Chapter 621: Chapter 65: The Bat Legion, Old Friends, and Charity

On the other hand, as a strong contender for the Ballon d’Or, they also plan to enhance Chen Zhong’s personal image.

And charity is clearly a good direction.

Lately, a relatively popular "concept" has emerged, which is sports philanthropy.

The promoters of sporting philanthropic activities are usually athletes, sports organizations, or companies, each representing its own brand image.

In society, brands want to be seen as good "citizens;" the bigger the brand, the greater the corporate social responsibility (CSR) it must bear.

In Ancient Greece, Aristotle proposed the concept of a city-state, where noble citizens coexist harmoniously with an ideal city-state, needing to have enthusiasm and rationality while participating in public life.

Sports fans have distinct characteristics: they are passionate, have faith, and are full of positive energy, making them ideal supporters of philanthropy.

They maintain a high degree of long-term loyalty to the teams, players, or sports products they support.

At the same time, sports consumption is a form of enjoyment and development-driven consumption. Loyal sports fans, especially sports participants, pursue quality of life and generally have higher education and income levels. As a result, the quantity of sports-related philanthropic marketing has increased dramatically. Sports philanthropy marketing is currently the most profitable category in the field of philanthropic marketing, and its growth rate remains stable.

There are many types of sports philanthropic marketing, including charitable activities, corporate donations, social capital, point-of-sale donations, and provision of sales percentages. However, regardless of the project structure of sports philanthropic marketing, the ultimate goal is to inspire the audience to take action through an inspiring cooperative relationship.

Mata’s plan, after a brief understanding by Pimenta, has been very well approved.

1% contribution, image enhancement more than 1%

The winner of the Ballon d’Or, although not explicitly stated, actually has implicit requirements for their image on the field.

If a player’s image on and off the field is poor, no matter how well they perform, they may not win this award.

On this night, Negredo privately communicated with coach Mourinho about his desire to leave, as Negredo has already sensed his crisis within the team.

Once, Soldado was Real Madrid’s number 9, the weakest number 9 in history.

And now, he is also the weakest number 9 in history.

Soldado left Real Madrid and flourished at Valencia, while Negredo also wants to venture into a new environment.

Once, he longed for this white jersey, but after donning it, the overwhelming presence of geniuses behind him and the media’s clamor made Negredo feel on edge.

Negredo did not first discuss this matter with Chen Zhong because he did not know how to start the conversation. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Upon learning of Negredo’s transfer request, Mourinho did not try to retain him. Although the player has occasional ability, he does not suit Mourinho’s tactics, and his abilities aren’t sufficiently convincing.

Mourinho actually has a rather favored target.

It’s not Castilla’s Joselu, nor the young Morata, nor Benzema and Higuain.

But rather, it’s Edin Džeko, currently playing for Wolfsburg.

Despite Wolfsburg’s current crisis, ranked only 13th in the Bundesliga, their top scorer Edin Džeko has performed well, scoring 9 goals and ranking third on the scorer’s list.

This 24-year-old striker was on Mourinho’s summer signing list, but because the team already had enough center forwards, including Negredo, a player somewhat similar to Džeko and with a good relationship with Chen Zhong, Real Madrid did not pursue further negotiations.

Of course, the 25 million Euros price is also a factor.

However, with Negredo having requested a transfer to the club executives, Džeko has become the top target for Real Madrid to bolster their front line.

Almeida is still being discussed, but clearly, after discussions between the executives and Mourinho, Džeko’s name has become a central topic in the office.

Mourinho frequently mentioned Džeko’s name, filled with affection for this center forward.

Mourinho’s requirements for a number 9 center forward.

Džeko basically meets all of them.

Firstly, he is 1.92 meters tall, very diligent on the field, skilled in holding the ball with his back to the goal, and also scores, scores a lot of goals.

He is one of the assassins of the Bundesliga, having scored 9 goals in 14 appearances this season, including 3 headers. Over the past three and a half years, he has scored an impressive 66 goals.

Additionally, Džeko can play in the Champions League, making Real Madrid’s plans to sign him even more enticing.

Equally important is that the Bosnian forward is open to joining Real Madrid, and during initial talks, he expressed that if Real Madrid is sincere, he might even put pressure on Wolfsburg.

Moreover, Džeko’s agent, Irfan, also conveyed goodwill through various channels: "Džeko told me that joining Real Madrid is the dream goal of professional players, and saying ’no’ to Real Madrid is clearly foolish."

Of course, Real Madrid hasn’t ruled out Almeida as an option; he remains one of their considered targets.

Mourinho already knew Almeida quite well during his time at Porto, and this season at Werder Bremen, he also scored 9 goals. Moreover, Almeida has the same agent as Mourinho and Cristiano Ronaldo.

There are plenty of other options, like Lukaku, Joselu, Morata, but in the eyes of Real Madrid’s executives, Lukaku, Morata, and Joselu are all considered future prospects, unable to serve an immediate purpose.

Among them, Lukaku himself is not in a hurry to leave Belgian Anderlecht because he needs to complete his studies, so he is unwilling to put pressure on Anderlecht.

Of course, there is also Mourinho’s favorite type, the physically robust player currently at Manchester City, Adebayor. Interestingly, Manchester City is a strong competitor for Negredo, and if this deal is completed, it would be like swapping clubs.

Adebayor has no rapport with Mancini, but the Togo forward has been a disruptive influence in the locker room at several clubs, which Mourinho dislikes.

There is actually one more option, which is Fernando.

This once renowned striker, after the last encounter with Real Madrid, recommended himself to Real Madrid through an intermediary, but Florentino does not wish to cause a dispute with Atletico Madrid.

Moreover, Fernando is also aging.

Amid the undercurrents, match day quietly arrived.

Outside the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, fans from both teams gathered like a river.

Real Madrid had just defeated Barcelona by a large margin at Camp Nou, and this match against the third team in La Liga also attracted a lot of fans’ attention.

Tickets for the Bernabeu were hard to come by.

Domestic attention to this match was also very high.

"CCTV, CCTV."

"Now, we are bringing you live coverage of the 14th round of the La Liga."

"The match between Real Madrid and Valencia at Real Madrid’s home ground."

"We can see fans from both teams are entering the venue in an orderly manner."

"In the last El Clasico, Real Madrid performed excellently, defeating Barcelona away from home."

"Chen Zhong completed a hat-trick, claiming MVP honors."

"Can he continue his heroic performance in this match?"

"Let’s wait and see."

Real Madrid completed a double over Valencia last season and has recently been unbeaten against Valencia at home in the league.

The two teams have faced each other 150 times in league history, with Real Madrid holding the advantage with 78 wins, 30 draws, and 42 losses, including 57 wins, 9 draws, and 9 losses at home.

"Real Madrid has made some rotations for this match."

"Alvaro and Albiol have replaced Ramos and Cavaleiro."

"Benzema has replaced Negredo for this match, starting."

"It is worth mentioning that Albiol and Soldado are both starting against their former club in this match."