Tang En did not sleep well for the entire night.
Leaving the familiar bed, he tossed and turned on an even bigger bed. Strange dreams kept appearing in his mind. In the dream, he saw himself glowing with youth, standing at the entrance of the City Stadium with a duffel bag in hand. Then, he stood at the side of a grassy field with a strange middle-aged man beside him. Dozens of young players with childish faces surrounded them, listening attentively. The middle-aged man appeared several times in the dream. Every time, he stood beside him, not saying a word, like a statue. Then, it was still the grassy field, but the middle-aged man disappeared. This time, it was his turn to be surrounded by a group of young players, saying something to them. Then, the scene changed. He saw a familiar scene — the field he was at during the day. Beside him stood a middle-aged man in a well-ironed suit, directing the game while he continued to remain silent. The dream changed, and the man beside him became more and more irritable. Finally, one day, there was no one beside him. An old man stood in front of him, patting him on the shoulder and saying something. Unfortunately, he could not hear anything.
Then … he woke up.
When he opened his eyes, he saw that the sky outside was still gray. There was a pitter patter coming from outside the window. He got up and sat on the bed. His eyes gradually adjusted to the dark room. Looking at the completely unfamiliar furnishings in the room, he still could not believe that he had come to England and become a football manager, even though it was only a temporary one. He rubbed his hands on his face to make himself more awake. Tang En jumped down from the bed and pulled open the tightly shut curtains.
It was already early in the morning outside. There were not many people on the streets. The wet road reflected the lights from the street lamps and cars. It was raining.
Such weather reminded him of his hometown, a small city in Sichuan. It was also a rainy city. Regardless of whether it was summer or winter, it was always wet. Seeing such a morning, he felt a sense of familiarity in his heart.
Feeling the chill, Tang En realized that he was still wearing his underwear. He hurriedly put on his clothes and went to the bathroom to wash up.
The place that Tony Twain lived in was called Branford Gardens. It was a very ordinary residential area located on the south bank of the Trent River in the Wilford district. It was a red brick house that was common in England and a small garden. That was all. The house was not considered small for the single Tang En, but it was definitely not considered big in Nottingham. The rent for the house was cheap, and most importantly, it was close to the Forest team's training base and youth training camp. After walking northeast for about 20 minutes, he would be able to see the training base's main gate hidden in the forest.
After washing up in the bathroom, Tang En planned to go to the kitchen to find something to eat.
When he walked in front of the fridge, he found that the fridge door was covered with notes. He opened the door and found a carton of milk and a piece of bread. He then stood in front of the fridge and curiously read the note on it while eating a simple breakfast.
The most eye-catching thing was an A4-sized form. Tang En only felt dizzy after glancing at the contents on it.
6: 30 to 7: 00, morning run.
7: 00 to 7: 20, breakfast.
7: 00 to 7: 40. Newspaper reading.
From 7: 40 to 8: 00, go to the training ground (Note, match day will be arranged separately).
This was a very detailed daily schedule. The time was accurate down to the minute, and there were a lot of notes. From the second he opened his eyes in the morning, this schedule was faithfully executed until he lay back on the bed and closed his eyes to sleep.
This d * mned obsessive-compulsive person! For the lazy Tang En, dividing his life into minutes and filling in the specific content section by section was practically a living torture. His daily life had already been planned out before he opened his eyes. What to do at what time, what to do at what time, and what to do at what time. He even wished that even the time to go to the toilet was written into the schedule so that he could plan accordingly. He finally understood why Kenny Burns was so surprised to see him drinking yesterday. The Tony Twain of the past was a complete workaholic. He was emotionless and did not know how to enjoy life at all. He was rigid and stubborn like a machine. For such a person to be able to live for 34 years, it was practically a miracle!
