Heighway

Through the drizzle on the outskirts of Liverpool, Kenny's car drove into Kirkby Training Ground. Unlike Melwood Training Ground, which was open to the public and often received visiting fans, this place was quiet. Familiar with the way, Kenny led Du An and Ethan to an office in the building and pushed the door open directly. Inside, Steve Heighway sat at his desk reviewing documents. He had taken a liking to a boy named Rahim from the Queens Park Rangers academy. He very much wanted to bring him to Kirkby. Hearing someone enter, he put down the documents. Seeing it was Kenny, a smile came to his face. They had known each other for many years and were always casual, not standing on ceremony. “I've brought two kids.” Kenny stepped aside to let Du An and Ethan behind him step forward, introducing them simply, “Ethan, Du An. Both are kids who grew up in West Derby, Old John's two grandsons.” Hearing Old John. Heighway's spirits sank a little. Kenny had previously told him about Du An's background. Hillsborough was not just the trauma for 96 families, but also a painful memory for this city. His gaze fell on the two of them, with some favoritism. He had always loved local Liverpool lads, recognizing the city's mark on homegrown players. Compared to the foreign prodigies Benitez preferred, he always believed that children rooted in this land were the players best suited to Liverpool! He looked at Ethan, then finally settled on Du An. Kenny had already explained everything to him in advance. Du An had an Asian face but had grown up in Liverpool's West Derby district from a young age. Especially with Old John's background, he could be considered a true Liverpool child. Heighway found a paper contract on the desk and pushed it over. He had already prepared a formal apprenticeship contract in advance. Kenny took it and handed it to Du An. Du An was a little excited inside and read it word by word. Heighway said solemnly, “Finish your courses at Bishop John Catholic School this week, then we'll process the transfer.” “You have no football foundation at all. Your basics are too weak, and you can't keep up with the regular youth team's training rhythm. So starting next week, you need to be based at Kirkby Training Ground five days a week for training, with unified accommodation. The academy will cover all your food and lodging expenses. You get two days off on weekends and can go home.” “Of course, your academic studies can't be neglected either. You'll study at our partner school, which will be closer and more convenient. We'll complete your transfer procedures, and you'll attend classes with other youth academy players your age. If your subsequent training and match performances are excellent, we'll improve your terms, and if conditions are met, we can sign you to a professional contract early.” Du An listened to it all, nodding continuously. He knew English law did not allow youth academies to let players train full-time before age 16; they had to attend school. If he were at Bishop John Catholic School, it was too far away. And he wasn't suited to being a day student. He could only board. So Kenny and Heighway's arrangements for him had fully considered his actual situation. Heighway looked up at Du An and asked softly, “How is it? Are you satisfied?” Du An didn't care about anything else. His eyes couldn't leave the salary clause in the contract. 110 pounds a week! Seeing that figure, he finally relaxed completely. He nodded heavily. “Mm!” Kenny, standing nearby, said at the right moment, “You don't have a guardian now. Grandma Mason is in the hospital and can't sign. I'll be your legal guardian. Do you mind?” Ethan instantly widened his eyes, his face full of excitement. Suppressing his excitement, he shouted softly, “King Kenny as our guardian? Then aren't we Liverpool's princes!” Du An ignored his noisy younger brother. He also agreed. So, the three of them signed in turn. Du An signed his name. Kenny signed to confirm as guardian. Heighway signed on behalf of Liverpool Kirkby Youth Academy. With the signatures, the agreement was officially settled. Heighway put away the contract and smiled. “Finish this week's school properly. Enjoy these last few easy days. Once you officially join the team, you won't have any free time left.” Hardly had he finished speaking. Du An immediately spoke up. “I can start training tomorrow!” Heighway was slightly taken aback. He turned to look at Kenny, surprise in his eyes. He clearly hadn't expected this boy to be so impatient. Kenny shrugged. After a moment, he looked back at Du An and said frankly, “You can come for early training, but your contract salary will start from next week officially. These few days of early training are unpaid.” “No problem.” Du An answered without hesitation. Heighway looked at the boy's eagerness and grew a little more serious. “Alright, then we'll wait and see. Come directly here tomorrow. Keep at it, kid. I look forward to the day you wear the Reds' jersey and step onto Anfield.” Du An nodded heavily. He still couldn't see the distant future. He didn't know whether he could make it as a player or step onto a top-tier stage. But at this moment, a rootless life finally found an anchor, and he, adrift, finally had a clear goal. Soon, Kenny spoke up to remind them, “You two wait in the corridor first.” Du An and Ethan nodded, tiptoed out of the office, and closed the door behind them. The corridor was quiet, leaving only the two brothers. Both Ethan and Du An were smiling now. Turns of fate always come unexpectedly. While speaking, Ethan introduced Heighway, whom they had just met, to Du An. “Good heavens, it's actually Heighway! I actually saw him in person! Du An, do you know? Back then he was called the Motorway. Relying on his quick breakthrough ability, he made 444 appearances for Liverpool and scored 76 goals. In the 1977 Ballon d'Or voting, he ranked 10th. During that time, he helped the team win the 1977 and 1978 European Cup titles…” “And it was precisely him who, after retiring for many years, was invited by the club back to build Liverpool's modern youth academy from scratch at Kirkby. He dug up a batch of talents under him—Gerrard, Owen, Fowler, Carragher, and so on—all discovered by him. Good heavens, Du An, I feel you'll become a big star…” Du An listened while thinking about his own future. Tomorrow he would officially step onto the football path. Inside the office. Kenny walked to the window and looked out at the Kirkby training grounds. He said, “This boy is a piece of unpolished jade. I watched his trial. He has innate talent; he just doesn't know how to realize it yet.” He turned around and looked at Heighway at the desk, continuing, “A complete beginner, no systematic training whatsoever, but he has top-tier spatial awareness on the pitch and excellent defensive positioning instincts. He also has a very clever pass. And his physical foundation is excellent. His stamina far surpasses children in the same age group at the academy. This kind of innate physical talent is rare.” Heighway heard this and slowly nodded. But there wasn't the slightest joy of finding a genius on his face. Instead, he sighed heavily. “I believe you, Kenny.” The words fell, and the office fell into a brief silence. Kenny saw his dejected expression and understood immediately. The old problem again. Benitez. Ever since the Spanish coach took over Liverpool, the entire club's football system had completely changed. He favored controllable, standardized tactical systems, valued only immediate readiness, and completely discarded Liverpool's Boot Room philosophy of long-term cultivation, waiting for youth academy players to grow naturally. He had intense conflicts with Heighway. Nowadays, Melwood first-team base and Kirkby youth academy had become strangers to each other, completely cut off. Benitez never paid attention to the growth of youth academy teams and never gave local young players any chance to make mistakes or be promoted. No matter how excellent the Kirkby players were, the first team's doors were always tightly shut. Various foreign immediate-impact players and mature players had become the club's only transfer standard. The youth system Heighway had painstakingly built for years had completely become useless effort. “Liverpool nowadays doesn't need Kirkby's kids at all.” Full of weariness, Heighway said, “I've guarded this place for so many years. I built this youth system from scratch, sending away batch after batch of local talent. In the past, no matter how difficult, the youth team players always had a path to the first team. But now, this path is completely cut off.” “The players I carefully cultivated are forever trapped at Kirkby. They can't get a first-team call-up, don't get playing time. In the end, they either waste their talent or are forced to leave.” Kenny remained silent, unable to argue. After a long while, Heighway raised his head and slowly spat out a heavy sentence. “Kenny, perhaps, I will choose to leave here soon.”