Chapter 306: Chapter 74: A Genius’s Predicament! The Fastest Goal in History! Dortmund Goes Wild! Wang Shuo, UEFA Has Its Eyes on You

On the morning after the team crashed out of the DFB-Pokal, France Football Magazine published a piece of news.

...

"Wang, you have to treat us!"

Wang Shuo had just finished his extra training and walked into the locker room when an excited Foyelner grabbed him.

This left Wang Shuo completely baffled.

But before he could even ask what was going on, Subotic chimed in with a laugh, "You definitely have to treat us, and make it a big one."

"Yeah, it’s gotta be a big one," the surrounding teammates echoed, joining in the fun.

Wang Shuo was still totally confused.

"Hold on, treating you guys is no big deal, but can someone tell me what’s actually happening?"

After his time at Mainz, Wang Shuo was now well-versed in the practice of treating teammates to meals.

Besides, with his current salary, wasn’t treating everyone an effortless task?

In the end, it was his "little brother" Mario Götze who, with a look of envy, admiration, and worship, handed him a freshly printed copy of *Bild*. The open page prominently featured a news article.

France Football Magazine had announced the 30-man shortlist for the 2009 European Golden Ball Award on its official website.

The moment Wang Shuo saw the article, Götze’s expression, and the reactions of everyone around him, a wave of ecstasy washed over him. ’Could it be...?’

Wang Shuo took the newspaper and followed Götze’s gesture, his eyes scanning down the page until he quickly found his own name.

Dortmund: Wang Shuo!

When Wang Shuo saw his name, he was still a bit stunned.

He blinked hard, looked again, and then again, just to be sure he wasn’t mistaken.

It really was Wang Shuo!

’My God, this is incredible!’

Wang Shuo was completely at a loss for what to do.

In Luckenwalde Castle, if you wanted to buy a newspaper, you usually had to go to a convenience store at a gas station, or a supermarket.

But when he had left the house, today’s papers weren’t out yet.

Now, seeing it, he could hardly believe his eyes.

"Don’t forget to treat us, Wang!" Subotic slung an arm around Wang Shuo’s shoulders, equally excited.

Foyelner also stood beside Wang Shuo, sharing in the glory.

The three of them had all come from Mainz, so their bond was naturally exceptional.

Reus, Götze, and the others were also happy for Wang Shuo, as they often trained together.

At this moment, the strength of Wang Shuo’s relationships in the locker room became apparent.

Even Valdes, who competed with him for a position, was thoroughly impressed and came over to congratulate him. After all, making the 30-man shortlist was already a huge achievement.

No one doubted that this season’s Golden Ball Award and World Footballer of the Year would belong to Messi.

Some even said that Barça would sweep the top three spots.

Because of last season’s treble!

Across the entire Bundesliga, with its 18 teams and four to five hundred first-team players, only three made the Golden Ball Award top 30 shortlist.

They were Wang Shuo from Dortmund, Ribery from Bayern, and Dzeko from VfL Wolfsburg.

Strictly speaking, maybe it should be considered four.

But Diego had already transferred to Juventus, so he wasn’t counted on the Bundesliga’s list.

For Wang Shuo, this was already a very big achievement.

"When was the last time someone from our team made the European Golden Ball Award longlist?"

Amidst the celebration, Wang Shuo overheard his teammates’ discussion.

"2003, I think. Jan Koller made the longlist, but if I remember correctly, he only got one vote that year."

’The 2003 Golden Ball went to Nedved, who, like Jan Koller, was from the Czech Republic.’

Wang Shuo had long heard of the famous Czech target man.

The Dortmund fans still remembered him well.

They said that in those years, Dortmund was mired in financial difficulties and the team lacked overall competitiveness. It was Jan Koller who single-handedly carried the team, maintaining Dortmund’s competitive edge in the Bundesliga.

"Actually, in the past few years, fewer and fewer Bundesliga players have been nominated for the Golden Ball Award. I think in ’04 and ’05, there was only one each year."

"Yeah, just one. In ’04, it was that Greek striker from Werder Bremen."

"In ’05, it was Bayern’s Ballack."

"There were a few more in ’06, three of them: Werder Bremen’s Klose, and Bayern’s Podolski and Kahn."

"Podolski and Klose were one-season wonders. Back then, Podolski was only 21 and broke straight into the top 20 of the Golden Ball rankings. Everyone thought he’d become the next world-level star."

"That’s normal. There are a lot of one-season wonders."

"Speaking of which, Ronaldo is a real beast. He made the Golden Ball list for the first time in ’04 and immediately ranked 12th with 11 votes, more than Kaka who was also nominated for the first time."

"What year did Messi make the Golden Ball longlist?"

"’06, I think."

"Wow, that’s a crazy coincidence! Look, Messi was 19 in ’06, Ronaldo was 19 in ’04, and Wang is 19 this year!"

As they said this, everyone suddenly turned their heads to look at Wang Shuo.

Wang Shuo had been listening to the gossip, secretly feeling delighted when he heard he was 19, the same age as Messi and Ronaldo were for their first nominations.

When everyone suddenly looked over, he didn’t have time to hide his smile and couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

"Why are you all looking at me like that?"

"Wang, I knew it! You’re just pretending to be all cool and reserved," Foyelner said, laughing.

"You’re bursting with joy on the inside but still acting like it’s nothing."

Everyone immediately broke into laughter.

Still, it really was pretty amazing.

"I’m starting to believe more and more in the weight of what Beckenbauer said."