Twain's Trouble
Twain's Trouble
After seeing how Nottingham Forest was faring, the media changed their mindset toward Nottingham Forest. They had not been optimistic about Nottingham Forest since they had experienced a whole typhoon with tremendous amounts of internal and external issues. Experts had analyzed that Nottingham Forest's goal this season was to qualify for next season's European fixture, not for the Champions League or Confederations Cup, or even to defend their championships.
Now, they believed that Nottingham Forest would remain a strong contender for the title as long as Flores could stabilize the team.
Nottingham Forest did well. The happiest man was Evan Doughty. As the league progressed, the slurs he received were disappearing. Although there were still fans displaying banners in the audience stands to scold him at every game, it was only a limited few. He chose to ignore them.
He began to visualize the scene of the team successfully winning the championships by the end of the season. By then, everyone would have completely forgotten Tony Twain and would start praising him for being the most successful chairperson in the club's history able to match up to Real Madrid's Bernabeu.
The 30-year-old Ibišević had been sold to Serie A newcomer Sejana. Nottingham Forest reaped a fee of 20 million pounds from the deal. It had to be said that Allan Adams was an expert in negotiating. The 30-year-old Ibišević was blown up by Allan as a huge character playing in the golden years of the strikers. He was efficient and stable in scoring and even had several cup-winning experiences, which was essential as the triple crown team's main striker. Only selling at 20 million pounds, it would be profitable for you!
Just like that, Nottingham Forest sent away the last player who would leave the team that summer. Aaron Mitchell was thoroughly focused upon as he became the team's leading scorer. Although everyone had predicted Gareth Bale, George Wood, Fernando Gago, and Akinfeev would transfer, there was no transfer news for them. Still, the media believed that this was only temporary due to the disagreement in financial terms that hindered them from leaving. It did not mean they would not leave next summer. If the results were unsatisfactory this season, it was certain that those people would eventually leave.
Nottingham Forest had only bought four men that summer and had not done much of a purge. That was thanks to the two-time head coach Martin O'Neill and Flores being aware and persistent. Under such circumstances, there was nothing more effective than keeping the squad formation stable.
The newest members were Thiago Silva, Michael Dawson, Mario Balotelli, and Belgian attacking forward, Eden Hazard.
The scale of the transfers was not great. There were more important issues they were entangled with, such as who was actually responsible for the current state of the team. No one was responsible for the team's preparations for the new season, and no one had a practical plan to be implemented. Even for Flores, who had taken over when the new season was almost going to start, arranging an actual formation with the cards he had was enough of a headache. He did not even bother to think about things like transfers.
Nottingham Forest was in fourth place after three rounds. They were about to leave for Monaco for the European Super Cup. As winners of last season's European Champions Cup, they would compete with last season's Confederations Cup winners, Alkmaar of the Netherlands, for the king of Europe.
Before that, through one of the major news in the England team, Tony Twain had announced his second roster for the country team.
Not far off from the media's predictions, the vast majority of the 25-person list were old faces.
Not many of the fringe figures were on the list. It was the first official game Twain would lead the England team to play, so he was even more cautious than most people thought.
In the previous draw, England was placed in Group 3, which was also called Group C. The other six teams in their group were the Nordic powerhouses Denmark, Wales, Ireland, Serbia, Macedonia, and Armenia. That group was not the strongest one in terms of potential. Perhaps only Denmark and Serbia could pose a threat to England. In Twain's mind, the more foreign teams were the more dangerous ones. It was the same as playing against a club. One would make more mistakes when playing against a team one had never played against.
Against a rival like Macedonia, Twain admitted that he did not know anything about them. The days he went to the Premier League to watch the games, he would work with his coaching staff to gather information about Macedonia, analyze tactics, and study countermeasures against them.
It was England's first game in this European Championship qualifier, and Twain cared about it. He wanted the team to win the opener so that the games that came after would be easier to play. Another factor that was not as superstitious was that Macedonia was not a strong team. If England was not able to win Macedonia on its home ground, it would then lose a chance to get points.
