Chapter 1262: Chapter 1262

Paris Saint-Germain's training base is very small.

Just a few steps separate one area from another.

It was even possible that what Gao Shen said earlier in the restaurant was overheard by the players training outside.

And even if it wasn't heard directly, the news would spread through the dressing room quickly after training.

Everyone was surprised, but they seemed to understand.

Gao Shen's reputation in the football world is legendary. Every team he has built has gone on to win the Champions League. His coaching style is known for its professionalism and data-driven precision.

According to players who had previously worked with Gao Shen—such as Benatia, Cavani, Kanté, Jorginho, and Navas from Leeds United—his comments made it clear: the easy days at PSG were over.

"Get ready for the tough times ahead," Benatia said with a wry smile.

His words sounded like a warning, but in his eyes, one could clearly see anticipation.

"It's tough at top clubs, but they win titles and run professionally," said captain Thiago Silva.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

The legends surrounding Gao Shen have been widely circulated in football circles across Europe and even globally in recent years.

As professional players, they were well aware of them.

The only question was what to keep and what to abandon.

Do you want comfort, or do you want to win?

The fact that PSG hired someone like Gao Shen showed that the club's leadership was unhappy with the current state of the team and wanted change.

If anyone still wanted a laid-back life, then clearly Paris was no longer the right place for them.

But if they still had ambition and wanted to achieve something, then this was the type of change they should welcome.

In this dressing room, the head coach had endured countless frustrations. The players had too.

Neymar listened in silence to the conversations around him, while also thinking about his own plans and his upcoming talk with Gao Shen. He was curious to know what direction Gao Shen would lead him toward.

While pondering, his eyes casually glanced at a slogan posted on the locker room wall.

Let us realize even bigger dreams!

Suddenly, something stirred in the Brazilian's heart. He realized that neither he nor his teammates really paid attention to that slogan, even though it often appeared in club promotional materials and represented the club's values. Most of the time, they ignored it.

But for some reason, in this moment, when he looked at it, a strange feeling rose inside him.

Can Paris Saint-Germain still dream bigger?

Gao Shen had borrowed Tuchel's office.

He still preferred to sit down and talk with people face-to-face.

Before Neymar arrived, he had a quick chat with Tuchel and Blanc about the club's summer signings. Tuchel strongly agreed with one of Gao Shen's points: the midfield and attack absolutely needed reinforcements.

At the moment, just Neymar and Draxler on the wings was not enough.

The club originally planned to bring in Griezmann, but that deal was clearly difficult. Griezmann preferred to join Barcelona, which could offer similar wages to PSG while providing more opportunities and better prospects.

Di María was staying at Real Madrid and would definitely not come to PSG.

So Tuchel casually proposed another name: Ousmane Dembélé.

Blanc grinned from ear to ear, while Gao Shen was left speechless.

Why does everyone keep trying to poach players from Leeds United?

Ousmane Dembélé is a top-quality player.

At least for now, he's very good.

Just look at his performance at Leeds United. One stat perfectly sums up his ability: his goals and assists with both feet are evenly split.

There are many two-footed players, but one as balanced as Dembélé is truly rare.

Whether it's Real Madrid or PSG, Gao Shen never blocks any attempt to poach Leeds United players.

As long as the money is right, he's open to it.

As for who's available for transfer and who's not, Gao Shen, Lucas, and Borrell have a clear plan.

On the other side, PSG is facing its own dilemma.

Real Betis want to activate the buyout clause for Argentine midfielder Lo Celso.

Right now, PSG's midfield is fairly crowded. Googlᴇ search noveⅼfire.net

They have Kanté, Jorginho, and Rabiot, all brought in from Leeds United. There's also former Real Madrid player Lass Diarra and Leandro Paredes, who joined from Zenit during the winter window. All of them are strong options.

Before Jorginho's injury and Paredes' arrival, Tuchel had even used Marquinhos as a deep-lying midfielder, and the Brazilian did quite well.

Meanwhile, Lo Celso had been loaned out to Real Betis before the season started.

In theory, after Pastore's departure, a midfielder like Lo Celso—who can dribble and progress the ball—should have been valuable. Tuchel had kept a close eye on him, but ultimately did not include him in the squad.

Under Emery, Lo Celso often played as a central or defensive midfielder, but the issue was clear: he lacked defensive reliability.

