Chapter 175: Tom Was Reported? First Endorsement Contract—I Like to Sleep with a Baby Pillow

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Click-click!

Immediately after the match ended, Villarreal's head coach Escrivà entered the press room.

"This is my last time appearing here this year."

Escrivà joked with the reporters.

To be honest, dealing with reporters at press conferences really gave Escrivà a headache.

Even though he had learned a lot from a certain Dutchman, he still often felt flustered.

It's just like watching Tom play.

Can you just turn whenever you want? You can't turn!

Some talent is simply built into someone else's body—you can't learn it just by watching.

"Ferran, you've won all six of your December matches and are the only La Liga team to maintain a 100% win rate in December. Since early November, fans have sensed a gradual shift in your team's overall tactics..."

The reporter took a deep breath and adjusted slightly: "Your tactics are shifting toward Tom. That's the fans' view. Ferran, as head coach, is this correct?"

"Uh..."

Escrivà looked troubled, thought it over, then conceded: "You could say that. We need to design specific tactics based on our opponents' characteristics. Tom possesses excellent offensive threat, and his role in the team is very important."

"..."

The reporter said nothing, assuming Escrivà would continue.

But he didn't.

Escrivà was now tense, meeting the reporter's eyes—soon, the reporter said the one phrase Escrivà feared most.

"But Tom is a loan player."

But Tom is a loan player.

But Tom is a loan player...

The reporter's single sentence shattered Escrivà's composure.

Beyond pressure, Escrivà now felt only anger.

He knew perfectly well Tom was a loan player.

But was that something he could decide?

What can we do if Villarreal can't afford to buy him!

After several deep breaths, Escrivà calmed his turbulent emotions: "I know Tom is a loan player. I've always known that."

"Then why keep starting him?"

"..."

Escrivà looked at the reporter with an expression of utter disbelief: "I understand your question, but let me finish first."

"Tom is a loan player—I'm aware of this issue. So when designing tactics, I pay special attention to it. What you're seeing now—our team playing with Tom at the core—is because our opponents have been unusually specific, requiring us to center around Tom."

Escrivà spoke slowly; deep thought gradually steadied his emotions.

"In later matches, once our opponents are no longer unusual, Tom will have to give up his central role."

Click!

Click-click!

Escrivà's words were crucial—cameras clicked in rapid succession; reporters wanted to capture clear photos of Escrivà speaking into the microphone for newspaper front pages.

This was a critical issue.

Because from Escrivà's words, Villarreal clearly had two squads.

One centered on Tom, for special situations.

Another not centered on Tom, for ordinary situations.

There was no need for fans or reporters to worry—Escrivà had already planned all of this!

This is real strength!

Escrivà truly has real strength!

Spanish fans in the livestream commented in awe on Escrivà.

So there are two squads.

If that's the case, there's nothing to worry about.

Earlier, fans thought even Escrivà had been infected by Tom's virus—but now it's clear he's fully alert!

He's the only person at Villarreal untouched by Tom's virus!

Escrivà?

Ferran San Escrivà!

"Alright, Ferran, the winter transfer window is about to open. What preparations have you made for next season's signings?"

"We understand the Estadio de la Cerámica is about to be renamed, and Villarreal will receive a large sum of funding."

The reporter's words left Escrivà speechless.

The Estadio de la Cerámica's renaming is scheduled for January.

Even if the name changes in January, the funds won't arrive until March or April—by then, the winter window will already be closed!

There was nothing to be done—the reporter simply didn't know the inside details.

"Regarding the winter window..."

Escrivà shook his head, recalling the words of President Royg.

Villarreal had no transfer budget for the winter window...

"We're observing. If suitable players emerge, we'll act—but we can't rush. We still need to wait."

Click!

Click-click!

Dongqiu Di pinned: With Christmas approaching, La Liga will resume Round 17 on January 6. Before that, Villarreal has an upcoming King's Cup Round of 16 match against Real Sociedad.

Bilibili marketing account: Ronaldo crushed Messi by a huge margin in the 2016 Ballon d'Or vote—but couldn't beat Tang Ye. The reason behind it is this...

