The All-Around Center Forward

"Shocking! Suker Renews with Real Madrid for 30 Million Euros After Tax!"

"Football's Highest Salary Revealed! Real Madrid's Astonishing Move!"

"To Keep Their Top Star, Real Madrid Spends Heavily!"

"Historic Highest Salary! Suker Makes History!"

Real Madrid proactively revealed Suker's annual salary, which shocked the world.

With an after-tax annual salary of 30 million euros, based on Spain's strict tax rates, Suker's pre-tax annual salary is close to 60 million euros!

However, no one believed Suker couldn't live up to this salary; after all, if Suker couldn't, then no one else in the entire football world could either.

But it's worth noting that Cristiano Ronaldo, who had just transferred to Bayern Munich, only had an annual salary of 18 million euros!

At this time, Messi's salary was only 15.5 million euros!

And Suker's annual salary was almost double that.

As soon as this salary was announced, media outlets worldwide reported it frantically, with all eyes on Real Madrid.

Real Madrid also successfully attracted a lot of attention by leaking this salary information.

At the same time, based on Suker's high annual salary, Real Madrid also attracted the favor of more star players and young players with dreams.

The pursuit of professional football is nothing more than two aspects.

First: Championships!

Second: Salary!

Real Madrid is the club with the most Champions League titles, even earning the title 'King of the Champions League'.

They've won so many championships they've lost count!

And now, with this salary, it can be said that it perfectly aligns with the 'aesthetic' of all star players and talented players.

Not only that, but based on this shocking revelation, Real Madrid also further brought its internal conflicts, which had been brewing chaotically externally, back to a controllable stage.

Real Madrid is skilled at manipulating public opinion!

By leveraging Suker's salary issue, they not only gained immense attention but also boosted their reputation once again.

Want to win championships?

Come to Real Madrid!

Want a high salary?

Also come to Real Madrid!

Real Madrid can satisfy either, which made many people once again set their sights on Real Madrid, eager to join.

It can be said that during this period, if Real Madrid beckoned, no one could resist their allure.

"30 million euros? And it's after tax?!"

At the National Team training base, Mandžukić crumpled the newspaper, gritting his teeth.

He was envious!

He was jealous!

His own salary at Bayern Munich was only 6.8 million euros, which wasn't even a quarter of Suker's.

Then there was Suker's 60% image rights income and his successful investments.

Damn it!

Could this guy buy a Big Five Leagues club now?

"Perhaps one day, he really will buy a club, and you might have to call him boss!" Vukojević said with a chuckle.

Dujmović shrugged beside him; "Suker might not even look at him!"

"Get lost!" Mandžukić turned and roared.

Dujmović didn't mind, feeling secretly pleased watching Mandžukić's angry expression.

He didn't feel any need to compare!

Sometimes, a lower salary is a good thing!

At least, his mindset was very peaceful.

"The rich dog is here!"

Mandžukić almost bit the newspaper.

Outside the training base, Suker and Srna, fully dressed, entered the training ground.

Suker casually glanced at Mandžukić; "Did you see it?"

Mandžukić nodded.

Suker; "Envious?"

Dujmović smiled from the side; "He's almost crazy with envy!"

"You shut up! Your 2.5 million annual salary isn't even half of mine!" Mandžukić turned and cursed.

Modrić also looked at Suker; "30 million euros! Real Madrid is really willing to pay!"

Suker shrugged; he didn't want too many details to be revealed.

"I heard you switched to center-back?" Suker asked Dujmović.

Dujmović showed a hint of a smile, pointing at Mandžukić; "This guy was kept scoreless by me!"

"Scoreless my ass! Didn't you still lose?" Mandžukić retorted, annoyed.

Dujmović glared: "Did you score?"

Mandžukić pouted; "I'm not the main scorer now!"

"Alright, stop arguing!" Srna said exasperatedly: "Can you two stop arguing as soon as you see each other?"

"I can't stand this guy's pretentious look!"

