When Salgado shoveled Ribéry's ball out of the sideline, the assistant referee beside the ball did not indicate that it was an out of bounds ball from Nottingham Forest. Instead, he raised the flag in his hands above his head.
This was the flag signal from the sidelines requesting a substitution.
The fourth official stood on the sidelines and raised the electronic sign in his hands: Nottingham Forest requesting a substitution. Number 13 off, number 14 on.
Seeing this substitution, ESPN's British commentator was very surprised. He rarely saw Manager Tony Twain substitute George Wood in the middle of a match, much less at such an early stage — the 67th minute.
If substituting Arteta was to strengthen the offense, then wouldn't it be better to substitute the older Albertini? Why did he substitute the young and energetic George Wood, who could run and tackle?
Of course, it might have something to do with the card he had on him. However, it was indeed surprising enough that Manager Twain could make up his mind to substitute Wood, whom he had always thought highly of.
Indeed, even George Wood was surprised. He stood on the field and looked at the sign in the fourth official's hands. The red number indicating the substitution was indeed "13."
He rarely had the experience of being substituted in the middle of a match. Ever since he played for Forest's First Team, such a feeling was extremely rare. He was at a loss, but he soon became a little angry.
He, George Wood, was substituted early!
He had no way of continuing to compete with Zidane on the field!
He … had lost. He had lost Zidane's match.
He did not care who his opponent was or what kind of impact it would have on the world of football if he had successfully defended against him. He only knew one thing. Twain had asked him to watch over Zidane, but now he substituted him early. He must be dissatisfied with his work, which meant he had failed.
The scene at El Madrigal Stadium a year ago seemed to reappear in front of him. A lost match, his opponent's cold and disdainful gaze, and the home fans in the stands wearing masks that mocked him.
"George?" Albertini called out to him from behind when he saw that Wood did not move.
Only then did Wood lower his head and walk off the field. He walked quickly, as though he was jogging, and soon reached the sidelines. But in a bad mood, he did not even high-five Arteta. He lowered his head and walked past his Spanish teammate.
Arteta did not take it seriously. He could not wait to run onto the field.
Kerslake saw that Wood's expression was not right when he came down and knew that he was unhappy. So, he wanted to go up and praise him, but Wood ignored him and walked straight back to the substitutes' bench. Then, he sat down and ignored everyone.
Kerslake shrugged helplessly.
Tang En's gaze was focused on the field from the moment the assistant referee signaled for the substitution. When Wood came down, he passed by him, but he did not even look at him. It was as if the thing floating in front of him was just a mass of air.
Thanks to the advanced television technology, this scene was faithfully presented in front of countless television viewers.
"George Wood was unhappy that he had been substituted early. He ignored everyone and sat back on the bench. And Tony Twain doesn't seem to have any intention of explaining anything to him. "
Kerslake walked to Tang En's side. "Hey, Tony."
"Ignore him. Let him calm down for a while." Tang En knew why Kerslake was looking for him. "Pretend not to see it, David. Come, let's analyze how we're going to play the next game. "
Kerslake sighed. "You let Arteta go up to strengthen the offense. Anyone can see that. What else is there to analyze? But with George replaced, who do you plan to let defend Zidane? "
"Demetrio."
"Him? What about Guti? "
Tang En smiled. "Rosenberg's biggest mistake in this game was letting Guti and Zidane start at the same time. Their characteristics are similar and their positions overlap. Most of the balls will be passed to the Frenchman's feet. So what will Guti do? Watch the show from the side. " He spread his hands. "In defense, Guti can't contribute any strength. He's marginalized in offense. Real Madrid is equivalent to only having ten people playing against us. Guti is a fountain-type player. His condition is very unstable. In today's game, I don't think he's in his best condition. "
"So, you're confident enough to let Demetrio defend Zidane?"
"Yes. They're old rivals. We don't have to worry about what to do. Now it's … "Tang En raised his hand to look at his watch." The entire game is seventy minutes. We still have twenty minutes to win this game. I've already asked Arteta to convey this to the players on the field. In the next twenty minutes, we'll attack! "
※ ※ ※
Wood sat on the substitutes' bench and looked at the field without saying a word. His teammates next to him did not dare to speak to him. Everyone could see that he was in a bad mood — it was written all over his face. The best thing to do at this time was to ignore him. Otherwise, if he accidentally said the wrong thing, he might be in trouble.
He saw Albertini, wearing the captain's armband, run to defend Zidane, while Arteta, who replaced him, was responsible for organizing the attack. The Forest Team opened the curtains on the final attack.
