This party was organized by Beckham's wife, Victoria, who is extremely skilled at networking and maneuvering.
The opportunity arose when Zidane and Figo came to England to shoot a major commercial with Beckham.
Victoria knew that Sir Alex Ferguson disliked her, and she didn't like the old man who controlled Beckham either.
She had been looking for opportunities to help Beckham leave Manchester United.
It was rumored that Real Madrid's new president, Florentino Pérez, had promised during his campaign to bring in a superstar every year.
He wanted to build Real Madrid into the ultimate Galácticos of world football.
Zidane, Ronaldo, Beckham, Totti… all of them were on his radar.
Didn't Figo just move to Real Madrid?
He must know something.
"He's a schemer," Figo said, changing his tone slightly, "but I have to admit—he dares to do things that sound unbelievable."
Deschamps' eyes widened beside him, silently making it clear that this had nothing to do with him.
Not to mention he was already nearly thirty-three—even at his peak, he probably wouldn't have met Florentino's standards for signings.
He wasn't that kind of superstar.
Deschamps had only come today because he had plans with Zidane. When he heard Zidane was attending an event organized by the "Footballers' Wives Association," he tagged along.
Deschamps' wife was planning to start a fashion-related business and had always wanted to join this star-studded circle.
On the other side, Matthäus' expression darkened slightly.
What a pity.
If he were ten years younger—no, even five… hell, even three years younger—he would definitely have qualified to be one of Real Madrid's next superstar signings.
During the conversation, Zidane casually brought the topic to Kai: "What do you think of Real Madrid?"
Kai looked at Zidane and smiled. "A great club."
Zidane: "Compared to Juventus?"
Kai: "One represents the past and present. The other represents the present and future."
Zidane shook his head. "If both clubs wanted you, which would you choose?"
Kai replied calmly, "The one without problems."
Zidane frowned, clearly not understanding.
"You've always been smart, Zizou," Kai said meaningfully. "There's no way you haven't felt the changes… and the strange atmosphere in Serie A."
Zidane froze slightly and said nothing.
While they were talking, Maxa was on the other side passionately discussing things with Matthäus and Deschamps.
Both of them were very interested in transitioning into coaching.
Deschamps even said bluntly that he was planning to move from Chelsea to Valencia. His playing career was nearing its end—where he played, or even whether he played at all, didn't matter anymore.
What mattered was that Valencia's coach, Héctor Cúper, was excellent, and Deschamps hoped to learn from him.
Maxa remembered what Kai had told him before bringing him here. Puffing up his chest, he said:
"Cúper is definitely an outstanding coach, especially when it comes to defense."
"But because of that—no offense, Deschamps—you won't get many opportunities under him. A coach who specializes in defensive systems doesn't rely heavily on defensive midfielders. And… you're not exactly young anymore."
"Of course, if your goal is to learn from Cúper, there's actually no need."
"Top championship teams are never the best place to learn tactics. What you see there are already perfected systems—you don't see the messy process where tactics and players either click… or completely fail to integrate."
"That messy phase is where coaching skills are truly developed."
"You're already an excellent player. You don't lack professionalism. What you lack is the fusion of theory and real-world application."
"From that perspective, teams that are undergoing major rebuilding this season are your best opportunity. Especially if they have a strong coach, or a coaching staff open to tactical discussions and player experimentation."
Deschamps was stunned.
The more he thought about it, the more sense it made.
Valencia had just reached the Champions League final, and Cúper was one of the hottest coaches in Europe. Everyone was studying his system.
But… was that enough?
Knowing a coach's style doesn't mean you can replicate it.
It's not that simple.
Maxa continued: "By the way, Cúper isn't great at communication, and his relationships with players can easily become strained—just like Van Gaal."
"To be honest—and I'm not bragging—Sporting Lisbon might actually suit you better."
"If you're willing to join us, I can talk to Mr. Trigueira and arrange for you to join the coaching staff while still playing."
"Really?" Deschamps was clearly tempted.
Maxa smiled slightly. "I may not have much influence elsewhere, but at Sporting Lisbon… my words still carry weight."
Deschamps nodded repeatedly, clearly planning to think about it seriously.
Meanwhile, his wife Claude was also calculating things in her mind.
If Deschamps joined Sporting Lisbon, wouldn't he become teammates with Hathaway's boyfriend?
Then getting closer to Hathaway would be easy.
And in this football wives' circle, the core figures were clearly Victoria and Hathaway.
Everyone could see that Victoria was actively getting close to Hathaway.
Claude also wanted to do fashion business with Victoria—so Hathaway's support would be extremely important.
She made up her mind to persuade Deschamps after they returned—to make sure he joined Sporting Lisbon.
…
"Hey, Kai—I remember you."
Matthäus walked over with a glass of wine.
"I'm really sorry," Kai said immediately. "I couldn't tell you anything during the European Championship. I was afraid it would affect your mindset. My predictions were just guesses."
Ignoring his calls really wasn't a good look.
"You should've told me earlier," Matthäus said. "Then I wouldn't have even bothered playing in this tournament. Now people are blaming me for Germany not even making it out of the group stage."
Kai laughed. "That sounds like something Bayern fans would come up with."
Matthäus nodded. He also felt that Bayern fans were behind it.
Although Bayern had held a farewell match for him at the end of May, with many fans attending…
There were still plenty of people—within the club and among the fans—who disliked him.
He had never been particularly popular.
Many fans even blamed him for Bayern's Champions League exit that year.
Now both the Champions League and the European Championship had turned into giant scapegoats—and even Matthäus couldn't carry that weight anymore.
He had originally planned to return to Europe and play for another year or two.
But now…
He was seriously considering retiring immediately.
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