Football Dynasty

Chapter 589 589: The Injured Kaká!

Manchester City extended Ronaldo's contract for five years!Ronaldinho committed to Manchester City for seven years!

And then Lampard, Pirlo, and Zambrotta followed. Manchester City announced a series of contract extensions, giving the impression that even though some key players had already left, there were still many core players the club could rely on!

There was also news about Drogba, but it didn't spread as widely as the stories about Ronaldo and the others.

After that came news that shocked the entire British public.

Since the city's inclusion was more about the broader network of coal workers than Manchester being a major coal center itself, City announced that they had partnered with the Manchester Alliance for Community Care (MACC) to support miners, ex-coal workers, and families affected by industrial diseases in Greater Manchester.

The Manchester Guardian wrote: "Manchester City Step Off the Pitch — Into the Community."

The Manchester Evening News ran: "Blue Hearts: Manchester City Backs Local Causes."

The Independent, Richard's own newspaper, dedicated an entire page to City's involvement in the community charity.

Many people praised the club for connecting with ordinary citizens, though some questioned the decision.

Why now? — Some pundits wondered if this was a response to fan unrest.

Will it help the club's fortunes on the field? — A few skeptics questioned whether social work would have any impact on football performance.

Richard didn't care about that. He had no time to pay attention to what was circulating in the media. The beginning of the summer had been quite chaotic for them.

Thanks to some superstars leaving, Marina, in a tense mood, arrived at Richard's office in person, her face full of regret. She knew the situation and took full responsibility, as she had been unable to persuade Zidane and the others to stay.

"Richard, I'm sorry. I couldn't convince them to stay," she said, frustration and anger mixing in her voice. She had focused on retaining them, but after more than a month of effort, she had seen no results.

Richard warmly welcomed Marina into his office.

"Don't worry about it. Our terms couldn't compete with Madrid or Juventus. Not to mention, they prefer a stronger league. It's only natural for them to choose a better situation," he replied, no longer wanting to dwell on why they had all chosen to leave.

Whatever the case, let them go. It didn't matter.

"Then after Japan, we need to decide on our summer preparation plans," he added.

She set aside his gloomy thoughts and shifted the conversation to the main topic.

"Right. Apologize to Borussia Dortmund that the plan we discussed last year is temporarily canceled, but it can be revisited in the future. Also, contact Real Madrid, Celtic, and Juventus, and invite them to Manchester for preseason friendlies. We should incorporate the transfer strategy and also offer a more favorable ticket split. We'll be moving into the new stadium next summer, so let's arrange as many matches at Maine Road as possible—the fans still have a strong attachment to the old stadium."

Richard's every word was etched into Marina's memory.

At the previous year's G14 meeting, while most of the owners were focused on making the European Super League a reality, Richard proposed something different. He suggested that the elite European clubs band together to play preseason friendlies in other continents. He had already arranged a tour in Japan that summer and now hoped to bring teams like Real Madrid on board.

While the idea might not produce immediate market gains, Richard knew it would be invaluable for building a global fan base and generating long-term publicity. It was a strategic move designed to expand the club's influence far beyond Europe, planting seeds for the future of football's international appeal.

Before football fully entered the commercial era, outdated thinking and narrow-minded arrogance still dominated many elite clubs. Most believed that Europe was the center of the football world, representing the pinnacle of the sport, and that anything beyond it was of secondary importance.

At the club level, international promotion was rare. Clubs generally only traveled abroad when invited by less-developed markets or commercial partners—and even then, they often demanded high appearance fees, discouraging sponsors and organizers. As a result, many well-performing but not quite elite clubs fell behind competitors of similar size in terms of media presence, brand recognition, and global market share.

It wasn't until a decade later, when these gaps became visible in commercial revenues, that elite clubs began taking international branding and marketing seriously.

Manchester City, however, had always been proactive about international promotion. Take Japan, for example: football had historically been a minor sport there, often trailing baseball and sumo in popularity. But with the rise of stars like Hidetoshi Nakata and World Cup performance, interest was growing rapidly.

By investing early in the Japanese market, City became one of the few clubs actively promoting itself abroad. Most other clubs still relied on sports brands like Nike or Adidas to do the marketing for them, using star players in campaigns rather than building their own presence.

