Chapter 258: Chapter 258

Ronaldo patted his chest, looking full of confidence, as if the whole world was under his control.

He turned around, waved his hand boldly, and headed into the tunnel with long strides.

Tang Long’s eyes lit up instantly, and he followed to see if what Ronaldo said was true.

Bonazzoli was initially a bit hesitant, but seeing Tang Long follow, he hurriedly jogged to catch up too.

The two had different goals with their own thoughts, but if they could actually get into Barça’s locker room, there was obviously no downside.

The three were in the stands of the audience seats.

For safety reasons, the exit passage of the audience and the players is strictly separated.

To enter the players’ area from the spectators’ area, you have to pass through several checkpoints.

At each checkpoint, stadium staff are stationed there.

Ordinary people simply can’t get through.

But Ronaldo is after all Ronaldo, with a face known to everyone.

Anyone related to the football industry certainly recognizes the famous "Alien".

At each checkpoint, Ronaldo strode confidently, slightly smiling and nodding at the staff, and surprisingly, they passed smoothly and continued straight through with the two of them.

"Wow, Ronaldo is here too!"

"Oh my God, I actually saw the Alien in person!"

The staff showed expressions of excitement, not only not stopping them but rather vying to take photos with Ronaldo.

Occasionally, someone asked, and Ronaldo would say that his fellow Brazilian Neymar specially invited the three to the locker room.

After all, Ronaldo also played in Barcelona for a year, and he had a very good relationship with fellow Brazilian Neymar, so the staff didn’t probe further.

A few also recognized Tang Long and chatted with him pleasantly for a bit.

As for Bonazzoli, almost no one recognized him, just considering him a friend of the two.

In short, on the way to the players’ area, the staff continuously allowed Ronaldo, Tang Long, and Bonazzoli to pass.

"Hehe, didn’t I tell you guys? I’m not bragging, even if I don’t run a company or play in business anymore, just with my face, I won’t have to worry about food and drink for the rest of my life."

In front of the two younger ones, Ronaldo was basking in his glory and couldn’t help bragging about himself again.

Bonazzoli now fully believed it and couldn’t help but wonder when he could earn a living with just his face.

After passing through several checkpoints, the three of them headed towards Barça’s locker room.

Bonazzoli was extremely excited and couldn’t wait to take a photo with Neymar.

But the person Tang Long most wanted to meet was Barcelona’s midfielder Iniesta.

He really wanted to ask this Spanish midfielder about how he executed those intricate combinations between the midfielders.

Many moves Tang Long had only seen with his own eyes, but he simply couldn’t pull them off at Inter.

In the tunnel, Ronaldo saw from afar someone standing at the door of Barça’s locker room and took a deep breath.

He knew that even if they passed all the previous checkpoints, it would be in vain if they couldn’t pass this one.

"I only played at Barça for a year, and that was almost 20 years ago, then I played a few years at their arch-rival Real Madrid, so I don’t really interact much with Barça people, would they still show me respect?"

Suddenly his steps hesitated a bit.

After all, bringing people here was just a whim, without any prior appointment.

Neymar does have a good relationship with him, but this guy always changes his number, the old number hasn’t worked in ages.

However, since he had already boasted in front of his two younger ones, how could Ronaldo retreat?

At the final hurdle, he decided to just keep walking forward!

When he got to the entrance and saw the person guarding the door, Ronaldo broke into a wide smile, and all his apprehension vanished.

Ronaldo knew this person; he was the kit manager when he played at Barça.

Eighteen years ago, when Ronaldo was playing La Liga for Barça, he knew this person.

Ronaldo opened his arms, warmly approached him, thinking it’s always easier to talk to someone familiar, and this final hurdle might be the easiest one.

"Hey! Garcia, do you remember me!"

Barça’s kit manager Garcia looked up at Ronaldo and was stunned for a moment, then excitement appeared on his face.

"Ronaldo! What are you doing here!"

"You’ve gotten old, your hair has turned white, I didn’t expect you’d still be at Barça, we haven’t seen each other for almost twenty years, right?"

"Haha, you’re the same! Not only have you aged, you’ve gotten fat too!"