None of the 26-person roster signed by Twain was from a non-Premier League team.
Arsenal had two players on the squad who came from midfield—Theo Walcott and Jack Wilshere.
Aston Villa also had two players selected—goalkeeper Stuart Taylor and right-back Glen Johnson.
Blackburn had only one person, the veteran goalkeeper Paul Robinson.
Chelsea had three players—middle full-back John Terry, the midfielder Joe Cole, and the midfielder James Milner.
Manchester City had three—midfielder Gareth Barry, center-back Curtis Davies, and full-back Steven Taylor.
Manchester United also had three—center-back Rio Ferdinand, forward striker Wayne Rooney, and midfielder Michael Carrick.
The two from Liverpool were midfielders Steven Gerrard and Nigel Reo-Coker.
One person was from Middlesbrough, midfield winger Stewart Twaining.
A lone person from Leeds United was Fabian Delph, a professional midfielder.
Three were from Everton—full-back Joleon Lescott, left-back Leighton Baines, and striker James Vaughan.
Next up was Nottingham Forest, which had five people selected, the largest number of national team players—left-back Joe Mattock, midfielder David Bentley, center striker Aaron Mitchell, Gabriel Agbonlahor, and their team captain, defensive midfielder George Wood.
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"Tony Twain fulfilled what he said at his inaugural press conference, 'If the Nottingham Forest players are doing well, why not just choose them?' Looking at such a big roster, we once again realize the fact that Tony Twain just coached in Nottingham Forest before becoming the head coach of the England team. He was most familiar with that team…"
That was how the media commented on the huge roster list.
In terms of quality selection, the only ones with a strong "Tony Twain style" were the five Nottingham Forest players.
"The Nottingham Forest players were not affected by that chaotic summer and will take on important responsibilities for the new England team."
"Tony Twain's cronyism is likely to provoke discontent from other clubs."
"What do they mean by being discontented?" Twain swore by habit as he threw the newspapers talking bad about him down. "The head coaches would be more than happy if I didn't take their players. Did you see the look on Benitez's look face when you saw me calling up Gerrard, who had just returned from injury? He looked like I snatched his wife from him."
Walker was laughing at the side.
It was Aug. 29. Registered football players had flown in from all over the world to London for the games. Everyone had arrived except for the five players from Nottingham Forest, who would only be reporting in their matches at the UEFA Super Cup.
Twain and Walker were waiting in front of the TV for the match to start.
Being in a different position, Twain realized that his mindset and attitude had taken a turn for the better. In the past, under such circumstances, he would have hated that the national team recruited new players before major matches. It influenced the thinking of the players who constantly worried about getting hurt during their matches, which would deem them incompetent when the time for the real game came. As for the coach of the club, if his players had that kind of attitude, it could cost him a chance at the championship. Hence, he tried his best to avoid such situations.
However, times had changed. Nowadays, he aligned his thinking with his players and prioritized their well-being. He constantly fretted over the players injuring themselves during club training or competitions or exhausting their fighting spirit such that they had little to none left when they began training with the national team.
Nonetheless, this change in attitude did not mean that Nottingham Forest was giving up on the championship title. For Nottingham Forest, defeat was unthinkable.
Since Alkmaar was not a formidable team, it should be effortless for Nottingham Forest to emerge victorious in that match. For Twain, who acknowledged that victory belonged to Nottingham Forest, he simply hoped that Flores would leave him with some dignity by swapping the main players of the team during the match.
The TV started streaming the match with the name lists of both teams' players.
On Nottingham Forest's end, there was Akinfeev as goalkeeper, Michael Dawson and Thiago Silva as the center backs, Gareth Bell as left-back, and Rafinha as right back. As for the midfielders, they were George Wood, Fernando Gago, Matthias Fernandez, and David Bentley. The strikers were Aaron Mitchell and Agbonlahor.
Besides Joe Matok, who was missing from the starting lineup, everyone else was present.
Twain's only wish then was for none of them to get injured or encounter any physical problems that would hinder their performance.
