Tuesday, January 7th. It was a busy day for Nottingham Forest's acting manager, Tony Twain.
The players returned to the training ground after their two-day break. Their physical conditions were slightly worse. Twain stood by the side of the field and watched for a while. The players' performance made him frown. He called for a stop and called the fitness coach, Andy Stovall, and the assistant managers over. He changed the team's training plan for the day to physical recovery training. They did nothing else but recover their stamina.
Twain knew very little about training. He basically left it to his two assistant managers, Des Walker and Ian Bowyer, to manage it. There was a goalkeeper coach for the goalkeeper training and a fitness coach for the physical training. The entire coaching team had a clear division of labor. There was basically nothing for him to worry about. He only had to review the training plan that Walker had proposed.
This was good as well. It would save him, a half-baked manager, from giving himself away.
After making these adjustments, the two doctors he had "ordered" from Professor Constantine arrived. Twain brought them to the physiotherapy room and introduced them to the other two team doctors: the 35-year-old Irishman, Gary Fleming, and the 58-year-old Englishman, John Hasselden.
The two new doctors were both over 55 years old. They had just retired from the Royal Hospital of Nottingham University. They were hardcore Forest fans. This made Twain very relieved. The loyalty of foreign fans would not cause them to do anything harmful to the club.
"These two are Steve Devin and Roger Longlicki. They are your new colleagues. Gary, introduce them to the team. I have to go back." Twain briefly introduced the two doctors and shook their hands. He wished them a happy job and turned to leave.
He had just returned to the training ground when his phone rang again.
"It's Twain."
"Tony, I have a kid here looking for you. He said you asked him to come." The voice of the door guard, Ian McDonald, came through the phone.
Twain looked down at his watch. It was 9: 30. Not a minute more, not a minute less. This kid was very punctual. "That's right. I asked him to come. Bring him in."
Ten minutes later, Old Ian walked into the training ground with a tall young man. He sent him to Tang En and turned around to leave.
Tang En looked at George Wood, who was standing in front of him. His face was much cleaner than yesterday, and his clothes had been changed. On his feet was a pair of Nike sports shoes. They were a little worn out, but at least they were not so shabby that his toes were exposed.
"Have you had breakfast?" It was a very Chinese greeting. Tang En could not change some of his habits.
Wood was a little surprised, then he nodded and said, "Yes, I have."
"How did it come about?" Tang En realized that he might have asked the wrong question and could only change the topic.
"Took a car, a bus, and then ran here."
When Tang En heard what he said, he carefully looked at Wood again. His face was rosy, and there were fine beads of sweat on his forehead, but it was not obvious. He was panting slightly. He remembered how the boy had run in fifteen minutes when it would have taken him forty-five minutes to walk. He was so different from his sickly, petite mother. George Wood was about six feet and eighty centimeters tall and very strong. Perhaps Sophia had given all her life essence to her son, which was why she had such a monster.
"Very good. Come with me. We're going to pass through here. The training grounds in the north are where you should stay."
Wood asked curiously, "It's not here? This isn't the training grounds? "
"This is where the First Team trains. I'm taking you to the Youth Team's training grounds." Tang En led the way in front.
Unexpectedly, Wood stopped in his tracks and said, "The Youth Team? I'm not going. I want to be here, playing professional matches and getting a salary and bonus. "
Tang En turned back to look at him and said, "That won't do. You've never played before. This is an adult match. You still can't get used to it … "
Wood stood where he was and did not move. "I must play."
"Why?"
"They say that playing for the First Team gets more money."
If he had heard Wood say this yesterday afternoon, Tang En would definitely have laughed happily. But after seeing the situation at home with his own eyes, he could not laugh. Looking at the stubborn Wood, Tang En suddenly thought of an idea.
"Alright, I can give you another chance. But you want to become a member of the First Team. I can't make the decision alone. Do you see them? "Tang En pointed at the First Team members and coaches training on the training grounds.
Wood nodded.
"You have to prove that you have the ability to fight alongside them and convince those professional coaches with harsh eyes to let you join the First Team."
"How do I prove it?"
The fish had taken the bait. Tang En snickered inwardly, but his face was serious as he said, "It's very simple. Play a match with them and let everyone judge how good you are."
Tang En finally understood Wood's temper. This kind of stubborn donkey who would not turn back until he hit the wall, who would not shed tears until he saw the Yellow River, and who would not give up until he reached the Great Wall, had to suffer. Otherwise, he would not listen to anything others said. Tang En was very clear what the outcome would be for a rookie who had never played before competing with a professional player. This was not a fantasy novel. Such miracles did not exist. He wanted Wood to suffer a little so that he would remember better and know that professional football was not as simple as he had imagined.
Wood nodded. "Alright!"
So, Tang En brought him back and stood at the side of the field, loudly calling for a halt to the training. Then, he called Des Walker back.
"What's wrong, Tony?" Tony? "Walker looked strangely at George Wood, who was standing beside Tang En.
"Let's have everyone play a simple match. Then, put him … "Tang En pointed at Wood." Count him in, Lem. " Tang En waved his hand to call over a coach.
"Take him to the locker room to change," he said to Lem Okan, who was running over, pointing at Wood.
Only after watching Wood leave did Walker ask, "Tony, who is he?"