Old friends meeting, the two exchanged pleasantries, and Ronaldo introduced Tang Long and Bonazzoli to Garcia.

Tang Long glanced at the tightly closed Barça locker room door. From inside, there were faint sounds of laughter and shouting. No doubt, Barça’s players were celebrating wildly, champagne was definitely involved.

However, when Ronaldo said he wanted to take the two of them inside, Garcia frowned and refused without hesitation.

"Sorry, dear Ronnie, you don’t have an appointment, you can’t go in."

"What appointment? I just want to chat with my Brazilian buddy Neymar, congratulate him in person for winning the Champions League. Just let us in, it’ll only take a few minutes," Ronaldo chuckled.

"No way, the club specifically instructed me, no outsiders are allowed through this door after the match, not even the German Chancellor!" Garcia insisted firmly.

Ronaldo’s eyelid twitched, and he held back his words.

Bouncing off this closed door was really something, especially in front of familiar faces, making Ronaldo lose face in front of Tang Long and Bonazzoli.

Bonazzoli tugged at Ronaldo’s sleeve and mumbled, "Big brother, maybe we should just forget it and head back."

Tang Long watched Ronaldo getting rejected, remembering his confident chest-pounding earlier, and couldn’t help but chuckle.

Ronaldo could only brace himself and argue with Garcia.

I’m a forward, I’ve gotten past five or six people, just to be denied the final goal? That’s not fair, I can’t swallow this.

The two of them had a heated exchange outside the Barça locker room.

But no matter how much Ronaldo wheedled, Garcia wouldn’t open the door, even threatening to call security if Ronaldo kept it up.

Just then, the locker room door creaked open.

Neymar, with only his underwear on, topless, his firm muscles still smelled of champagne.

Looks like he’d had quite a bit to drink.

It turned out that the argument between Ronaldo and Garcia piqued Neymar’s curiosity as he passed by the door, so he opened it to see what was happening outside.

Neymar poked his head out and saw Ronaldo standing at the door.

Their eyes met, both were taken aback.

Ronaldo brushed aside Garcia’s hand blocking him and hugged Neymar.

"Little brother, congrats, you’ve won the Champions League, something I’ve never achieved!"

Neymar glanced at Tang Long and Bonazzoli behind Ronaldo, then smiled at him, "Come in, have some champagne with us!"

Before Garcia could react, the three of them slipped inside.

Inside the locker room was a mess, red champagne splattered across the floor, mingled with strong scents of sweat and foot odor.

The Barça players, who had been singing and dancing, stopped curiously when they saw Ronaldo had come in with two youngsters in tow, and the room quieted down.

Ronaldo, ever the socialite, high-fived each player, congratulating them on winning their second treble in club history.

Behind him stood the two 18-year-olds, Tang Long and Bonazzoli, more like sidekicks.

Tang Long managed a smile and greeted everyone, while Bonazzoli was visibly tense, even forgetting he came to get a photo with Neymar.

"Tang? Congratulations, I watched Inter’s UEFA Europa League final against Seville, you were spectacular, you controlled the midfield."

As he spoke, an inconspicuous, skinny figure approached Tang Long, extending a hand.

This world-class midfielder, unremarkable in appearance, almost bald.

But the genuine smile on his face quickly bridged the gap with Tang Long.

Tang Long shook Iniesta’s hand tightly, constantly studying him.

Though Tang Long had learned passing from Iniesta in the AI Cloud Training Ground, it was his first time meeting him in person.

Tang Long and Iniesta exchanged some pleasantries, and the two of them sat down in the locker room for a chat.

After about ten minutes, Ronaldo took his leave, and the three of them departed.

On the flight back to Milan,

Ronaldo couldn’t help but ask Tang Long, "What were you and Iniesta talking about? Are you two close?"

Tang Long replied, "I asked him a lot of football-related questions, and he answered them all patiently. I also asked Iniesta why he and his teammates are able to execute such precise one-touch passes to break through pressure, and why I can’t do it at Inter."

"Uh, what did he say?"

"He said... he was very tactful, but I understood his point. It’s because his teammates are very skilled, stronger than Inter’s midfield."

Ronaldo nodded thoughtfully, then asked Tang Long, "So, how do you feel about that?"