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This UEFA Super Cup eventually ended in a victory for Nottingham Forest. The team had swiftly taken control of the midfield soon after the initial taunts by Alkmaar. With firm and unparalleled control over the midfield by George Wood and Gago, Nottingham Forest began their counterattack on Alkmaar.
Their skillful gameplay had proven them worthy of the treble title from the previous season.
Continuous attacks by Nottingham Forest had threatened Alkmaar's goal post. The aggressive strategy that Nottingham Forest cleverly used against Alkmaar paid off at the 37th-minute mark.
Mitchell proficiently headed the ball passed to him by Agbonlahor and managed to get the ball into the opponent's goal.
Upon seeing the goal by Nottingham Forest, Walker felt extremely delighted. He was glad to see that both of the players were in good condition after their stellar performance.
"They are capable of being the super striker duo on the national team. Agbonlahor and Mitchell show reasonable chemistry with each other," he suggested.
Twain shook his head, "Managing the national team is no simple task, Des. Just look at me. I only recruited some players from Nottingham Forest and in no time, the media picked it up and started their criticisms. If I take the risk of putting Rooney, who is perfectly fit, on the reserved team, I would be inviting trouble for myself with the Manchester reporters. I have to strike a balance among the parties. I wouldn't want my team to form cliques like Team Forest, Team Manchester, Team Liverpool, Team Chelsea, or Team Gunners."
Walker rolled his eyes at Twain. "In that case, why did you tell the reporters that you would use them on your team if they performed outstandingly?"
"That was only a way of appeasing the reporters. Besides, it was also to convey a message to the players that I only acknowledge their performance and not the person. It's simply a way to manage the team. In reality, I wouldn't be as rigid. Many ambivalent situations don't allow for simple solutions. Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. Let's continue watching the match…"
After Nottingham Forest had taken the lead, Alkmaar attempted to counterattack only to find themselves leaving too much room for their opponents to use against them. Nottingham Forest seized the opportunity, more or less guaranteeing their victory by the time the first half ended.
The rest of the match seemed meaningless to watch. Flores respected Twain enough to replace Bentley and Mitchell, both English national players, into the second half of the match. As the captain, George Wood had faithfully played until the end. Twain had nothing to complain about. Wood was a beast and the warrior of the future. With his physical fitness, Wood could easily play the entirety of the match.
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When Nottingham Forest lost the Community Shield, everyone was concerned that a team like that would not be able to last in the new season and would lose every game that came their way. It was then that Flores led the team to a championship at the Super Cup. That was great news for the team, which assured the players and inspired the fighting spirit in them.
Evan Doughty was smiling brightly on the podium. This was probably the happiest he had been in the past three months. George Wood raised the Super Cup trophy high up in the air as he was embraced by his teammates. Everyone reached their hands for the trophy.
The commentator excitedly announced, "Nottingham Forest has successfully clinched the championship! They are the King of Kings in Europe this year! After experiencing a hell of a summer, they regained their footing. This is also Flores' first win with the team he has coached. It seems like Flores is confident in leading the team and continuing the legacy of Tony Twain! Perhaps it won't be long before he can successfully replace Tony Twain in the hearts of the fans…"
Walker stole a glance at Twain at the side.
Twain's expression remained unchanged. He realized Twain was looking at him and stared back. Twain said, "Stop looking. Be prepared to face the biggest problem."
"The biggest problem?" Walker froze. He had not heard of such a thing. What problems could there be? Did something go wrong? Was it something to do with Nottingham Forest? Don't those players belong to Twain? How could there be a problem?"
Twain did not explain. He continued to stare at the TV screen. He had only just been triggered. Observing George Wood's face, Twain suddenly remembered that the second time he had gone to Crimson Stadium, he was cheered on by the fans and was respectfully greeted by the players. Twain did not have anything to say about it. Wood was in front of the team and the first to march out from the underpass, yet he did not even lift his head.
Twain was unsure of Wood's intentions or what the man thought of him.
How was he going to face George when they were both on the national team?
This was probably the biggest problem... (To be continued. If you want to know how the plot continues, please log into www.qidian.com for more chapters. Support the author, support legal reading!)