There were yellow, green, and red strips of paper around the white plan. Each of them had different contents written on them. The yellow ones were memos, reminding him of a meeting at a certain time. The green ones were phone numbers that were casually jotted down. There were not many green notes. It seemed that these phone numbers had all ended up in Tony Twain's personal phone book. The red ones were the most numerous. They were important arrangements for the day. There were daily ones. Tang En scanned the fridge line by line and finally found the red note that was pasted on the fridge door yesterday morning.
Other than the day's date, there was only one sentence on it:
"This is the first First Team match as a manager. We must win!"
After reading so many of the memos that Tony Twain had left behind, this was the first time he had seen the man use punctuation marks that had strong hints of emotion when writing. Moreover, he had used three punctuation marks at once.
Looking at the messy handwriting on the red paper, which was completely different from the previous memos, Tang En could even imagine the man's expression and movements when he wrote down this sentence. He must have clenched his fists tightly, gritted his teeth, filled with anticipation and fighting spirit, and used all the strength in his body to write down this oath on the paper.
Unfortunately … Tang En thought of what the television news had said yesterday. Forest had suffered a crushing 0: 3 defeat to the weak Shalwall at their home ground. Had the sudden arrival of him snatched away his victory? Tang En thought blankly as he looked at the paper pasted on the fridge door.
He must have made the most detailed plan and told it to his players the day before the match. But what was the use? The match was still lost. There was a saying in China: Plans can't keep up with changes.
Tang En reached out and peeled off the paper on the fridge door one by one. In the end, all that was left was a red note that said, "We must win."
Then, he threw the paper and the milk carton into the bin, dusted his hands, and walked out of the kitchen.
By the time he returned to the bedroom, the sky was already bright. Although it was still raining, the number of pedestrians and cars on the road had gradually increased.
Tang En recalled that he had seen on his schedule that he had to go to the training ground at eight o 'clock. Looking down at his watch, it was exactly 7: 40.
No matter how terrible and absurd the reality was, he had become Tony Twain after all. Replacing this unlucky man, he naturally had to do the unlucky man's work. Tang En was not an irresponsible person. Furthermore, when he watched a match, he never thought that victory would come out of nowhere. He put on his coat and picked up a black umbrella at the door. Then, he pushed the door open and walked into the rain.
Forest's training base was also in the Wilford district. The Trent River, which flowed from west to east, made a sharp U-turn here, forming a large piece of flat land. A century ago, this was still a large piece of fertile farmland and forest. Nottingham was just a small piece of land on the north side of the river. Now, the pace of the city's development had crossed the Trent River. This was already a rather large residential area. Forest Football Club had bought this place and built it into their own training base.
The long and narrow training base was divided into two parts by a small road called "Wilford Lane." The slightly larger area to the north was the youth team's training base. This was one of the best youth training camps in England. The slightly smaller area to the south was the Forest First Team's training base, also called "Wilford."
The rain in England during winter was not heavy, but it was very annoying because it never stopped. Tang En, on the other hand, did not mind. After all, whether it was his hometown or the city where he worked after graduation, it would also rain non-stop once winter came.
The base's old guard, Ian MacDonald, looked at Tony Twain, whose pants were all wet. "Tony, what are you doing here?"
Tang En felt that his question was baffling. "I'm here for training."
MacDonald said to him, "But Tony, today is January 2nd, 2003. The team is on holiday. It's New Year's break."
Tang En slapped his forehead. He had forgotten about it.
Seeing him slap his forehead, MacDonald shook his head lightly. He must have thought that Tang En's head was still not normal due to yesterday's collision.
"I was wondering why … why is it so quiet here. Happy New Year. "Tang En smiled awkwardly at MacDonald and turned to leave. At that moment, he saw a dark red Audi A6 stop beside him.
The back door opened and a fat old man came out. Tang En's subconscious told him that this man was his boss, the team's chairman, Mr. Nigel Doughty. Behind him was a middle-aged man who was about the same age as him. He was tall and capable and wore a fitted casual jacket. He held an umbrella in his hand, most of which covered the chairman's head.
