4 Miserable Attributes
After thorough and repeated examinations at the hospital, it was confirmed that Zhang Xu's body was indeed in perfect condition.
The doctor in charge of the examination even remarked that Zhang Xu's body was as robust as a prehistoric monster, and coming to the hospital for a checkup was almost unnecessary.
Robert, with a wry smile, shook his head and escorted Zhang Xu back. Before they could reach the training ground, he received a call from Philip.
"Yes, indeed, there are no issues. Alright, um, what?!" Suddenly, as he was on the phone, Robert turned to the still-dazed Zhang Xu with a shocked expression. "Uh, okay, I'll let you talk to him."
With that, he handed the phone to Zhang Xu, who was still in a daze. "Zhang, Mr. Philip is on the line."
"Oh, okay! Thank you, Mr. Robert," Zhang Xu snapped back to reality and held the phone to his ear. "Mr. Philip, it's me. Are you calling to ask me to head back to school? Don't worry, I'll pack up and head back..."
"Zhang," Philip's voice on the other end of the phone sounded slightly excited, "I don't think you need to rush to pack up, because... congratulations, you've made it!"
"Made it? Made what?" Clearly, Zhang Xu's mind was still a bit foggy, and he asked in a somewhat bewildered manner.
"Silly kid, you've passed our team's trial, which means you can discuss signing a contract with the club. Young man, I believe you don't have an agent, right? Do you need some advice from me?"
"Passed? Signed?" Upon hearing these two words, Zhang Xu was suddenly overwhelmed. Having failed so many times, he had already given up hope of passing the trial. So when success finally came, he found it a bit hard to accept.
"Finally, I made it! Ah!!!" Zhang Xu, overjoyed to the point of tears, suddenly yelled to the sky, almost startling Robert, who was standing nearby. However, he could understand the outburst from this Chinese boy who had persevered through difficulties to reach this point.
Thirty minutes later, in Philip's office, a contract lay in front of Zhang Xu.
It wasn't a contract for a youth player; it was a semi-professional player contract, with a weekly salary of just €100 euros, equivalent to around Ұ4,500 Chinese yuan per month in his home country.
This salary was already quite low in European football, but for someone like Zhang Xu, who was 19 years old and didn't have much development potential, it was already a form of accommodation.
Fortunately, Zhang Xu didn't care about the amount of money; what he cared about was that he was finally on the path toward his football dream.
After signing his Chinese and French names, Zhang Xu handed the contract to Philip.
"Don't you want to carefully read the fine print at the back?" Philip asked.
"No need, I trust you, Mr. Philip. If you were going to send me away from the team, there's no need to go through all this trouble. Besides, I know..." Zhang Xu's voice carried a hint of gratitude. "I know you're a good person!"
Philip chuckled and accepted the "good person" card.
"Now that the contract is signed, there are some things I need to explain to you. Since you're still a university student, even though signing a player contract doesn't conflict with your studies, I still hope that playing football won't interfere with your academics."
"So, you need to return to school immediately, complete your exams, and then head back for team training."
"I heard you're studying sports science at school? That's great; it complements your football. Perhaps, in the future, our team's training might require your professional technical guidance, haha!" Philip laughed heartily.
"Alright, Mr. Philip." Zhang Xu also smiled.
.....
Upon returning to the University of Paris VI, Zhang Xu didn't immediately pick up his textbooks for revision. Instead, he huddled in his dormitory's bed, examining the somewhat mysterious "[Training System]."
"Activate the [Training System]!" Zhang Xu mentally issued the command.
"Understood! [Training System] is activating. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1..."
With the cold, mechanical voice echoing in his mind, an immersive opening animation appeared before Zhang Xu's eyes...
A player was sprinting across the field, making tackles, dribbling, passing, shooting—doing it all effortlessly. Trophies and medals piled up on him, radiating a captivating brilliance. Finally, they converged into eight big letters: "[Training System]!"
"The system activation is complete. Please issue specific commands, host."
"How do I issue commands?" Zhang Xu was a bit puzzled. Without a mouse, keyboard, or prompts, how could he give commands?
"Apologies, the interface transition is slow the first time. Please wait!"
Zhang Xu facepalmed.
After three minutes, the belated interface finally appeared.
The background featured a shining trophy placed in the center of a football field. The lush green grass and the golden trophy complemented each other, creating a mesmerizing scene.
On the screen, there were four buttons, each labeled: [Player Module], [Training Module], [Task Module] and [Honors Module].
"Let's take a look at the Player Module first." After some thought, Zhang Xu decided to start with the first option: [Player Module]
The Player Module opened quickly, with two categories: view personal attributes and view other player's attributes.
"View personal attributes!" Zhang Xu was curious about his own attributes, so he opened the personal attribute page.
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[Name: Zhang Xu]
Level: 0
Experience: 0/100 (Attribute points available: 0)
Nickname: None
Nationality: China
Place of Birth: Xiangbei City
Date of Birth: May 2, 1993
Height: 181cm
Weight: 68KG
Value: 0 euros
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Seeing this, Zhang Xu was left speechless. It turned out he had... no value at all!
Well, he continued reading, hoping for some surprises.
He consoled himself and scrolled down further.
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National Team Appearances: 0
National Team Goals: 0
Olympic Team Appearances: 0
Olympic Team Goals: 0
Left/Right Foot: 3/7
Current Ability/Potential Ability: 21/32 (Professional players range from 30 to 99)
Current Physical Fatigue/Status: 12/77 (Maximum is 99)
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"Alright, I get it, I'm pretty bad. I haven't even reached the standard of a professional player! And my natural potential is just barely above the threshold for professional players!" This revelation hit Zhang Xu hard, leaving him feeling disheartened and defeated.
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[Technical Attributes (Maximum individual attribute is 99)]:
Crossing: 18
Dribbling: 22
Shooting: 14
Heading: 23
Long Shots: 08
Marking: 11
Passing: 12
Tackling: 21
Ball Control: 25
Technique: 17
Penalties: 16
Corners: 13
Free Kicks: 11
Throw-Ins: 09
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[Spiritual Attributes]:
Aggressiveness: 41
Anticipation: 14
Bravery: 75
Composure: 65
Concentration: 47
Vision: 03
Decision-Making: 31
Determination: 77
Imagination: 4
Influence: 66
Off-the-Ball Movement: 16
Positioning: 11
Teamwork: 5
Work Rate: 89
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[Physical Attributes]:
Acceleration: 78
Agility: 41
Balance: 39
Jumping: 74
Fitness: 83
Speed: 89
Stamina: 85
Strength: 82
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[Hidden Attributes]:
Injury Proneness: 33
Consistency: 64
Dirtiness: 6
Big-Match Performance: 55
Positional Versatility: 13
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[Player Personality]:
Adaptability: 79
Ambition: 94
Loyalty: 91
Pressure Handling: 88
Professionalism: 83
Sportsmanship: 86
Emotional Control: 74
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After reviewing his attributes, Zhang Xu sighed deeply. It seemed that he was truly... a waste. Except for his physical and mental attributes, the critical attributes, such as technical skills and attributes like vision, anticipation, teamwork, and more, were all disappointingly low.
This was the real difference between him and a professional player!
However, Zhang Xu wasn't disheartened by his miserable attributes. Instead, it ignited his determination to prove himself.
He clenched his fists, silently making a firm resolution. No matter how terrible his attributes were now, he believed that with relentless effort and rigorous training, he could become a competent professional player!
