During this period, almost all major negotiations and transactions were conducted privately, as Cao Baming did not wish for these news to be made public prematurely.
The reason, naturally, was the terrifying public opinion effect. He did not want to spend his already busy time managing this kind of publicity. After all, he would never be at ease delegating such matters entirely to others, not even to Mike.
The hottest part of summer had arrived, and another half of the vacation period had passed unnoticed. With less than a month remaining until the league's commencement, everything felt extremely tense. In addition to this, Cao Baming had received an invitation to return to Tang Guo to participate in an international friendly match.
The good news was that Manchester United's plans were proceeding relatively smoothly. The team's roster configuration and future expectations had largely aligned with their initial vision, with no significant deviations.
Some players chose to publicize these matters on social media, while the actual signings were awaiting a confirmed timeline from Cao Baming. At that point, he intended to release all player transfer news to the public simultaneously.
This way, the news would inevitably be a bombshell, and of unprecedented intensity. Fans would likely be overwhelmed for a while. If the public opinion he worried about erupted all at once, it would be much easier to handle by comparison.
On the other hand, another major event was on the horizon: the annual Ballon d'Or awards ceremony.
Cao Baming mentally calculated the time, estimating that less than a week remained until the actual award ceremony.
This award was for last year's performance, and from his current perspective, even including recent times, the suspense was practically non-existent.
Cao Baming knew in his heart that this award belonged to him and no one else; there was no longer any doubt about it. And at this moment, Nottingham Forest had struck a massive bargain, as they were about to acquire a Ballon d'Or winner. It was estimated they would make a significant spectacle out of this.
The club's owner had already discussed this matter with the financial team many times. Cao Baming truly had not misjudged him.
As a profit-driven businessman, his actions were entirely understandable.
After all, this was a Ballon d'Or! And it was one of their own players! My heavens, how could one possibly resist thinking about such a thing?
For Nottingham Forest, it had been years, perhaps even an unprecedented achievement in their history, to have such an opportunity. Let alone a Ballon d'Or, they had rarely even secured less prestigious awards.
The moment Cao Baming joined the team, they could publicly announce themselves as a club with a Ballon d'Or winner!
How imposing and magnificent would that sound!
Especially to those less knowledgeable about football, if they heard that a team had a player who had won the Ballon d'Or, and specifically this year's award, they would undoubtedly look upon that team with great admiration.
Nottingham Forest did not even need to speculate about the team's future performance. From the current outlook, they had already reached a level that inspired awe.
The club members were currently on vacation, but they couldn't help but constantly check the news. They were thoroughly enjoying it, as the news largely pertained to their own affairs.
The outside world was filled with anticipation for Nottingham Forest's performance in the next season. Fans were even showering them with praise and optimism. After all, if the news was predominantly positive with no negative reports, who wouldn't want to read it?
As the award ceremony approached, Nottingham Forest consistently released many announcements. They frequently made statements on their official platforms and social media accounts, and held numerous press conferences, projecting a very proactive stance, something never seen before.
The impression given to the fans was that the club was overjoyed. Having a player win the Ballon d'Or was something that had to be advertised everywhere, for the whole world to know.
Cao Baming found it somewhat amusing, but seeing how excited the club was, he let them have their fun. After all, he would not suffer any loss from it.
At this moment, the external media and public opinion, whenever football or sports-related content was involved, were dominated by two news items: Nottingham Forest and Manchester United. These two team names were the most discussed among fans.
These two names had become the most fiercely debated protagonists in the entire football world.
In contrast, discussions about Arsenal had reached an unprecedented low this summer. Almost no one mentioned their name anymore. With Cao Baming's departure, it was as if the club had completely vanished from the world.
This was a team that had won the Champions League final the previous season! And the Champions League had only recently concluded, less than two months ago. Now, that championship was no longer mentioned.
As for Arsenal's upper management, they could only express their helplessness. They were powerless to do anything about the current situation. Every one of them understood the reason for the current predicament, but what good was knowing the reason?
If they could turn back time, how they wished they had shown more leniency when Messi and Cao Baming presented their terms previously, especially Messi.
Cao Baming might have made up his mind to leave long ago, and such people were impossible to retain. But Messi had directly destroyed his own contract.
If only they hadn't brought up the salary reduction. It would have been better to keep at least one of them. Now, only Henry remained in the team, and his best friend had already left. Would his own departure be far behind?
Arsenal's club saw no future. Or rather, they could see a future, but it was only a black, bottomless abyss.
The future was shrouded in darkness, devoid of any light, and no glimmer of hope was visible.