"Hmm, I found a … talented kid on the streets. He expressed to me an urgent desire to become a professional player, so I brought him here to train. Before going to the youth team, I wanted to let him experience the atmosphere of professional football in advance. "Tang En chose to say some things, not telling Walker the whole truth. After all, he did not know if Wood would mind letting others know about his family's situation.
"Oh, right. Des, put Wood in the group that doesn't wear the vest. Then, tell those who wear the yellow vest that if they want to get a chance to be in the starting lineup for the next match, this match is an important test. If they don't perform well, it will affect their appearance. "
In the Forest team's training matches, those who did not wear the vest represented the substitutes, while the main players wore the yellow vest. Walker nodded to show that he understood. He went back to instruct the players.
Soon, Wood also changed and returned to the side of the field. Tang En sized him up. With the jersey on, Wood really did look like a player.
"Hmm, from your appearance, you're a professional player." Tang En nodded. "Go. You'll be in the same team as those who don't wear the yellow vest. Des, you'll be the referee! "
Following that, Tang En crossed his arms and stood at the side of the field to watch the match.
It was obvious that Wood did not know how to play football, nor did he know how to coordinate with his teammates. The position assigned to him was the forward, but he only knew how to run with the ball. Wherever there was a ball, he would run. When he ran to the front, the other person would pass the ball out, and he would turn and run back. Ten minutes passed, and he did not even touch the ball once.
As the referee, Walker kept turning back to look at Tang En at the side of the field. He could not see any talent in this kid.
To be honest, Tang En could not see anything either, except … uh, except that he had better stamina and was fast. But his performance showed that he was more suited to be a track and field athlete than a player. Flustered by Walker's stare, Tang En simply took out a pair of sunglasses from his coat pocket and put them on. That way, even if he closed his eyes, no one would notice. He really felt that Wood's performance was unbearable to watch.
Seeing Tang En put on his sunglasses, Walker could more or less guess what was going on. The rest of the match was completely useless. This kid was a complete rookie in football.
Wood's teammates in the same team also found it strange. This kid did not know how to play football at all. Why was he training with them? There was simply no one passing the ball to him. Wood continued to run with his head lowered. Wherever there was a ball, his figure would be there.
Tang En watched for another ten minutes. Twenty minutes had passed, and George had not changed at all. He even guessed that the kid had not really watched a match before and did not understand football at all. Looking at how he was panting on the field, he guessed that he was not feeling well. He waved his hand to signal for a substitution, and Wood was taken off.
Wood lowered his head and panted heavily as he came before Tang En.
"George, how do you feel?" Tang En asked him.
Wood only cared about panting. He lowered his head and did not say a word. Tang En was clear that he already knew how powerful professional football was.
"This is just the standard of training. If it's an official match … do you think professional football is that simple? With your current standard, you won't be able to get a professional contract. You won't even be able to get the lowest grade of contract. I know why you want to train here, but to be able to train in a place like this also depends on your standard. To put it bluntly, your performance just now was bullsh * t. Do you think I can sign a professional contract with you just based on your performance just now? "
Wood still did not say a word. He lowered his head, perhaps still unconvinced.
"Alright, follow me to the youth team and get trained well. It's not like you don't have a chance. Besides, being a member of the youth team gives you money too. "
Hearing Tang En's words, Wood finally raised his head and stared at him. "Really?"
Tang En knew that this poor kid would only have a reaction when he mentioned "money." "Why would I lie to you? I'm a professional coach. I have a credit card, so my credit is guaranteed by the bank. "
"How much?" What Wood meant was how much he could earn in a month as a youth player.
Tang En thought about it and decided to give this kid a better youth contract. His family's situation was indeed difficult. "The weekly salary is eighty pounds. If you play in a match, you'll get thirty-five pounds per match. If you score a goal, you'll get seven pounds per goal. If you assist, you'll get three pounds per assist. This is the best youth contract. Those who just joined the team only get a weekly salary of fifty-five pounds. Also, the club will be in charge of the lunch. You're a local, so you won't be provided with accommodation. " Tang En did not lie. This was indeed the best youth contract in Forest's youth team. Back then, Michael Dawson and Andy Reid had performed outstandingly in the youth team and received this contract. It was just that Dawson, as a defender, did not receive a goal award or an assist award.
The two of them still had this contract because they had just been transferred from the youth team. However, Tang En was already thinking of giving them a First Team contract with a better salary. After all, for such talents to stay in the team and have them work for the team with peace of mind, he had to give them generous rewards.
He did not expect Wood to look hesitant after hearing Tang En's words. Tang En could also see it. "What's wrong?"
"Is this really the best?" Wood asked.
It turned out that he thought it was too low … Twain nodded, then pointed to Dawson on the training ground and said, "See that tall guy? He just got promoted to the First Team before New Year's Day and has always received the best contract in the youth team. If you don't believe me, I can call him over and you can ask him yourself. Do you need me to call him over? "
Wood shook his head. Perhaps he felt that Tang En did not seem to be lying.
"How much can you get a week working for a moving company?" Tang En asked.
Wood thought about it. "Two hundred pounds."
Behind his sunglasses, Tang En rolled his eyes. This was indeed much more than playing in the youth team. Tang En also understood that Wood had an absolute reason to hesitate.
"The treatment in the youth team is indeed not good. But you have to know that even Rooney's salary in the youth team is only eighty pounds a week, the same as yours. "
"Who's Rooney?" Wood looked confused.
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