"This guy deserves to be scolded!"

They both spoke at the same time, then started bickering again.

Suker looked around: "Daniel isn't in again?"

Hearing this, everyone fell silent.

Suker looked at Vida; "How's Daniel's performance?"

"Huh?" Vida looked bewildered.

Modrić, beside him, said impatiently: "He joined Manchester United, how would he know."

Suker was stunned for a moment, then slapped his forehead; "I forgot!"

Suker looked around, unable to find a single player who was still playing for Dinamo Zagreb.

Almost all the starters and main substitutes had entered the Big Five Leagues, and the remaining substitutes were playing in more competitive Leagues.

And Dinamo Zagreb didn't even have a single player selected.

This wasn't a gap in talent, but rather, after the 2012 European Cup, almost all these players benefited from the championship, and one by one, they left the Croatian League, just like Vida.

Of course, Bešić would certainly not relax his efforts to recruit players from the domestic League.

He would also call up some domestic League players later.

Soon after, Bešić led the coaching staff over.

The players stood in two neat rows, waiting for Bešić to address them.

Bešić observed them carefully from left to right, then said: "I hope you don't get carried away by the European Cup championship, leading to arrogant behavior. If such problems arise, you know I won't pretend not to see them!"

Everyone grinned.

Bešić could really do something like that!

Even if Suker and Modrić made mistakes, he would scold them, let alone others.

"Srna!"

"Here! Coach!"

"Lead them in a warm-up run, then do some simple passing and receiving drills. Gather in the tactics room an hour later!"

Srna immediately led the players to warm up and perform some ball control drills.

After an hour of simple training, they arrived at the tactics room.

Bešić had been waiting for a long time. Once the players were seated, he tapped the tactics board and said; "Our next opponent is Belgium."

"I need you to remain vigilant. This Belgium team is not easy to deal with, especially on the attacking end, be careful of their number 10, Hazard!"

Suker also narrowed his eyes slightly.

Hazard joined Chelsea this season, and in the past few matches, Hazard's performance had been surprising.

His powerful dribbling ability, in the second round, even created two penalties, helping Chelsea easily secure victory.

This also earned Hazard the nickname 'Penalty Machine'!

From the third round onwards, his performance became even more terrifying.

Unstoppable dribbling, and an iron-man physique.

The most crucial thing was that Chelsea gave him more freedom, and on that basis, Hazard's performance became even more outstanding.

Although Hazard wasn't yet the core player, his playing style was that of a core, and he always brought surprises to Chelsea.

Because of this, the coaching staff continuously invested in Hazard, constantly giving him resources.

"We played against them in the fourth round!" Modrić raised his hand and said; "It's difficult to dispossess Hazard, and his physicality isn't weak. Unless it's an intentional foul, it's hard to stop his breakthroughs!"

Vida also nodded; "He gave me a hard time in that match!"

Because of Hazard, Vida was once heavily criticized by Sir Alex Ferguson, and he experienced the most explosive hairdryer treatment in the Premier League.

Suker also nodded slightly.

With the 'King of Dribbling' could make you run like a dog!

Hazard was terrifyingly strong in the original timeline between 2012 and 2018!

Agile movements!

Excellent ball control!

Powerful physicality!

And an iron-man physique.

Before joining Real Madrid, Hazard was a symbol of an iron man, playing every game and still delivering such performances, which was simply incredible.

Of course, the current Hazard has not yet fully transformed into the 'King of Dribbling'.

But his performance itself didn't fluctuate much. His so-called data peak was in the 2018/2019 season, creating a terrifying record of 21 goals and 17 assists.

But that season only meant he was better at scoring and assisting, but his powerful dribbling ability remained very good until he joined Real Madrid, when it instantly plummeted!

The iron man became a patient, and the hospital bed became his home!

Bešić didn't have any special tactical arrangements; it was still Croatia's most familiar high-pressing style of play, utilizing the strong attacking power of the midfield and forward line to constantly press, while the defense simply focused on defending.

