sigh of relief.

Zheng Zhi definitely had the ability to play abroad. It would have been the biggest regret if he couldn't make it for other reasons.

"Klopp is a very capable head coach. He led Mainz to promotion, and he really appreciates players like Zheng Zhi. He told me explicitly that he wants him, so I'd say it's basically a sure thing," Alberts said with a laugh.

Yang Yang nodded. "Even so, you can't be careless. After you get back to China, you have to get everything sorted out as quickly as possible. Try to complete the transfer during the winter break so you can join Mainz for their winter training camp and integrate with the team."

Zheng Zhi and Alberts exchanged another smile. It felt like Yang Yang was even more anxious about it than he was.

"Thanks," Zheng Zhi said again, gratefully.