Marca front page headline: Escrivà has both squads ready—Villarreal faces zero tactical risks! Also noteworthy: Villarreal's official Twitter account has yet to restore its follow of Marca.

Sports World: It is understood that Villarreal's rising star Tom is negotiating a sponsorship deal with a Spanish bedding company. The specific company remains unknown, but the sponsorship is expected to be confirmed around Christmas.

All of the above were normal news—Tang Ye was securing a sponsorship, and fans were naturally happy for him.

Scroll down further on the Dongqiu Di app.

One news item was surging toward trending at an incredible pace, gaining hundreds of comments per minute!

Diario Sport front page headline: Twelve La Liga clubs have filed appeals to the Spanish FA regarding Villarreal player Tang Ye's jersey number.

????

What's going on!?

Fans were extremely anxious upon seeing this news.

They instinctively ignored the word "number," seeing only "Villarreal player Tang Ye appealed."

Has Tang Ye been reported?

Let's see what this is about.

Diario Sport's news shot straight to the homepage—the newspaper detailed Tang Ye's complaint by other La Liga clubs.

La Liga first-team players are restricted to numbers 1–25; first-team players must wear numbers within this range.

When Villarreal registered Tang Ye, they used his youth team status, as Villarreal had also registered him with the Segunda División B—the league Villarreal B plays in.

Through this maneuver, Tang Ye wore number 99, and Villarreal gained an extra first-team slot, successfully completing their summer registration.

Let's admit it—Villarreal's management pulled off a brilliant move.

But problems immediately arose!

Because Tang Ye never played a single minute in Segunda División B, other La Liga clubs now question his youth academy status.

Wearing number 99, pretending to be a youth player while acting as the first-team star.

This is unreasonable!

And completely unacceptable!

All twenty La Liga clubs have exactly 25 first-team players.

Only you Villarreal have 26!

Villarreal Times front page headline: Of the twelve La Liga clubs that appealed against Villarreal, seven have been confirmed: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla, Sporting Gijón, Leganés, Real Betis, Atlético Madrid. The identities of the other five participating clubs remain undisclosed.

【Damn, everyone's appealing against my Tang King?】

【A 17-year-old wearing number 99, pretending to be a youth player in La Liga—this sentence reads fine, but why does it feel oddly off?】

【Real Madrid and Barcelona appealed? I think they're scared.】

【No need to guess—they're scared. Barcelona's next match is against Villarreal; they want to ban the opponent's king before the game. Barcelona is so nasty.】

【Real Madrid's ban is just too late—if they'd banned Tang Ye earlier, maybe that opening match wouldn't have ended in a draw.】

【My Tang King just got a sponsorship and now gets appealed—so you're not letting him earn money?】

【Will he have to go back to youth leagues pretending to be a youth player again? I remember he did something similar at Utrecht?】

【Pretending? Tang Ye is genuinely a youth academy product! Playing in La Liga is already a huge pressure for him!】

Diario Sport's news immediately shot to #1 on Dongqiu Di's trending list—this appeal caused Tang Ye's jersey sales to skyrocket.

Because fans knew: Villarreal's number 99 jersey would soon be discontinued!

At first, when Tang Ye saw the complaint news, he was completely stunned.

He immediately contacted Escrivá.

Escrivá told Tang Ye that this matter wouldn't have much impact—he could just relax and enjoy his holiday.

Tang Ye had been a little nervous, but since Mr. Ferran said so, he no longer cared. 【Your Azar Tarta Sauce Burger has expired】

【You purchased Azar's Tarta Sauce Burger】

Other people spend Christmas with family dinners of seafood and turkey.

Tang Ye is different.

He wants to eat burgers!

Eat a lot, a lot of burgers!

He wants to raise his ball control stat to 80+!

Check his current Reverse Points balance.

Each burger costs 25 Reverse Points; Tang Ye currently has 427 points. Even after setting aside some for Red Bull, he can still eat 10 to 15 burgers during Christmas.