The only somewhat special thing was that Bešić had them control the ball more in this match.

One reason was to counter Hazard's dribbling and breakthroughs.

The other reason was for Croatia to seize more initiative!

After the tactical briefing, the players simply played a scrimmage on the field to get accustomed to each other.

It was then that Suker noticed Yelavic had also joined the National Team.

Yelavic was a Dinamo Zagreb player from the same period as Rakitić.

However, due to the saturation of the Croatia National Team's forward line, he had never been able to join the National Team.

But with Olić's decline in form, Yelavic replaced Olić as Mandžukić's substitute.

Yelavic was considered a high-center forward with good passing and control, excellent at heading, and physically strong.

However, his technique was average, he preferred one-touch passes, and disliked holding onto the ball.

His weaknesses included poor positional sense, insufficient offside awareness, inaccurate passing, and a lack of defensive contribution!

Nevertheless, as a high-center forward, he could still perform in specific situations.

At the very least, he could act as a wall for Suker!

However, Yelavic found it difficult to adapt to Croatia's high-intensity playing style; even in the scrimmage, he struggled and couldn't keep up with the pace.

"How is it?" Rakitić walked over and asked.

He had a good relationship with Yelavic.

Yelavic panted and shook his head, saying, "My performance was terrible!"

Rakitić smiled, "Don't rush, take your time, show your strengths, don't run around aimlessly!"

After that, Rakitić pointed at Suker: "See him? He's the main man. Make him comfortable, and your job is done."

Yelavic grinned.

Suker was indeed the main man.

During his time at Dinamo Zagreb, he had watched Suker play but rarely had the chance to play alongside him.

When he played, Suker usually didn't!

Back then, Suker was already strong enough!

Now in the National Team, Suker was like a monster!

He hadn't even reacted, and Suker had already taken a shot, with incredibly high accuracy.

"I'll take my time!"

Yelavic shook his head and sighed.

Rakitić smiled and said, 'Keep it up.'

Bešić and Van Stoyak also looked at Yelavic.

"He's having some trouble keeping up with the pace!" Van Stoyak said.

Bešić: "He'll catch up after a period of adjustment!"

Van Stoyak: "But his strengths are too singular, aren't they?"

Bešić: "Sometimes, you need players with singular strengths. Mandžukić is currently too focused on his pivot role, which has somewhat diluted his heading ability. He's almost playing like a midfielder!"

"But we can't deny that Mario's distribution is getting better and more reasonable!" Van Stoyak said.

Bešić: "Therefore, I plan to inject some other elements into this team. Our center forward can't just be a passer!"

Van Stoyak nodded in agreement, then sighed, "Suker's form is still so good!"

"This guy is in his prime!" Bešić's mouth curved into a smile: "We must make good use of this prime period and reap a huge dividend from him!"

Croatia isn't afraid of tough battles, and their confidence comes from Suker.

You might not fear Suker in the first half, but by the second half or around the 60-70 minute mark, Suker will make you tremble!

In the European Cup final, even in that sticky, difficult situation, Suker turned things around. Other situations are just small matter.

Suker being in his prime is Croatia's confidence!

They dare to fight tough battles, head-on, against any team!

They can wear down their opponents until they're dead!

After the training session, the players showered in the locker room and then walked in groups of three or five towards the cafeteria.

Suker and Modrić walked together.

"How are you guys doing?" Suker asked casually.

Modrić: "Feeling good. Even though Ronny left, Van Persie has brought us quite a few surprises. His shooting is really good, especially his volleys. But he seems to be a bit too deferential to Rooney and don't want to compete too much!"

"Since he just joined, didn't you encourage him to compete with Rooney?" Suker turned his head and asked.

Modrić grinned: "I'm the captain now, I can't say such things!"

Suker laughed loudly: "What's the big deal? You're the Manchester United captain, and Sir Alex Ferguson's chosen captain at that. You can do whatever you want, and anyone who offends you will be cleaned out!"

