Dunn had observed many players during the World Cup. His gaze was mainly focused on those players who were not famous and were not expensive. However, he was only responsible for providing such a list. The real decision maker was still Tang En.
Using the previous two seasons as a reference, Tang En already clearly knew what the team's weaknesses were and which positions needed to be supplemented or sold.
For example, in the Champions League battle against Barcelona, he had deeply felt the lack of thickness on his team's bench.
First, he analyzed the team's starting lineup.
In most cases, the Forest team's starting formation was the traditional 4-4-2. The two forwards were Viduka and Anelka. There was no doubt that Anelka was world-class. Viduka, on the other hand, was gradually unable to keep up with Nottingham Forest's development. In a mid-tier English Premier League team, the Australian forward could be the absolute main force and offensive core. However, when faced with a stronger opponent, he would reveal his lack of individual ability. For the bench lineup, he was outstanding. But for the main lineup … Tang En felt that he had to reconsider.
In the midfield, the Forest team stood parallel to each other most of the time. George Wood and Arteta were in the middle, one focused on defense and the other on offense. Franck Ribéry and Ashley Young were on the left and right sides. Their outstanding speed and assists were the Forest team's main means of attack.
Ribéry had been the main player for the French team in the World Cup in Germany and was a key figure in the team's ability to smoothly advance from the group stage. His ability did not need to be mentioned.
Although Ashley Young was a substitute, considering that the right midfielder position was occupied by England's captain, Beckham, his ability should not be questioned.
This main lineup could definitely be ranked in the top five in the English Premier League.
Looking at the defenders and goalkeeper.
Nottingham Forest's rear defensive line was very young. The oldest was only the twenty-six-year-old Chimbonda. Piqué and Pepe were both excellent young players, but sometimes they still lacked experience. The most important thing for the rear defensive line was often experience.
Leighton Baines and Chimbonda were the team's left and right backs. They performed very diligently in their respective positions.
The goalkeeper was the familiar main goalkeeper of the Dutch national team, Edwin van der Sar. As the Forest team's number one guardian angel, his performance was so outstanding that his substitute goalkeeper, Paul Gerrard, could not find any match opportunities to maintain his form.
Such a main lineup could definitely be ranked in the top five in the English Premier League.
Therefore, the Forest team's second-place finish in the league tournament last season was well-deserved.
Second place in the Premier League and second place in the Champions League was in itself an outstanding result to be proud of, but the problem lay in this — why could they only be second in the Premier League and not first in the Premier League? Why could they only be second in the Champions League and not the Champions League champion?
Compared with the wealthy Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal, which had a deep foundation and painstakingly operated for many years, the Forest team's performance in the past two years was very much like a nouveau riche. They relied on their opponents' ignorance and contempt for them, and relied on their own drive and aggressiveness to rush to such heights in one go.
If Tang En was satisfied with this, he could continue to mingle in the English Premier League with this lineup. Avoiding relegation would certainly not be a problem. Then, if he played well every season, he could even participate in European competitions.
Was this what Tang En wanted?
Not really.
He wanted to win first place, win the championship, and become a champion coach. He did not want to be a so-called "famous coach" in the country.
What should he do to get the team to the next level? In addition to the adjustment of the main lineup, it was more important to accumulate the strength of the bench.
The experience of countless predecessors proved an unbreakable truth — any team that suddenly rose to explosive success must have an enviable main lineup. But when these nouveau riche streaked across the football world like a meteor, the reason for their rapid success and rapid fall was this strong main lineup, and the terrible substitute lineup that was hidden beneath it.
It was previously said that Nottingham Forest's main lineup could be ranked in the top five in the English Premier League. Compared with this limitless and powerful main lineup, their substitute lineup was a little … unjustifiable.
The strength of the substitutes on the forward line was perhaps the strongest of the three lines. The Danish genius, Nicklas Bendtner's talent was unquestionable, but he was still a little immature. Eastwood, on the other hand, did not make many appearances last season because he was seriously injured the season before. Even after he recovered from his injury, he appeared more as a substitute.
There was no problem with the strength of these two players. They just lacked a way to prove it.
The strength of the substitutes in the midfield began to decline.
George Wood had never had a suitable substitute player. The number of appearances that the Icelandic player, Gunnarsson, had in a season could be counted on one's fingers. It was difficult to count on him to strengthen the team's strength. Nottingham Forest's two most stable players were the goalkeeper, Edwin van der Sar, and their defensive midfielder, George Wood.
As for the other midfielder, Arteta, his and Albertini's situations were special. Albertini was originally not a substitute. Unfortunately, an injury before the season had caused the chronic illness that had accumulated in his career to erupt. His body was deteriorating day by day, and it was no longer possible for him to finish a full season in the high-intensity and high-density English Premier League. As a result, the Spaniard, Mikel Arteta, who had only been with the team for half a season, was temporarily promoted by Tang En and became the midfielder that Wood partnered with the most times in the league.
In this way, even if Albertini recovered from his injury and returned to the team, it was inevitable that he would play as a substitute. Because Tang En could not break up this new midfield partnership, which was becoming more and more compatible with each other and had excellent results.