At that moment, Tang Ye's system reacted.

【All December fixtures completed. Based on your performance over the past year (Utrecht's 2015–16 second half, Villarreal's 2016–17 first half), your year-end bonus is being calculated】

Fuck!

!

Tang Ye's eyes sparkled.

His Christmas gift had arrived!

Year-end bonus!

Remember last Christmas when you didn't get this?

But that's normal—last year at this time, he'd just joined Utrecht's first team and had only played half a season in the professional league; the system couldn't calculate his year-end bonus.

This year is different.

Aside from that one miraculous appearance in the Dutch second division, Tang Ye spent the entire year playing in La Liga and the Eredivisie.

After all this effort, he deserves a year-end bonus!

【You received 1320 Reverse Points】

【Calculating seniority bonus: you entered professional football at age 19; you are now 38; you have 19 years of seniority】

【With 19 years of seniority, you earn far more than younger players—that's the advantage of age】

【You received an additional 1200 Reverse Points】

!!!

Account balance: 2947 Reverse Points!

Now that's comfortable!

Previously, Tang Ye's balance wasn't enough to carry him through burgers until the next league season.

But now it is!

With nearly 3000 Reverse Points in hand, Tang Ye was about to unlock his next item when his agent Por's call came in.

The endorsement deal is nearly finalized; Tang Ye now needs to meet Por to discuss the details.

Tang Ye's view on endorsements: he won't seek them out, but if they come to him, he won't refuse.

Message Dembélé about going out tonight.

【ggbond: Don't worry, Osman, I'll be back by midnight at the latest—we'll play straight through until noon tomorrow!】

【dembele123: I'll play single-player for now; playing LoL gets me yelled at】

Dembélé was pitiful—when not with Tang Ye, his teammates always yelled at him during games.

Tang Ye couldn't help, so he assured Dembélé he'd return as soon as possible after dinner with his agent.

…

"Baby products? Not bedding?"

After listening to Por's report, Tang Ye stared with wide eyes.

"More precisely, baby bedding—cribs, baby pillows, that sort of thing. Spain doesn't have many people, but exports are quite high."

Por smiled. The company seeking Tang Ye's endorsement was Micuna, a well-known Spanish premium baby bedding brand dedicated to providing healthy, comfortable mattresses, pillows, and bedding for infants of all ages.

Damn…

Tang Ye was baffled: "Is this really suitable for me to endorse?"

"Well… they think it's quite suitable."

Por chuckled: "You're just getting paid to film ads—their sales are their own business. I've spoken with their manager many times."

Micuna's products are sold mainly across Europe, the most vibrant football region in the world.

For years, the company had wanted a La Liga star to promote their products, but never found the right one.

Now they believe Tang Ye is perfect, so they reached out to Por.

Though Tang Ye still didn't understand why they thought he was suitable…

"They're paying well."

Por slid the detailed contract across the table to Tang Ye.

1.8 million euros per year; after taxes and agent commission, Tang Ye would take home about 1.05 million euros—nearly a year's salary.

Of course, the million-plus endorsement fee was secondary.

After filming the ads, Micuna would pay to display Tang Ye on advertising screens across major European malls.

Effectively, they were paying to promote him!

Thinking of his face on billboards, Tang Ye couldn't help but feel excited, so he agreed to take the endorsement.

"We'll try to wrap this up before Christmas ends, so it won't interfere with your second-half matches."

Por was very careful about this.

Tang Ye was still growing; this endorsement was just a trial—the core remained his on-field performance.

When Tom matures fully, the real endorsement deals will come!

…

Dongqiudi: According to Valencia reporters, Tang Ye has signed a one-year endorsement deal with local baby bedding company Micuna and will film promotional videos around Christmas.

【I get the logic, but why baby bedding?】

【Don't you think King Tang is perfect for this?】

【Just searched—it's those wooden baby cribs, imported to Spain for under 2000 yuan. Worth supporting, pity I don't have a baby】

【There are bigger items too—baby pillows, usable at any age. Try the whole set】

【ggbond sleeps in a baby crib? That's insane】

【Uses baby pillows? Doesn't that prove he's a youth academy product? Is the Spanish FA targeting Huang Qian?】

This was Tang Ye's first endorsement, and the product was unusual—fans were curious and searched "Micuna" on Baidu and Taobao.