Before Arteta came on, the Forest Team's offense was slightly monotonous. They basically relied on the two flanks, which could easily be sealed off by the experienced Real Madrid. Moreover, with two defensive players in the midfield, the offensive forces were not abundant. When they needed to invest forces, they often could not send more people up and were unable to pose a greater threat to Real Madrid's goal.
Now, after Arteta, who was better at organizing the attack, was replaced, Albertini returned to take charge of the defense. The other three players in the Forest Team's midfield were all responsible for the offense. The team's offense had improved.
Moreover, Arteta's presence also gave the Forest Team more opportunities in the middle. When Real Madrid discovered that they could not blindly seal off the two flanks, the terrible rear defensive line would fall into a state of panic.
Tang En had always believed that ever since Makelele left Real Madrid, the composition of Real Madrid's team had moved towards two extremes — a world-class offensive lineup and an amateur defense.
There was Elguerra, who was always impatient and used amateur moves to defend.
There were the two full backs, Salgado and Roberto Carlos, who were heavy on offense and light on defense.
There was Sergio Ramos, who was still too inexperienced as a center back.
If they did not have Saint Igor, Real Madrid might have been hovering around the relegation zone every year for the past few seasons.
Tang En decided to seize this point and make full use of it. No matter how powerful a goalkeeper was, there would be times when he could not get the support from the rear defensive line and be powerless. He wanted to completely mess up Real Madrid's rear defensive line so that it would be full of loopholes. He wanted to seize one or two opportunities to take their lives.
Arteta made Nottingham Forest's offense richer and more varied, making Real Madrid's defense even more perplexed.
Very soon, Tang En's substitution showed its effects. While Real Madrid's defensive attention was still on the flanks, Arteta and Albertini coordinated in the middle before shooting a long shot into the goal, forcing Casillas to make a spectacular save.
While he felt sorry for this offense, Tang En secretly glanced at Wood. That kid was still staring at the field. He could not tell what he was thinking from his expression.
※ ※ ※
As the match ticked by, the boos that were dissatisfied with the home team increased.
Tang En liked this phenomenon very much. At the Bernabéu Stadium, the team that was booed the most was not the away team, but the home team. It was either because Real Madrid could not win, or they were in the lead but did not play well. Real Madrid's players often felt at a loss about what to do.
Perhaps Real Madrid was one of the few teams that had more pressure playing at home than away.
The score was still 1: 1. If they were forced into a draw by the team they defeated in the first round at home, they would face even louder boos. Real Madrid's players became impatient. Their footwork began to increase, especially Guti.
When Arteta tugged at his jersey to obstruct him from dribbling the ball in defense, he turned around to clash with his fellow Spaniard.
Fortunately, Albertini appeared between the two in time and separated them. Otherwise, he might have made his move.
The referee came up to give the two men in conflict a stern verbal warning, hoping they would calm down. However, this request was difficult for the Real Madrid players amidst the boos.
Three minutes later, Salgado shoved down Franck Ribéry and received a yellow card.
Tang En turned his head to look at Real Madrid's technical area. The Brazilian was still standing on the sidelines. He was well-dressed, but the anxious expression on his face was unmistakable. He was not just anxious. He was also at a loss.
He did not even know how his Real Madrid should play.
Attack and please the Real Madrid fans and the Real Madrid chairman. However, offensive football was not simply an accumulation of offensive players. Guti did not play much of a role after coming on. Staying on the field became an unstable factor. Moreover, now that the Forest team's offense had suddenly risen, Real Madrid's defense was in danger. He was worried that they would collapse if they did not strengthen their defense.
Defense? Now that the score was a draw, it had already attracted the boos of the Bernabéu fans. If he brought on Pablo Garcia to strengthen the defense, would the boos come crashing down on him?
To win, one had to win beautifully. Winning by "ugly" defensive counterattack was more unacceptable than losing by playing beautifully.
Rosenberg really did not understand what the Spaniards were thinking. Now that the team was in such a bad situation, it was urgent to use a victory to boost morale. As long as it was a victory, even if it was obtained through defense, it should be encouraged and supported. Why did they insist on being beautiful on the field when Real Madrid was at its lowest point in history?
He did not understand. He could not accept it. It was completely at odds with the football thinking in his head.
What was the role of the manager here? It was not to lead the team to train and direct the game to win, but to please the audience and the dignitaries on the podium.
But I'm a f * * king manager, not a clown in a circus!
(To be continued. If you want to know what happens next, please log on to WWW. CMFU. COM. More chapters. Support the author. Support original reading!)
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
