Become A Football Legend
Chapter 40: The Meeting (date updated)

Chapter 40: The Meeting (date updated)

"Hello, Marx. Are you still in Frankfurt?" He asked immediately after the call connected.

"Hey Seb, yes I still am. I decided to spend last night here, I should be back before the day ends."

"Stay there for now. You’ll be initiating contact with the kid."

"Have you decided to sign him?"

"For someone to go from a dropout at Darmstadt academy in June, to the highest goalscorer in the Regionalliga in November, is not simple. Bringing him over won’t hurt us."

"Still, Frankfurt won’t let him go easily. He’s only 15, and already the best player in the reserve team."

"He has only been there for 4 months, we’ll offer them something they can’t refuse.

Besides, I don’t think he has a strong attachment to the club, and he still hasn’t signed a professional contract."

"Alright. It might be hard, but I will try to convince his agent."

"Before that, I will contact Eintracht to notify them of our intent. Make sure you let his agent know we plan to place him directly in the 3. Liga with the reserve team this season and he will definitely get first team appearances starting from next season if his performance remains the same or improves."

"Alright. I will arrange a meeting with his agent, and I’ll call you after the meeting."

The call ended, as the man referred to a Kehl tapped his hands on his desk.

He was Sebastian Kehl, the Sporting Director of Borussia Dortmund, and he had his eyes on Lukas.

After what seemed like a minute of contemplating, Kehl looked up from his desk at the lady who had been standing silently.

"Tell the legal team to send a letter of intent for Lukas Brandt to Eintracht Frankfurt."

"Yes, sir."

"Make sure they hint that we are ready to give the club substantial compensation compared to how long they’ve spent developing him."

"Okay, sir," she responded before leaving the office.

"Lukas Brandt, we have to get him," Kehl thought as he reached back for his phone to make a call.

* * *

Two days later.

4th November, 2024.

At the Eintracht Frankfurt Fußball AG headquarters located southeast of the Deutsche Bank Park stadium, coach Dennis Schmitt walked down the hallway of the second floor of the building hastily.

KNOCK KNOCK*

He knocked on a door at the end of the hallway, opening it even before he got a response.

"You’re here? Please have a seat," a man in his early 40s said, gesturing for Dennis to sit on the cushion in the office.

Dennis looked around at the individuals in that office, all recognizable faces of the club.

They were in the office of Markus Krösche, the CEO of the football division of Eintracht Frankfurt.

Also in the room, was Timmo Hardung, the sporting director, Dino Topmöller, the head coach, and Ole Siegel, an executive assistant.

Dennis exchanged pleasantries with the individuals in the room before sitting down beside Dino Topmöller, with whom he was acquainted.

"Alright I’m sure you guys have an idea why we’re here. Dortmund wants Lukas. We got their letter of intent today," Krösche started the conversation as he walked towards the sofa his guests were sitting.

"You’re not honestly considering giving a player like Lukas to Borussia, are you?" Dennis asked, slightly agitated.

"They claim they are willing to compensate us well. With the current market, and Lukas Brandt’s performance in the reserve and his age, we could request an amount north of ten million Euros. That’s in pure profits for a player we’ve only had for 4 months," Hardung, the sporting director replied.

"10 million? Give him two more years and I promise you’ll not even bat an eye at an offer five or six times larger."

"Yeah, but it’s also possible he won’t be able to perform in the Bundesliga. And his value can plummet if that happens."

"What’s the rush? The kid is 15. With the way he’s playing, we have a shot at promoting to the 3. Liga. If we are successful, that will be a better league to sharpen him, he could also start getting some minutes with the first team if coach Topmöller is interested."

At that time, Dennis Schmitt was engaged in a back-and-forth with Timmo Hardung over whether selling Lukas now was a good decision.

Coach Topmöller hadn’t said a word yet, and Krösche just sat on the sofa where Hardung was sitting and listened to the conversation.

He understood the concerns Hardung was bringing up, but he also knew the board would be on his neck if Lukas moved to Dortmund for peanuts and they sell him for a huge amount in a few years time. Or even worse, he becomes a standout player for them.

Eintracht Frankfurt had been on the rise in recent seasons. From winning the DFB Pokal in the 17/18 season to break a 30-year trophyless run, to winning the 21/22 Europa League trophy which allowed them to participate in the 23/24 Champions League competition — their first time participating in the competition since 1960.

It felt like they had nowhere to go but up — and that seemed plausible, as they were currently third in the league, only behind Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen.

"What do you think, Dino?" Krösche asked for the head coach’s opinion.

"Hmmm, if we the club doesn’t need the money, let’s keep him. We are following his progress with the reserve team, and although we are currently in a great spot in the league, anything can happen during the season. I think Dennis is right. He could turn out to be a great asset to the club," coach Dino explained.

"Trust me, coach, he WILL turn out to be a great asset to the club, how many 15 year-olds do you remember being this good with the reserve team? Topping the goalscorer and assist charts?" Dennis added.

"Timmo, I think we should listen to the coaches for now. We’ll keep an eye on the kid’s performance, and decide on a course of action soon,"

"So we’re rejecting Dortmund’s request to make contact?" Hardung asked.

Krösche thought for a second. This was a decision that ultimately had to be made by him.

To Krösche, Eintracht was building a club that could, at least, compete for a champions league spot against clubs like Liepzig and Dortmund. And giving a player like Lukas to a direct rival for a few million euros, could come back to bite them in the arse in a few years.

"Yes we will be rejecting it. There is no reason we should give him our best reserve team youngster. But Dino, you’ll have to show that he will work in your team.

If we lose out on profiting millions from a 4-month relationship with a player, and he doesn’t fit the team, I’ll have questions to answer to the board."

"Already ahead of you on that. After his performance last weekend, I think it’s time he joined us for a training session." Coach Topmöller replied.

"That’s good. I also think he’s ready to train with the first team," Dennis replied. "Although I don’t want him taken away from my team."

"Alright then. If that’s your decision, then we need to start talking about a professional contract. With his current contract, it would be easy for him to leave when he wants. And if it’s his decision, we might not even get the kind of money Dortmund is offering."

Ole Siegel explained Lukas’s current contract terms: no release clause, no guarantees — just a chance to review whatever professional contract the club offers.

As he explained, it was clear to everyone in the room that a club like Dortmund could easily circumvent the "tapping up/tampering" rule.

And unless he was on a professional contract with a release clause, Eintracht might receive way less in compensation than Dortmund was currently offering.

After about 15 minutes of discussions about offering Lukas a contract, Hardung finally caved.

He had no malice towards Lukas, his thoughts was just on selling a player and maybe using the money to scout for an already established player who could contribute to the first team immediately.

"Timmo, we have to look at the future too. The team’s currently in a good position and he’s developing wonderfully with reserves; there is no need to sell him. Not right now, at least."

"Okay then, I will contact his agent and we can open contract negotiations," Hardung replied as he stood up, the conversation was coming to an end.

The men shook hands before leaving the CEO’s office.

Unbeknownst to them, they had just made a key decision which would earn the club a ridiculous amount of money in the near future.

A/N: Sorry for not posting a Chapter yesterday. As I said previously, my graduation ceremony was yesterday.. It was the worst.

They made us stand under the scorching sun for 4 hours and gave our seats in the hall to the guests.

Well I guess we’ve been used for all we’re worth. They need to impress the future students not the past.

Still, hope y’all have a beautiful day, though.

Love y’all

-Writ.