Fly, who was far away in England, had no idea that his compatriots from his previous life were experiencing a certain degree of personality split because of him.
At this moment, he was calling Wenger from home.
As for the content of the call, it was naturally related to the defense of the goal.
"Boss, don't you think Manuel (Almunia)'s ability is really not suitable for being Arsenal's starting goalkeeper?"
"Although I hadn't come to Arsenal at that time, I heard that Arsenal missed out on the first Champions League title in the club's history in the 2006 Champions League because of him."
The conversation between Fly and Wenger had always been so direct.
No beating around the bush, just getting straight to the point.
At the same time, because Wenger had revealed his true feelings to Fly during the last transfer discussion, Fly no longer held back and directly pointed out that Almunia's level was unqualified.
He didn't give any face to this goalkeeper who had played for Arsenal for many years.
Wenger was a bit unaccustomed to Fly's directness, as no player had ever dared to be so frank in front of him since he became the head coach.
However, considering Fly's special status and the fact that his future plans for Arsenal were closely related to Fly, he didn't think too much about it.
After a moment of contemplation, Wenger slowly said, "Fly, I know what you mean."
"Manuel has always worked very hard. In the final, Lehmann came off too early, and he stepped up under pressure to help us guard the goal."
"Although we ultimately conceded two goals and lost the match, I don't blame him."
"Because at that time, he was just Lehmann's substitute. It was already very good for a substitute to step up under pressure and play in a Champions League Final."
Unlike Fly, Wenger, who had a rather Professor-like personality, first laid a long groundwork, saying many good things about Almunia, before getting to the main point:
"However, you are also right. Manuel is indeed not suitable to be the starting goalkeeper for the current Arsenal."
"Do you have any good recommendations?"
After hearing the first few sentences from Wenger, Fly guessed that Arsène Wenger had long been dissatisfied with Almunia.
It was just that due to Almunia's contributions to Arsenal, as a coach, he couldn't criticize him directly like Fly.
Fly didn't have so many concerns and directly put forward his candidate, Szczęsny.
Wenger was slightly surprised when he heard this name and then remembered that this person was just Arsenal's third-choice goalkeeper, wasn't he?
Wenger was still quite optimistic about Szczęsny, otherwise he wouldn't have frequently loaned him out.
The purpose of this was to hope that Szczęsny could get sufficient playing time outside to train himself.
However, Wenger's first choice in his mind was not him, but in the past, due to financial constraints, he never talked about his target candidate.
"Fly, have you heard of Schalke 04's starting goalkeeper, Manuel Neuer?"
As soon as these words came out, Fly on the other end of the phone was instantly stunned.
What does this mean?
Neuer?
Holy crap, this name was like thunder in his previous life!
Any football fan knows this name.
Even many casual fans know that such a person exists.
There is no other reason; Neuer's strength is too great!
The creator of the "sweeper keeper" position, one of the top three super goalkeepers in football history.
To be honest, Fly had never considered Neuer before because his habitual thinking made him subconsciously assume that Neuer was at Bayern.
But now, hearing the Professor say this, it seems Neuer hasn't gone to Bayern yet?
Holy crap, if that's the case, is there even a need to consider?
For the goalkeeper position, it's a no-brainer, Neuer!
No matter how good 3C is, he can't compare to Neuer!
"Boss, do you mean we can sign Neuer? Is that... possible?"
Wenger replied calmly, "Of course it's feasible. You probably don't know, Schalke 04 is currently deep in debt crisis. According to information I've secretly obtained, the debt this time exceeds 130 million Euros."
"This amount is definitely a very big crisis for a club like Schalke 04. They urgently need funds to recover."
"So selling core players is the fastest way for them to raise funds."
"Even though Neuer has now become the captain of Schalke 04, if we offer a large sum, Schalke 04 will definitely let him go."
Holy crap! You even know about Schalke 04's debt situation?
At this moment, Fly had to lament Arsène Wenger's "one thing on the surface, another behind the scenes".
Who would have thought that the usually gentle and elegant Professor had secretly spied on the secrets of other clubs?
It truly echoed the saying "you can't judge a book by its cover."
However, it must be said that what Wenger told Fly immediately made him understand one thing.
That is, Neuer at this point in time is not unsellable!
Arsenal has a complete opportunity to contend for him!
Especially since Neuer is extremely compatible with the tiki-taka system; his "sweeper keeper" trait is highly compatible with Arsenal's high defensive line.
If Arsenal can acquire him, they won't have to worry about the goalkeeper position for the next ten years.
Thinking of this, Fly quickly nodded: "Boss, is there a chance to bring Neuer over in the winter window?"
Hearing this, Wenger knew what Fly was thinking and reminded him:
"Fly, you need to understand one thing, Neuer has already played in the Champions League for Schalke 04 this season."
"Even if he transfers over in the winter window, he won't be able to play for us in the Champions League this season."
Being pointed out by Wenger, Fly slapped his forehead, feeling embarrassed.
Because he had really forgotten about this point.
It wasn't until the new regulations introduced by UEFA in the 2018-19 season, which stated:
"Regardless of whether a player has played in the Champions League for their former club this season, as long as the club submits the squad change list before 24:00 CET on February 2nd, each team can register a maximum of three eligible new players in the winter."
Before this, players who had played in the Champions League for their former club could not play in the Champions League for their new club in the same season.
Thinking of this, Fly's mood became even lower.
The most important reason he wanted to bring Neuer to Arsenal in the winter window was to face the strong opponents in the Champions League knockout stages.
Especially the Dream Three Barcelona and Real Madrid under Mourinho.
Because Fly wanted to step on Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to win the Ballon dOr, the most important thing was to win in direct confrontations with them!
But with Arsenal's current lineup, he had little confidence in this.
Actually, Arsenal's midfield and attack were not much worse than Real Madrid or Barcelona.
The main problem was the troublesome defense.
Arsenal's defensive line was considered bottom-tier among European giants.
As for the goalkeeper, it can only be said that the starting goalkeepers of many mid-to-lower European top 5 leagues teams were stronger than Almunia!
Thinking that there was no hope for Neuer to play for Arsenal in the Champions League this season, Fly felt a chill run down his spine.
.......
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