Albertini was injured.
Less than a week before the start of the first round of the Champions League qualifiers, he had strained his left thigh muscle during training.
There was no intense collision at the time, and it did not happen during a training match. It was just a normal sprint and return run. Regardless of whether they had finished the run or not, they were all very relaxed. It was just a warm-up before the start of training.
At the time, Tang En was still discussing with Kerslake how to make some tactical changes against Villarreal CF and to let the team pay attention during normal training.
On the field, it was Albertini and George Wood's turn to run back and forth. In the first sprint, Wood charged forward with his head held high. He was always like this, working as hard as he did in an official match during normal training. Albertini did not have to work as hard as that silly boy. He should have maintained his own rhythm and speed, and then be easily shaken off by George Wood.
But today's situation was different. Albertini tried to keep up with Wood from the start. Wood ran with all his might, oblivious to it. Albertini also gritted his teeth and persevered behind him. But it was too much for Demi, who was already thirty-three years old, to compete with the young Wood in speed.
On the first turn back, Wood easily and smoothly turned around to rush back. Albertini, on the other hand, suddenly slowed down after he turned around. Then, he changed from running to walking. After two steps, he simply stood still.
The first to notice the abnormality was the team doctor, Fleming, who had been guarding the side of the training ground. He saw Albertini stop and ran over.
Then, Kerslake's attention was attracted by Fleming's movements. He interrupted Tang En's conversation and turned his head to look at the training ground. Tang En followed his gaze and saw the moment Albertini sat on the ground.
The other players clearly noticed their captain's abnormality. They could not care less about the training and ran over to surround Albertini.
George Wood rushed to the finish line in one breath and then realized that there was no one around him. He turned his head curiously and saw the crowd behind him. He still did not understand what had happened. He saw the team doctor, Fleming, push the crowd aside and rush in. His teammates had not yet gathered, and Kerslake also rushed in. After that, Twain was blocked outside.
Fleming, who rushed in, did a simple check. Kerslake kept asking, "How's the situation?" Fleming did not answer him. Instead, he stood up to call for a stretcher. Hearing this, Kerslake shut up.
Being carried out of the training ground on a stretcher meant that his injuries were quite serious.
Hearing Fleming call for a stretcher, Tang En pulled away Wes Morgan and Franck Ribéry, who were blocking his way, and squeezed in.
"Demetrio?"
Albertini suddenly came to his senses when he saw Tang En appear in front of him. Only then did he realize that he was surrounded by teammates, coaches, and team doctors. Through the gaps in the crowd, he saw two more people running over with a stretcher.
He suddenly waved his hand and struggled to sit up. "No, there's no need." He was now the captain of the team. To be carried off on a stretcher in front of all his teammates during training … Am I not allowed to leave? No.
"George!" Tang En suddenly roared. "Come here and help Demetrio to the sidelines!"
Wood quickly ran over and separated the crowd. He obediently helped Albertini up and helped him to the side of the field.
Tang En watched as the two walked to the sidelines with the team doctor, Fleming. He turned around and waved. "Continue training. There's nothing to see."
Then he turned and went to Albertini. Kerslake understood and blew his whistle. "Focus!"
Tang En walked to Albertini's side and looked at Wood, who was still guarding by his side. He smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Go back to training. It has nothing to do with you."
After Wood left, Tang En squatted down and comforted Albertini. "Don't worry. You'll be fine, Demetrio."
Albertini nodded. "It's just that I won't be able to make it to the qualifiers."
Tang En waved his hands. "It's fine. It's just the qualifiers. You just wait to come back and participate in the main competition! "
Fleming said to the two people who had just carried the stretcher, "Help Demetrio to the infirmary."
The two men went forward to help Albertini up and slowly walked out of the training field.
Fleming did not follow them. Instead, he stayed behind.
"How is it, Gary?"
Fleming shook his head. "I don't know. We can only know the specifics of the injury after a detailed examination. But based on my experience … it's not good. He suddenly stopped when he turned around and started again. I'm guessing it's a muscle strain. This kind of injury is very troublesome. Even if he recovers in a short period of time, it won't heal completely. Instead, it will repeat the strain more frequently. Demetrio is getting older, so this aspect is more obvious. "
Tang En frowned and bit his lip.
It was going to be the Champions League soon. As one of the few players in the team who had rich experience in the Champions League and was also the team's captain, Albertini's injury at this time would have a huge impact on the team.
Seeing that Tang En did not speak, Fleming turned to leave. He still had to go and examine Albertini to determine the extent of the injury and its severity.
Tang En looked at Fleming's back and then turned to look at the players who continued to train on the field. A few of them were clearly distracted, probably still worried about Albertini's injury. He looked up at the clear sky and really wanted to curse.
Why was he so unlucky in 2005? Had his good luck come to an end? Was the bad luck of injuries starting to plague his team?
What was the thing a professional team feared the most? It was not a strong opponent or a harsh environment. It was not even a black-hearted referee or a mastermind behind the scenes. What they feared the most was injuries.
No matter how strong or invincible they were, even if they built a great career that no one had ever done before or since, such a team could be dragged down by injuries overnight.
Tang En was already unwilling to think about the teams and players that had been dragged down by injuries. He felt that even just thinking about those lessons from the past was very ominous.
Looking at the flickering light in the players' eyes, Tang En steadied his mind and stood by the side of the field again. He did not turn to leave, nor did he look around. As usual, he stood by the side of the field to supervise the training.
It was as if nothing had happened here a few minutes ago.
※ ※ ※
A day later, the results of the examination were out. Tang En was the first to receive the results, even before Albertini himself. This was a tradition in English football. A player's understanding of his own injury must be after the team's manager. Any doctor who bypassed the manager and directly informed the player of the injury would be fired by the club and would almost never be hired by another club again.
Albertini's left thigh muscle was pulled. The estimated recovery time was one month. The time of recovery was … unknown.
"There's basically no possibility of recovery. His age is there for all to see," Fleming said to Tang En. "After a month, he looks like he's not injured at all. But we don't know when he'll be injured again, in the same area. Moreover, this is not the first time he's been injured. In his career, this area is considered an old injury. To be honest, it can't be treated. What we can do is to let him recover as early as possible, and then pay attention to his maintenance. Every day after training, we can massage him for half an hour. That way … "
Tang En interrupted him. "Don't let him recover in advance. I can wait to be on the safe side. I don't want us to rush him back to the field and then injure him again after playing two games. Resting for a month to play two games, then resting for another month. We don't need Albertini like that. "
"Then the team's matches …"
"That's something for me to worry about, Gary. Just let Demetrio recuperate in peace. Don't tell him the exact recovery time. Just tell him that he'll get better as soon as possible. "
Fleming was silent for a moment, then nodded. "I understand."
After bidding farewell to Tang En, Fleming returned to his office. Tang En was right. He did not need to worry about what would happen to the team without Albertini. What he needed to worry about was equally a headache — how to let Albertini recuperate in peace, how to let Albertini's injury recover smoothly. He was the leader of the Forest team's medical team. He was duty-bound to handle these matters.
But he did not believe he could hide it from Albertini. Demetrio was not a young man who had just stepped into professional football. Some things could be understood just by looking.
But … he also knew that Tang En had good intentions, so he could only try his best.
Here, Fleming was having a headache about how to face Albertini. On the other side, Tang En was also having a headache about Albertini's injury.
As soon as Fleming walked out of the office and closed the door, he cursed.
Thirty-three years old! Matthaus could play until he was forty. Zidane's retirement at thirty-four was considered early. You're not old, Demetrio!
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