Soon, fans discovered the key point: three months ago, Micuna set up a distributor in China; its Taobao flagship store opened just half a month ago.

Companies sell where people are—clearly, this company was no longer satisfied with its European market.

They wanted to break into the Chinese market with Tang Ye's powerful offensive reputation!

On Christmas Eve, Tang Ye dined at Bruno's house, then, with Bruno's guidance, exchanged gifts at Musacchio's and Escrivá's homes.

These days, Tang Ye was very happy—no training, just take one big burger daily to improve his skills.

Most importantly, he played during the day and at night, returned to his apartment to game with Dembélé.

Dembélé was also celebrating Christmas, dining with a few French teammates, but according to him, he didn't like group dinners.

He preferred sitting in front of his computer, gaming with Tang Ye.

Tang Ye was deeply moved; on Christmas night, the two stayed up until 10 a. m. the next day, playing nearly four games over eleven hours.

After resting for several more days, Tang Ye's system remained silent.

His ball control stat still hadn't broken 80—then came the scheduled ad shoot.

On December 30 and 31, Tang Ye spent two consecutive afternoons at a building in Villarreal for filming; after all work ended on the 3rd, the newspaper reporters hired by Micuna arrived.

On December 30 and 31, Tang Ye spent both afternoons for two consecutive days at a building in Villarreal to film advertisements; after all filming was completed on the 3rd, the newspaper reporter hired by Micuna for Tang Ye arrived.

On stage, a red table; Tang Ye sat beside Micuna's product manager.

The reporter mainly interviewed Tang Ye; the manager was just there to accompany.

"Tom, as one of La Liga's hottest stars, how did you decide to partner with Micuna, a baby bedding company?"

"Because I've been using this product all along."

As soon as Tang Ye spoke, the reporter and the manager beside him turned their eyes toward him.

The moment Tang Ye finished speaking, all the reporters below the stage and the manager sitting beside him turned their gazes toward him.

Huh?

Tang Ye paused, realizing he'd just said the wrong thing.

"Oh, I mean—I used this brand's furniture as a child, including the crib and pillow. I still use the pillow today. Though it's a baby pillow, I think Micuna's products suit me perfectly—after training, my body is tired; a slightly firmer pillow eases my muscle soreness and helps me sleep better."

"Oh oh, what I mean is, I used this brand's furniture as a child—including the crib and pillow—and I still use the pillow today. Though it's an infant pillow, I feel Micuna's products suit me perfectly, because after training my body is quite tired; a slightly firmer pillow reduces my muscle discomfort and helps me sleep better."

He turned to Micuna's product manager beside Tang Ye: "So your pillows aren't just for babies—they're also suitable for athletes after intense training?"

He turned to look at the Micuna product manager beside Tang Ye: "So your pillow is suitable not only for infants but also for athletes after high-intensity training?"

"This... we didn't consider this aspect during design, but our product indeed demonstrates this function—including your point about helping youth and professional players recover better after training."

"Notably, we are the only baby bedding company to have served a Golden Boy award winner."

Facing the camera, the product manager spoke slowly.

"Whether for boys, girls, or the European Golden Boy, our product delivers nearly perfect service."

"But can our product increase the likelihood of football fans winning the Golden Boy award? Hmm... that's hard to say."

El País Valencia front page headline—Tom's Golden Boy Secret: Could His Baby Pillow Help Him Recover Better?

Utrecht Evening News front page headline—Eating Poorly but Sleeping Well: What Can Other Young Players Learn from the Golden Boy of 2016's Lifestyle? Did Ten Hag Ban Tom from the Cafeteria to Help Him Develop Better?

Dongqiu Di match preview: Wake up and get ready to play! At 2:00 a. m. on January 5th, Villarreal plays away against Real Sociedad!

(End of Chapter)