"Tony!"
As Tang En shook off the group of reporters and walked to the parking lot, he heard someone call his name behind him. Tang En stopped in his tracks and looked back. He saw a familiar face.
Beside the boulevard, under the dense trees, Michael Bernard stood under the mottled light and shadow. The wind blew, the leaves swayed, and the spots of light moved with them. It looked rather unreal, like an illusion.
"Your camouflage colors are really useful, Michael. If you hadn't called me, I really wouldn't have been able to see you. "
Tang En walked over and smiled at Michael, who was standing under the tree.
"Camouflage colors?" Michael did not react at first. It was only when he looked down at the mottled shadow on his body that he realized it did look like a camouflage uniform.
He laughed. Tang En's joke made him feel very friendly.
"Why did you come back? Don't you have to work?"
"I quit," Michael said to Tang En seriously.
This sentence made the smile on Tang En's face freeze.
"I'm joking! Ha! " Michael seemed to be able to "change his face." The serious expression just now disappeared in an instant, replaced by a smug smile.
"In order to come see your last game, I took three days off and only arrived last night."
Tang En nodded. No wonder he did not see Michael yesterday afternoon, but saw him on the sidelines today.
"You're dressed like this …" Tang En looked him up and down. "You didn't even go home and came straight from the company, did you?"
Michael was a little embarrassed. "Actually, I was on a business trip in Italy and just happened to take time off to come over. It's not like I'm on vacation, so I only have this. Fortunately, I didn't wear a suit."
Tang En nodded to show that he understood.
"Does your wife know you're here?" Although he had chatted with the couple in Los Angeles and knew that Michael's wife no longer cared about the past and Michael's love for football, Tang En could not help but ask.
"I called her." Michael was not joking this time.
Tang En believed Michael's words. Michael was really a nice guy now. There was no trace of the hooligan look he had when he scolded him in the bar.
The two men sat down next to each other on the lawn by the road. The two old men did not care that it was actually very dirty here.
"Thank you for coming to see me," Tang En said as he looked at the training ground across the road.
"I'm also here to bid farewell to the past."
Twain turned around and looked at Michael. Listen to him go on.
"Sixteen years, Tony. Time flew by so quickly, and so many things happened to us. But I'm not here to catch up with you today. "
Tang En smiled and added, "We talked about it that night in Los Angeles."
Michael nodded in agreement.
"Actually, I just wanted to come back to see you."
"It's not like you haven't seen it before, and it's not like you won't see it in the future. You speak as if we'll never see each other again …" Twain pursed his lips and disagreed with Michael's words.
"But as a manager, this is the last time."
Tang En was stunned for a moment. He had forgotten his identity. With this identity, this was indeed the last time. This was the last time he would be a manager. In the future, no matter what the situation was, he would not come out again, even if the end of the world arrived … But then again, what did the end of the world have to do with him being a manager?
But the manager … Twain looked up at the blue sky. Back then, he really did not think that he could stay in this position for so long and achieve so much. Oh God, oh God, why did you throw me here in the first place? Did you give me a huge pie in the sky? I don't believe you're so kind …
Tang En shook his head gently. He used to think about this question often. Later, as time passed, he lived well in this world and slowly stopped thinking about it. Now, there was no need to lament about how fate made a fool out of him.
So, he changed the topic. "Have you gone to see Gavin?"
Michael nodded. "He has a bouquet of flowers there. Is it yours? "
Tang En shook his head. He guessed who it was. "It's George's."
"He still remembers …"
"What are you saying? Your son is the first fan he's ever had in his life. If he doesn't remember, who would?" Tang En glared at Michael. Wood was not good at expressing his feelings, but there was no doubt about his feelings. If Vivian and Wood could end up together, then Vivian must be the happiest woman in the world because she found a man who would never change his heart.
Michael also felt that his words were not quite right and laughed dryly.
"If Gavin were still alive, he would be 29 years old now, right?" Tang En asked.
"Twenty-eight years old. His birthday is July 11th," Michael replied.
"You're so familiar."
"I'm his father!" Michael puffed out his chest and said proudly.
Tang En smiled.
"Come to my house at noon. I'll let you see my daughter." Tang En stood up and patted his butt. His daughter was still waiting at home. He could not go back too late.
Michael also stood up, but shook his head. "No, John and the others are waiting for me."
Tang En shrugged and expressed his regret.
"Do you have tickets?" Tang En asked before they parted.
Michael nodded. "Yes. After I told John and the others that I was coming, they started to prepare tickets for me. "
Upon hearing this, Tang En turned around and looked at Michael curiously. "When did you decide to come back?"
"After you held a press conference to announce your definite retirement. I thought I should come back to see you off no matter what. "
"Thank you." Tang En thanked Michael for the second time today.
"Old friend, it's what I should do."
With that, Michael waved at Tang En, and the two men said goodbye.
Tang En had walked more than ten meters away when he suddenly heard Michael call him from behind. "Tony! If you lose tomorrow's game, I won't let you off!! "
Tang En turned around and saw Michael waving his fist at him. He suddenly felt a little dazed, as if he had seen the same last game 16 years ago. Before leaving the stadium, Michael took his son and waved his fist at him, threatening to make him pay if he was not in the Premier League next season.
After saying that, the next time he saw Gavin was in the hospital morgue.