Thanks to these efforts, other elite clubs were now looking to replicate City's approach. But Richard understood that preseason tours could not be a solo venture. Last year's tour in Asia had been little more than a string of easy wins, generating limited attention. By partnering with a few major clubs, however, the tour could create far greater publicity, expand the fan base, and amplify commercial impact.

The pie was too big for one club to finish alone.

"Alright, I understand," Marina said.

Richard nodded, then turned his attention to the next item on the agenda.

Reinaldo Pitta and Alexandre Martins.

After finishing Ronaldo's contract negotiations, the two agents had come to see him. Richard knew exactly why they were here—this was standard procedure in the football world. Agents never came for small talk; they came with proposals, offers, and, more often than not, expectations.

And today, the reason?

To offer some players under their management. Richard was familiar with this—it was called Marketing the Player. As an agent himself in the past, he usually created a professional profile, including stats and achievements. Player representation often promotes the player's value to clubs, showing why a club should want them.

Richard recognized some names: Giovane Élber, Luis Fabiano, Diego, Emerson Ferreira, Alex de Souza, and even Adriano!

"Is this player available? I want to see his data," he asked.

When both Pitta and Martins saw the name, they shook their heads.

"Sorry, but Flamengo, his club, has already blocked us from selling Adriano this season."

"Can you push for him? If not this season, then next season is fine. City is willing to pay a high price," Richard insisted.

Both agents were taken aback and exchanged glances.

"Understood. We will consider that," they replied.

Richard nodded, satisfied, before closing the files in his hand.

"Alright, since every name is done, what else did you want to discuss?"

Both Pitta and Martins hesitated at first, but then Martins pulled out a file that immediately caught Richard's attention.

"Mr. Richard, no offense, right? Before you see this file, I want to say this player is very talented. We want to offer him, but—" he paused.

"But?"

Had it been anyone else, they probably could have tried to deceive him. But since this was Richard Maddox, someone who understood football and money, they dared not. They hoped he would be compassionate enough as a fellow football player.

"An accident happened. My player here had some bad luck—he got into a swimming pool accident, and we are trying to find a new club for him."

Richard frowned at this. He picked up the file given to him and scanned it. When he saw it was actually a career-threatening spinal fracture, even he knew it was basically the end for a footballer.

He shook his head.

Pitta and Martins sighed. To be honest, they knew it was almost pointless coming here, but they had hoped that since Richard was a former footballer himself, he might understand.

"Alright then, Mr. Richard, thank you for your time, we—"

Pitta stopped mid-sentence. He froze when he saw Richard fix his gaze on the name and the picture in the file. Richard gripped the papers tightly, his eyes locked on the page.

"Huft, huft..."

Indeed, Richard's breath became rough. What he saw was a handsome young man smiling in the photograph. The name read: Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite.

The name was barely familiar, but the face—oh, the face. Richard knew immediately. He didn't need to read further.

It was Kaká, or Ricardo Kaká.

"Oh my..."

A chill ran through the room. Richard leaned back slightly, still staring at the photo, his eyes fixed on the smiling young man. He spoke almost under his breath:

"So this is him… Kaká."

Martins and Pitta exchanged confused glances. Before they could even ask what had happened, Richard had already dropped the bomb.

"If you can convince his family to let this boy move to Manchester," Richard said, his voice firm, "then I will give each of you 25% of the transfer fee when Kaká moves to Manchester City."

The room went silent. Martins and Pitta's jaws dropped. They had expected interest—but nothing like this.

"You… you mean it?" Martins finally stammered, his voice barely audible.

"I don't joke about this," Richard replied, his gaze unwavering.

The only real problem here was Kaká's family. They were financially secure. Money was never the issue. The challenge was convincing them that moving their son to Manchester—so far from home—was the right choice. But with Kaká recently injured, Richard now saw an opportunity.

The medical facilities in England were far more advanced than those in Brazil.

Yes, his family could afford the best care in Brazil, but at the end of the day, Manchester City could guarantee it, with long-term monitoring and development—something no regular medical facility or Brazilian club could offer at that level.