He was clever on the pitch, but very low-key off it.
Among the famous Brazilian "Three Rs"—Rivaldo, Ronaldo Nazário, and Ronaldinho—he had once been the leading figure.
But later, he became the one with the least presence in the eyes of fans.
Someone like that?
Of course he wouldn't have any problem with Kai's statement.
At the same time, David Beckham clearly felt better after hearing Kai's words.
Victoria Beckham felt even better.
The Ballon d'Or itself didn't matter that much to her.
What mattered more?
Beckham's image.
Kai's speech didn't just defend Beckham's ability—it highlighted something even more valuable:
His charm, his effort, and the parts people often ignored.
Victoria had already started planning how to package and market that.
As for the other professional players?
Most of them actually agreed with Kai.
Because every year, across different leagues, there are always several players who deserve the Ballon d'Or.
Choosing one isn't wrong.
But does that mean the others are unworthy?
Of course not.
Kai's words gave those "almost winners" a bit of psychological comfort.
Sometimes, that's all it takes to calm people down.
After the ceremony, debates exploded everywhere.
Beckham clearly had more fans than Rivaldo.
But Rivaldo was the core player of his team—that mattered.
And importantly, Beckham himself didn't complain publicly.
Rivaldo didn't stir the pot either.
So in the end, the most widely accepted opinion was Kai's:
Rivaldo deserved it.
But if Beckham had won?
No one would've complained.
And then… something unexpected happened.
The price of Beckham-signed footballs skyrocketed.
They became ridiculously hard to find.
If you wanted one, you had to go through shady channels in Lisbon's black market, where maybe—maybe—a few would leak out.
Then came the ultimate scam—
Blind box signed football auctions.
Each box guaranteed:
At least one Beckham autograph
Plus signatures from other stars
The catch?
The price was insane.
One box could cost as much as:
20 balls signed by Pep Guardiola
Or 5 balls signed by Luís Figo
Sometimes, you'd even get rare signatures like:
Zinedine Zidane
Cristiano Ronaldo
And once all the boxes were sold?
Profit margins could reach nearly ten times the cost.
Kai's parents were stunned.
"Isn't this just straight-up robbery?!"
Kai shrugged.
"This? This is just getting started."
"If you do it properly, making a hundred times or even a thousand times profit isn't impossible."
"In the future, people won't care about cost price anymore. They'll care about perceived value."
"And as long as someone's willing to buy… you can price it however the hell you want."
Soon, a new phrase spread among Lisbon fans:
"Oh… Guardiola again."
Meaning:
Damn, unlucky as hell today.
Fans even started roasting each other:
"Got Guardiola today, huh?"
"Bullshit—you're the real Guardiola!"
"Screw you—your whole family is Guardiola!"
"You'll be Guardiola for life!"
Meanwhile, when Guardiola himself came to Lisbon for a commercial signing event…
He was smiling like an idiot.
"Wow… am I really this popular in Portugal?"
"Even fans in Spain don't talk about me this much!"
Time moved into the year 2000.
January 4 — Sporting Lisbon beat Disporta.
January 11 — Sporting Lisbon beat Boavista.
Two more wins.
Their record became a terrifying 15 wins and 3 losses.
Kai's first-half stats:
25 goals + 19 assists.
Top scorer.
Top assist leader.
Absolute dominance.
Then came the winter break.
January 15 — FIFA World Player of the Year ceremony.
Beckham… finished second again.
Gabriel Batistuta came third.
And once again—
Rivaldo took the crown.
Two of the biggest individual honors in one year.
But Beckham?
His popularity exploded even further.
Being handsome wasn't rare.
Being handsome and tragic?
Now that hits different.
Who doesn't love a man with a story?
Just like Keanu Reeves later in life—his experiences made people love him even more.
Beckham was evolving.
From "just a pretty face" to:
A man whose effort and pain made him even more attractive.
Looks, talent, character—
He had it all.
Sure, he lost the Ballon d'Or.
But he gained the hearts of millions.
Not exactly a loss.
Meanwhile, beneath all this hype…
Something was brewing in Portuguese football.
On the second day of the winter break, Sporting Lisbon made it official:
The first-team coach was fired.
Because the team sat 6th in the league, worse than last season's 4th-place finish.
And that was after signing stars like Mário Jardel.
The coach was furious.
"Jardel scored 18 goals in half a season!"
"Ricardo Quaresma just joined the first team and already has 6 goals and 6 assists!"
"And last year? Simão Sabrosa only scored 10 goals all season!"
"I overachieved!"
"If results are still bad, maybe the squad just isn't good enough!"
"Why the hell am I getting fired?!"
From start to finish, he never doubted his assistant.
The tactical system designed for Jardel and Quaresma?
Complicated as hell.
Honestly, he'd only seen that level of coordination before—with Cristiano Ronaldo and Kai.
Expecting others to replicate it?
Yeah… good luck with that.
Meanwhile, the assistant coach was losing his mind.
"I can't sleep… I seriously can't sleep!"
"I'm terrified people will realize I don't understand tactics at all!"
"I'm just copying what Kai said back then!"
"If you ask me why it works—I have no fucking idea!"
"If I actually knew all that, would I still be coaching U15 kids?!"
"Young Master Kai… Coach Triguera… please save me!"
"I'm scared the fans will roast me to death online!"
"I'm scared the club will sack me too!"
As for the fired coach?
He quickly found a new job with Gondomar S.C. in the Portuguese second division.
Before leaving, he even invited the assistant to join him.
He genuinely believed in the guy.
Wanted to help him climb the coaching ladder.
The assistant refused.
He didn't buy it at all.
Recognition? From you?
Yeah… no thanks.
Right now, he wasn't even sure who the real fraud was.
Honestly, getting fired might've been the best thing that ever happened to that coach.
The assistant didn't dare think too far ahead.
He just believed one thing:
Sooner or later—
Kai and Triguera would take over the first team.
And when that day came…
He'd finally be saved from this nightmare.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can visit my Patreon page:
Patreon.com/PhoeniXcel
I upload 2 chapters daily on Patreon!
There are 170+ advanced chapters available for you to read.
Your support would be greatly appreciated.
📢 Check out my new Naruto fanfic!
[One Piece: Pirate Chat Group]