Doughty saw Tang En standing by the side of the road. The old man took the initiative to extend his arms and hug Tang En. "Tony, I saw yesterday's news. Forgive me for not calling you. My son just came back from America to see me. Are you okay? "
Tang En was a little flattered by his boss's attitude. He hurriedly replied, "I think … I'm fine. Thank you, Mr. Chairman."
Nigel let go of Tang En and pointed to the middle-aged man standing beside him. He said to Tang En, "My son, Evan."
Evan Doughty took the initiative to extend his hand. "Hello, it's nice to meet you. Mr. Coach … "
His father interrupted his son. "Evan, I've said it many times. Don't call him 'coach'. Call him 'manager'. This is England, not America. "
Evan smiled apologetically at Tang En. "I'm sorry, Mr. Manager."
Tang En also extended his hand. "Uh, it's alright. It's nice to meet you too, Mr. Doughty. "
The chairman beside him interrupted. "My son just came back from America. He grew up there, so he's unfamiliar with England. He's an American who grew up watching the NBA. "
Evan smiled helplessly at the mockery and did not refute it.
Standing in front of him was the boss who gave him his salary. Tang En thought of the red note on the fridge. He felt the need to explain yesterday's failure, even if he had to lie. "Uh, Mr. Chairman … I'm very sorry about yesterday's failure …"
He did not expect Nigel to place his hand on Tang En's shoulder and turn around to comfort him. "Tony, I don't like failure either. But this is not something you should bear alone. These two seasons … "At this point, the chairman's somewhat turbid eyes looked into the distant sky. He muttered a curse before looking away. "Do your best. Don't think too much. I won't give you any pressure. Happy New Year, Tony. " He patted Tang En's shoulder lightly, then turned around and walked into the team's training ground with his son.
Tang En stood at the door. He saw the chairman's hunched back and his son, Evan, who was supporting him and holding an umbrella for him. He could not describe how he felt at that moment. He accepted the fact that he was a football manager at the fastest speed, but he could not accept this team emotionally in one day. He did not know much about Nottingham Forest, other than knowing that it had once been glorious. He was also not a Forest fan.
But the two pats on his shoulder from the old man just now made him feel a sense of warmth. As a "guest in a foreign land," such warmth was extremely precious. He decided to do his best and do his best. It was not just to spite those drunkards, but also to live up to the trust the chairman had in him. Even if the old man did not know that the person he trusted was not the Tony Twain he was familiar with.
"Happy New Year, old man …"
After leaving the Wilford training ground, Tang En strolled aimlessly on the streets. He did not know north from south. The rain had already stopped, so he simply used the umbrella as a walking stick.
The number of people on the streets was several times more than when he went out previously. It was a holiday, so it was only natural. Everyone came out in groups to play and shop. It was the New Year. But such a festive atmosphere did not belong to Tang En. He was not in the mood to celebrate.
He found it very strange that he could understand every English word and sentence. It seemed to be an instinct. He was familiar with the language of this country like he was familiar with Chinese, and he also had some life skills. However, he had forgotten something very important.
It was as if there was a gap in his memory. He could not remember how he trained the team as Tony Twain and how he arranged the tactics. He was also not too clear about his popularity, influence, and reputation in the club. Therefore, he could not understand why the chairman was so kind to him. It was just that there were times when those memories that had disappeared would come back and stay in his mind for a very short time before disappearing again.
But he knew what kind of person Tony Twain was in the past. He was well-behaved, taciturn, conscientious, and diligent in his work. In terms of his private life, he was like an ascetic monk. He did not drink or smoke, had no experience in love, and never went to brothels. Apart from working every day, he would go home to rest. He was like the Big Ben Bell at the head of London Bridge, following the rules and striking every rigid time. He liked peace and quiet. The only activity that could be considered entertainment was listening to classical music with headphones in his room.
"Damn it!" After retrieving the information about Tony Twain from the depths of his memory, the current Tang En could not help but curse. "This is practically a person living in the Middle Ages. So boring! How can there be such a person in the world?! "
Tang En summed it up for himself. This body was not his. It belonged to an ancient person from the Middle Ages called "Tony Twain." So he had a body that was familiar with life in England. At the same time, Tang En's heart beat in this body, so he had a completely different personality from this body.