Suker knew very well that Sir Alex Ferguson regarded Modrić as the cornerstone of Manchester United.

Especially in the current situation, with Sir Alex Ferguson about to retire and wanting to prepare Manchester United for a smooth transition.

Modrić became even more important.

It could be said that the current Modrić truly walked around the club as he pleased, doing whatever he wanted.

He had enough seniority and enough honors!

His status in the locker room was unquestionable, and he had Sir Alex Ferguson's support!

If it were Suker, he would have been completely autocratic.

"I hope they play cooperatively, not with malicious competition." Modrić shook his head, then turned to Suker: "Don't always try to instill such disgusting ideas in me!"

Suker rolled his eyes.

The two arrived at the cafeteria, got their food, and sat down at a table.

Srna, Dujmović, Mandžukić, Vukojević, and other friends immediately gathered around.

At Suker and the others' table, only they ate together.

Rakitić rarely participated, let alone others.

This was the National Team's big shot table; without enough seniority and ability, you couldn't even sit at it.

"You're starting the next match," Suker said, looking at Dujmović. "I'll see how you play center-back!"

"Don't worry!" Dujmović patted his chest and said, "I'll show you what a 'scoring center-back' is!"

"Don't run up and then can't get back!"

"Don't worry!" Dujmović laughed. "Ognyen and I have agreed that when I go forward, he'll drop back to cover for me!"

After that, he gestured towards Vukojević with his chin: "Right?"

Vukojević grinned: "I hope you don't make too many forward runs, otherwise, I won't be able to cover you either!"

"Don't worry!" Dujmović said with a confident expression.

Suker sighed with melancholy: "That's the third time you've said 'don't worry,' and somehow I feel even more uneasy."

"Me too!"

Mandžukić: "Why don't you just play midfield instead!"

"Get lost!" Dujmović glared: "I like center-back, specifically to mark you!"

Mandžukić shrugged: "What's the use of marking me? You still won't win a championship! Have you forgotten what Sukic said?"

"Sukic?" Suker was stunned for a moment: "My son?"

Mandžukić laughed loudly, pointing at Dujmović, whose face flushed red.

"Your son once gave Tomi a soul-searching question. I almost collapsed from laughter back then!"

Everyone asked curiously, "What did he say?"

Mandžukić stifled a laugh and said, "He asked Tomi why his trophy cabinet had vases but no trophies!"

Everyone froze for a moment, then burst into laughter.

Suker also chuckled, this truly was a soul-searching question.

"What are you laughing at?!" Dujmović said, his face red: "It's not like I don't have trophies, I just haven't displayed them!"

Suker smiled and waved his hand: "Don't be angry, children's words are innocent. I apologize to you on Sukic's behalf!"

Dujmović glared: "Do I f*cking need your apology? I have championships! I have trophies!"

Pfft!!!

Mandžukić was shaking with laughter: "Sukic... also asked him... 'I'm already three years old, Uncle, why don't you have a girlfriend? Is it because no one... no one likes Uncle?'"

Hahahahahahaha!!!

This time, everyone burst into laughter, collapsing onto the table, gasping for air.

Dujmović had an expression of utter despair.

Ever since that incident, whenever he saw Sukic, he would try to sneak away, lest the little devil say something else that would sting him.

As for the teasing from these bad friends, he had already gotten used to it.

It wasn't the first or second time, anyway!

Crack!

Dujmović kicked Mandžukić to the ground, who lay there still laughing.

The others were also laughing so hard, tears were almost streaming down their faces.

Suker, on the other hand, wanted to laugh but couldn't.

He knew Sukic was a bit sharp-tongued, but he hadn't expected him to be like this.

Actually, Sukic was quite well-behaved and wouldn't say anything too hurtful.

But this little devil was like him, petty. Had Dujmović said something that displeased Sukic?

It always felt like revenge!