Tang En stood there in a daze, and Michael did not wait for him to reply. He turned and walked in the opposite direction.
By the time Tang En came back to his senses, Michael Bernard was long gone.
He thought of Michael's words before he left and laughed.
"How could I lose? I haven't lost to Mourinho yet! "
※ ※ ※
Mourinho's team warmed up at the Crimson Stadium, while he was interviewed by television reporters. Talking about tomorrow's game, he was full of confidence, saying that his team would eventually win the league tournament.
"I'm here to win the game and win the championship."
The reporters from Manchester United's official television station were delighted and reassured by Mourinho's words, while the BBC television reporter had a different opinion.
"You haven't beaten Tony yet …"
Before he could finish, Mourinho interrupted him.
"I'm not interested in this kind of moldy thing. Every game is an individual game. "
The question greatly ruined Mourinho's mood. He appeared uncooperative in the following answers, even when it was Manchester United TV's question, he ignored it.
Such an interview naturally could not get any valuable news. Many reporters would complain behind their backs that the BBC reporter did not know how to speak. How could they ask Mourinho that question? Mourinho hated it when people talked about his record of "not winning against Tang En."
This matter was like pointing at Tang En's nose and saying he was impotent, that he did not even have a biological child after working with his wife for so many years. It was simply vicious to the extreme.
In fact, Mourinho's inner pressure was much greater than Tang En's.
Who asked Arsenal to bite so hard?
In the final round of the league tournament, Manchester United led Arsenal by two points and had an advantage in goal difference. In the final round, as long as Manchester United and Nottingham Forest tied, they could defend their title. If Manchester United's last game was against any other team other than Nottingham Forest, Manchester United would have a higher chance of winning the game given that they had already completed their season goals ahead of time. Yet, it was Nottingham Forest …
Mourinho would never think that Tony Twain would let him off, just as he would never let Tony Twain off under the same circumstances. Both men wanted to step on each other's dead bodies to advance. How could they be merciful?
This was also the reason why Mourinho had been in a bad mood recently. He always kept a straight face in front of people and behind people. He was under more pressure than anyone else. If he lost the game, it would not be as simple as losing the league title. For him, his career as a manager was still long, and he could win as many league titles as he wanted in the future. But if he lost to Tony Twain, he would no longer have the chance to break that ridiculous bullshit record. When the time came, Twain would have retired and naturally could not lead the team to meet him again. He would forever carry the shameful record of "not winning against Tony Twain" and live on …
Just the thought of it was terrifying!
If it became a reality … how could someone as arrogant as Mourinho accept such a reality?
There was another reason why Mourinho was in a bad mood — Rooney's absence annoyed him. Although Rooney was already 32 years old, as an experienced striker, he still played a very important role in the team. His absence was a big loss to Manchester United's fighting strength.
Plus, it was an away game …
Could there be a more unlucky final round of the league tournament than this?
※ ※ ※
Compared to Mourinho, Tony Twain, who was interviewed before the game, was much calmer.
"He has never won against me? To be honest, if it weren't for you guys, I would have almost forgotten about this … "Twain looked surprised, as if he had really just remembered this matter. But no one would believe his words. The media had repeatedly brought up this matter when they were hyping up the feud between the two men. How could he have only just remembered it?
"I don't think past results will help in tomorrow's game. You can never step into the same river twice. "Twain looked like a philosopher when he said this, but he was just putting up a smoke bomb. Mourinho certainly did not believe that Twain would let him off on the basis that they had a drink together, but there would definitely be people in the Manchester United team who would believe it.
"Manchester United is a very strong team. We lost to them in an away game in the first half of the season. I can't say for sure that we will win tomorrow's game."
Twain lowered his stance and looked submissive, as if he really did not pose any threat to Manchester United's hegemony.
Before the game against Arsenal, Twain vowed that his goal was to win the game. At the time, people thought it was just to boost morale. In reality, it was impossible for the Forest team to win against Arsenal in an away game. And the result?
Arsenal lost to Nottingham Forest on their home ground.
Now he said that his Manchester United was very strong. Bluntly speaking now, it was natural that his team had a very small chance of beating Manchester United.
Which of his words should they listen to?
Twain did not care about what others thought. He continued.
"The last game? No, I don't see it that way. It's just a normal league game. Yes, a normal league game. "Twain repeated it as if he was afraid that others would not believe him. "My coaching career is already very complete. I don't need to rely on a victory in this game to draw a perfect end."
Thinking about it carefully, it really was the case. As a manager, he had won all the championships that he should have won. What could be more complete than this in his coaching career? Was there a need to be so entangled in a game? Maybe in this last game, Twain would really soften his heart and go easy? Didn't he and Mourinho always appreciate each other?
When the media thought this way, it was directly reflected in their programs and articles.
As a result, in the football program that night, there were experts who analyzed that Manchester United had a higher chance of winning tomorrow's game and that the defending champion would not be able to escape.
At the end of the program, Twain even talked about his life after retirement in the interview. "I'll rest for a while, go out with my wife, and bring our daughter. And then … I haven't thought about it yet, haha! "
Twain's laughter in the television was a little unreal. The guest who was optimistic that Manchester United could successfully defend the title also laughed along. In his view, Tony Twain was really no threat. Mourinho's league title was a sure thing.
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