In Tuchel's system, the deep-lying midfielder had to drop into the defensive line when needed and even act like an auxiliary center-back. Lo Celso couldn't fulfill that role. If deployed as a central midfielder, his off-ball awareness was lacking.

As a South American attacking midfielder, Lo Celso excelled in ball control, forward runs, and passing.

That made him hard to fit into Tuchel's system. He looked great, but Tuchel couldn't figure out how to use him.

More importantly, Tuchel didn't have the time or patience to slowly develop him.

So, PSG loaned Lo Celso to Real Betis for a fee of 3 million euros.

The real issue is what happened after.

Lo Celso initially struggled in La Liga. Coach Setién first tried him as a defensive midfielder, which didn't work. Later, he partnered him with Canales or Joaquín in attacking midfield, and Lo Celso exploded.

Since November, he has been outstanding. His market value has been rising steadily, and Transfermarkt now lists him at 50 million euros.

However, the original loan agreement between PSG and Real Betis set the buyout clause at 22 million euros.

One clause stated that if Real Betis qualified for European competition, they would be obligated to buy him. But since that's unlikely this season, the clause is meaningless.

Still, Real Betis has already started the buyout process.

No matter how you look at it, PSG is losing out on this deal.

Especially when you compare Lo Celso's performances in La Liga to PSG's disjointed midfield this season. Tuchel has to be regretting it.

"We need a clear answer: is Lo Celso in our future plans or not? If not, fine. But if he is, what are we doing?" Blanc asked, clearly troubled.

Real Betis are trying to buy a 50 million midfielder for 22 million.

Gao Shen glanced at Tuchel and silently shook his head.

Tuchel has to bear some responsibility here.

Even if we excuse it as fixture congestion and a lack of time to develop young players, the decisions to loan out Lo Celso and sell Pastore left PSG without any creativity in midfield. Each player played for himself, and there was no cohesion.

Tuchel has to be held accountable.

The German sensed Gao Shen's gaze, glanced back, and then quickly looked away, eyes filled with guilt and shame.

"Lo Celso is a very promising young player. He's talented, with excellent ball control and passing. He's the kind of player we need in midfield," Gao Shen said.

"I think we should keep players like him, give them time and support, and help them find a role that suits the team."

Then he turned to Tuchel. "Thomas, what do you think?"

He was giving Tuchel a way out.

"I agree with you. I misjudged the situation last year," Tuchel admitted.

"That's normal." Gao Shen smiled. "No one's a prophet. That's just football."

With that, the issue was considered closed.

Now it was time to deal with the practical matter.

"Can we talk to Real Betis?" Gao Shen asked.

Blanc shook his head. "It'll be difficult."

Of course it would. The price gap was obvious.

Even Real Madrid had bought back players like Negredo only to resell them for profit.

At the end of the day, this is about business. There's no room for sentiment.

"How do Real Betis plan to pay?" Gao Shen asked. "As far as I know, their finances aren't in great shape."

Blanc's eyes lit up. "They're splitting the payment into three installments. The first two are 7 million euros each, and the last is 8 million."

Gao Shen nodded. That sounded about right for Betis.

The club clearly wasn't flush with cash.

"Then let's stall. Use the Financial Fair Play rules as an excuse and delay things. Drag it out until the loan period ends if possible."

Once the loan ends and Betis hasn't triggered the clause, Lo Celso naturally returns to PSG.

"Real Betis won't be happy," Blanc reminded him.

"That's the best-case scenario. If it really can't be delayed, we negotiate. Worst case, we return the loan fee or even offer a subsidy for training costs. But we must get the player back."

The message was clear: Lo Celso must stay at PSG.

Blanc understood what Gao Shen meant.

"Alright, I'll have someone handle it."

Gao Shen nodded. That settled it.

Lo Celso is only 23 years old. Strong, technical, and capable of pushing the ball forward. A player deserves special attention.

PSG had already ruined two.

The first was Pastore.

Now that Gao Shen is technical director, he has to get things right.

Just then, Neymar arrived.

Blanc and Tuchel both knew the two had a private conversation ahead, so they got up and left.

Gao Shen also sat up straight.

To transform PSG, he had to start with Neymar, the biggest variable.

And Gao Shen had already decided—

He would open with a royal flush.