Now that he thought about it, he still had to thank the experience of making a fool of himself yesterday. Letting everyone know that he had suffered a blow to the head, he would not have to worry about people suspecting why Tony Twain's personality had changed so much.
Tired from walking, Tang En sat on a bench by the street to rest. Then he began to seriously consider how he wanted to be a successful manager and live up to the old chairman's trust in him.
He buried his head in his thoughts for a long time, but he had no clue. He did not know how to train the team, and he did not know how to make the team win. The football manager games that he had played in the past were completely useless at this moment. He was also not familiar with every player in the Forest team. At least, he was not familiar with them at the moment. He could not act like he was watching a televised match and say, "The manager should send this person up, let that person play on the left, and let that person actively assist." Faced with a completely unfamiliar team, Tang En had no idea where to start no matter how much he watched.
What was worse was that he did not have much time to prepare. The team had a day off today and would regroup the next day to prepare for the third round of the FA Cup on the 4th. Their opponent was West Ham United from the English Premier League.
Currently, the Forest team had experienced three consecutive defeats in the Premier League. The newly appointed manager had made a huge fool of himself in the televised match. Their morale was extremely low. Although West Ham United's days in the English Premier League were not easy, they were still better than the Forest team.
Tang En smiled bitterly. "When it rains, it pours. If this is also fate's arrangement, then I can only say: You're f * cking dogsh * t!"
Troubled, Tang En raised his head. He saw a sizable bar on the opposite corner of the street. Looking at the word "Pub" on the sign, he decided to go in for a drink and temporarily put his worries aside.
"Transmigrating to England isn't a bad thing. At least the bars everywhere are good things," Tang En muttered to himself as he crossed the road and pushed open the heavy, reddish-brown door.
"Sorry, it's not time to open yet. I forgot to hang the sign on the door." Hearing the door open, a middle-aged man who was wiping glasses behind the bar raised his head and said, "I'm sorry, it's not time to open yet. I forgot to hang the sign on the door." But when he saw clearly who had entered, he froze.
Tang En was also stunned because he recognized the man in front of him with a cigarette in his mouth. It was the man who had treated him to a drink the night before — Kenny Burns. Yesterday, he was in a fit of rage and had messed up the bar. He did not expect to come here again!
Tang En's next reaction was to step back and raise his head to look at the bar's sign. Then, he walked in and looked around. "How the f * ck did I walk all the way here?" He could not help but curse.
Burns looked at him with interest. "Looks like the collision yesterday has changed our Tony Twain's personality."
This was a good way to step down, so Tang En went with it. "I know. In the past, he … uh, I never used vulgarities. He was quiet like a woman. It's not open yet? Then I'll go to another bar. "He turned to leave, but Burns' hearty laughter rang out behind him.
"Don't waste your time. There won't be any bars opening before 11: 30 in the afternoon."
Tang En turned around in embarrassment. "I … I don't come often, so I don't know."
"It's not that you don't come often. Today is only your second time coming to the bar. I've said it before. In the past, you were like the purest Puritan. You don't mind me saying that, do you? "
Tang En shook his head. He was an atheist and did not believe in religion. He did not care what religious camp others placed him in.
Burns walked out from behind the bar and waved at Tang En. "Since you're here, don't leave. Anyway, I'm bored alone now. How about chatting with me? Of course, I'll treat you to a drink. "
Right now, Tang En also wanted to find someone to chat with. He blinked his eyes. "The purest Scotch whiskey?"
Burns laughed heartily. "That's right. It's the most authentic Scotch whiskey from my hometown! But please don't press the glass on my face. "
"Ah! That matter … I want to apologize to you. "
"It's nothing. Fights in bars are common. Everyone gets more excited when they drink too much, especially when there's a match … "Burns nodded in understanding.
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