THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME

After ending the call, Zachary operated with all the haste he could muster. He quickly organized his living room before cleaning up and dressing up. He then settled in his living room to wait for Emily.

As usual, he didn't have to wait long, and Emily knocked on his door at exactly 11:00 AM to the digit.

"Welcome," Zachary said after opening the door. "Let me take that off your hands." He stretched out his hands and motioned for her to hand over the coffee cup holder to him.

"Thank you." Emily beamed as she handed him the small cup holder with four coffee cups. She had donned a light blue lady's business suit that matched the color of her eyes. Her dressing style brought out her lithe figure, and she just looked like a successful young and beautiful woman on the cover of a world-famous business magazine.

"Come in," Zachary said before leading the way into the apartment. Emily followed him, and they quickly settled down on two opposite sofas in the living room. The morning sun rays, passing through the wide window, lit up their faces as they started enjoying their coffee.

"So, what good news do you have for me this time?" Zachary broke the silence with a question after a few more seconds.

The corners of Emily's lips curled up into a gorgeous smile. "First of all," she said, "Let me start by congratulating you upon qualifying for the finals of the Europa League. Your second goal for Rosenborg yesterday was incredible, and it has eased my work to a great extent. You're the best client a football agent can ever wish for."

"Thank you," Zachary said, grinning. "And, of course, you're one of the best agents a footballer can wish for in the world. I hope greats like Messi and Ronaldo won't steal you from me in the future when you make it big."

Emily chuckled. "Jokes aside," she said. "We've made progress with two clubs chasing after your signature. The first one is Tottenham Hotspur. Today morning, the club representatives have confirmed that they will table a bid of 36.5 million Euros + add-ons to Rosenborg for your signature. The add-ons, including player exchanges, loaning agreements, plus other future payments, total about 20 million Euros. So, they have valued you at 56.5 million Euros. If you agree to the move, you would be their most expensive signing in history."

Zachary nodded as he tried his best to calm his racing heart. "What about the salary? How much are they offering?"

Emily smiled. "I was just getting to that," she said. "The Tottenham representatives have promised that the club will pay you 85,000 British Pounds per week if you sign with them. That's an approximate 104,000 Euros in gross weekly income, which would make you the third-highest paid player on their payroll. Only Roberto Soldado and Emmanuel Adebayor would be ahead of you on their pay sheet. As a bonus, they would start paying my fees as your agent annually, which is 10% of your would-be income. I'm sure I can force them to increase your weekly wage if I continue bargaining and playing my cards right over the next few weeks. What do you think?"

"The deal is great," Zachary said while breathing out to calm his agitated emotions. He couldn't believe that one of the big clubs in England had tabled such an amount for his services. It was a dream come true, as far as he was concerned. "First, tell me about the bid from the second club. I'll give you my view after hearing about their offer."

Emily nodded. "The second club that is already in talks with Rosenborg management over your signature is Juventus. The Juventus representatives have already tabled a bid of 58 million Euros + add-ons of about 6 million Euros. That means they've already offered 64 million Euros as their first bid for your signature. So, if you're not against going to the Italian side, the Rosenborg top management will be doing their best to sell you to the Italians at around that fee."

"What about the weekly wages?" Zachary inquired. The buying fee didn't mean much to him as it would mostly be going to his current club. What mattered to him was the weekly wages the club would offer if he signed with them.

"Juventus has promised to pay you a gross weekly wage of 115,000 Euros if you sign with them," Emily answered. "That would allow you to earn about 5.5 million Euros per year, making you their second-highest-paid player next season. From what I've heard, only Paul Pogba would be above you on the pay sheet with a weekly income of 125,000 Euros. The club would also pay my fees as your agent, and their promise is 10% of your wage paid annually. Their offers top those of Tottenham in all aspects. But still, it will be up to you as a player to influence the Rosenborg management and force them to sell you where you want to go."

"I see," Zachary said, leaning back into his seat. He was confused for a moment as all offers were tempting. The salary was something out of his dreams, and he would get to play for top clubs with top players. But what was he to choose? Zachary glanced at Emily. "What's your opinion?"

Emily smiled. "From what I have learned, both clubs are very interested in you as a player. That's why they're both offering you a high income. The only difference between the two clubs is that you might find it hard to adapt quickly to the atmosphere in Turin as opposed to that in London. For instance, you'll have to learn Italian and fight for a place on the squad against world-class players like Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, and Pogba. But, I guess that that can also be a growing experience if you embrace it well."

"On the other hand," Emily continued, "If you choose Tottenham, you can adapt fast since you speak good English. You'll even cement your place in their squad immediately due to your incredible skills, which I believe outmatch those of their current midfielders."

"But there would also be one disadvantage of the move to Tottenham. That is: you won't be able to win trophies easily unless the club buys more players of your caliber. Remember: the English Premier League isn't like the Norwegian League. Defenders and midfielders are very physical, and you can't carry the team on your shoulders when you're only two or three players on the team with class. A team would even need great luck or a balanced squad to have a chance of winning any trophy. So, if Tottenham doesn't buy more players, you might not win another trophy for years."

"I understand," Zachary said, sinking into a moment of contemplation. He wasn't worried that Tottenham would lack players of class. Based on the knowledge from his previous life, he understood that young talents like Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen, Erik Lamela, Heung-min Son, Eric Dier, and Kyle Walker, among others, were about to come into the picture. Under the guidance of Mauricio Pochettino, the soon-to-be Tottenham head coach, they would play great football for several seasons. They would reach the finals of several cups, including the UEFA Champions League final. But in the end, they would lose all of them and remain trophyless over the following decade.

Be that as it may, Zachary was sure they were just an unfortunate team in their endeavors. They only needed a slight push to change their trajectory in history, and they would do wonders in his new life. And Zachary believed he could be that push that altered their fate as a club.

"Keep pushing for the deal with Tottenham," Zachary said after contemplating. "Try your best to push for an increase in our proposed wages over the next few weeks. But don't agree to anything until after I have played the Europa League final."

"I get you," Emily said, nodding. "What about Juventus? Should I shrug off their offers, like what I have been doing with other clubs?"

"Don't do that," Zachary said, shaking his head. "As you already said, they are also keen on signing me. So, let's maintain a wait-and-see attitude until after the final. At the moment, I obviously still prefer Tottenham because it'll be easy for me to adapt to life in London. But if Juventus comes up with a hard-to-refuse offer, for instance, a large signing bonus and a similarly mouth-watering weekly income, then I'll consider them too. Honestly, I'm still a bit undecided on where to go."

"I understand." Emily chuckled. "You need time to process all the information I have just given you. But I'm sure you'll make the right choice after thinking things through. Just take your time since there's currently no pressure to make an immediate decision on our side. As for the offers from the other clubs, like Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United, I shrugged them off after realizing that you weren't interested. Is that okay?"

"That's for the best," Zachary replied. "It's okay to focus on only Tottenham and Juventus for the moment. Transfer deals aside, how far with my grandma's Schengen identity card?"

"The identity card will be ready in a week's time," Emily replied. "How's your grandma, by the way? I have been busy with transfer deals. I haven't managed to check on her during the past two weeks."

"She's doing okay," Zachary replied. "But three days ago, the doctors informed me they would extend her stay in the hospital's rehabilitation center for roughly fifteen more days. They intend to conduct a few more tests to determine whether she has completely recovered before discharging her. So, that's when I'll require the identity card to transfer her to Norway."

"The ID will be ready," Emily said. "And the timing is just perfect since you'll just have finished playing the finals. You can concentrate on helping your grandma settle down without too many worries."

"I also like the timing," Zachary agreed. "Let's hope the final tests go okay. I'll only feel at ease after the doctors have assured me that she has totally recovered."

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