He and Eastwood, on the other hand, had indirectly confirmed Tang En's rule of "not looking at personal preferences, only recognizing the player's condition and performance" in the lineup.
Albertini, on the other hand, was an outstanding and qualified substitute. His experience and skills were of great help to the team. This person, who relied on his brain to play football, was able to fully complete the tasks given to him by the manager in a limited time. Such an outstanding player would only be able to represent Forest for another season. It was a huge loss for Tony Twain. He could spend money to buy good players, but experience was priceless.
Strictly speaking, Ribéry's substitute was Chris Commons. However, this player, who loved Forest, was only at the mid-to-lower level of the English Premier League at best. Even so, Tang En had no intention of purging him because the team needed such loyal people. The fans also recognized Commons, who worked hard and was loyal to the team. However, letting him be Ribéry's substitute was a little worrying.
Other than finding a substitute player for Ribéry from the transfer market, there was a simpler solution, and that was to transform Gareth Bale into a left midfielder instead of a left back. Bale was still young. Letting him play as a substitute for a few more years would help him accumulate more experience.
Ashley Young's substitute was the young player, Aaron Lennon. In his limited appearances last season, he had shown his talent, which made Tang En very happy. His situation was different from the other substitutes in the midfield. What troubled Tang En was not Lennon's lack of ability, but how to satisfy Lennon's desire to get more matches and how to balance the relationship between the two outstanding players. Tang En believed that with the Forest team's overall strength in the new season, it would not be a problem to get more appearances.
The substitutes on the back line, as well as the left and right backs, were all very capable. Sun Jihai's appearances last season were not as many as Chimbonda's, but he was not a dispensable character. His versatility made Tang En a very good jack of all trades when the team was facing a shortage of players.
As for Gareth Bale, he had just mentioned him when he was a substitute in the midfield. He could play as either a left back or a left midfielder. If Gareth Bale was transformed into a side midfielder, then there would be no substitute left back. Tang En's initial idea was for Bale to become an all-rounded talent on the left side corridor. He could play as both a side midfielder and a full back. That way, no matter which position was needed, he could fill in. One person could be used as two people, and it would also allow him to get more opportunities to play.
The substitute lineup for the center back was made up of Matthew Upson and Wes Morgan. Both of them were the type who did not have enough ability. The difference was that Matthew Upson was bought after the team rushed to the English Premier League, while Wes Morgan was groomed in the team's own youth training camp. The latter's situation was somewhat similar to Commons'. Even if Morgan's ability was absolutely unable to play as a main force in the team, playing as a substitute might still be criticized by the critics. Tang En would also not consider selling Morgan unless he proposed a transfer himself. Even then, he would do his best to retain him.
Because this person was "one of their own." English teams attached great importance to this kind of "one of their own" that they had groomed. No matter how strong they were, as long as they were one of their own, they would receive more preferential treatment and the love of the fans.
After talking about the defensive line, in terms of the goalkeeper … the first substitute was naturally Paul Gerrard, who had appeared as a substitute in the Champions League final, and the second substitute goalkeeper was Barry Roche.
This position was very important and at the same time very awkward.
The position of the goalkeeper was very special. Once the main goalkeeper was confirmed, unless he was injured or suspended, it was absolutely impossible to easily change him.
As long as a main goalkeeper had his own ability and maintained a stable state, he could stand in front of the goal for many consecutive seasons. Those successful teams were always remembered by people as the main goalkeeper. How many people knew who Schmeichel's substitute goalkeeper at Manchester United was? How many people knew Casillas's substitute at Real Madrid? And how many people knew what the name of Buffon's substitute at Juventus was?
Choosing a substitute goalkeeper was as difficult as finding a substitute for George Wood. On the one hand, he had to have ability and not be too bad. On the other hand, he had to be able to endure loneliness and be willing to be a substitute. Where could one find such a player? Who was willing to be a substitute? Who did not want to be a main player? If he had the ability to go to another team to be the main goalkeeper, why would he come here to be a substitute?
After the Champions League final, Tang En began to consider candidates for the substitute goalkeeper. In the end, after a trip to China and the World Cup was over, he still could not find a suitable person in his mind.
The name "Wang Dalei" flashed through his mind, but he immediately rejected it. He was not afraid of buying a China player. Moreover, Wang Dalei at this time still had a lot of talent and potential. No matter what, he was also a player who was rated by FIFA as one of the "five most anticipated rising stars." The crux of the problem was not Wang Dalei's ability, but that he did not have the qualifications to play in the English Premier League at all. Because he did not represent the China national team in 75% of the international A-level matches. Even if the Forest team really bought him, they would not be able to get a work permit. It would be too wasteful to specially go through the trouble of using the "special talent clause" for a substitute goalkeeper.
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This was the current situation of Nottingham Forest's main lineup and substitute lineup.
The foundation of Nottingham Forest's foothold in the English Premier League was defense and counterattack. Logically speaking, the Forest team's defense should be perfect and did not need any more effort. But this time, Tang En still decided to start from the defense. He would deepen the thickness of the bench in the defensive aspect and improve the team's internal competitiveness.
He did not want this group of kids to think that their main position was already secured.
Therefore, the team's summer recruitment would start from the defensive line. There was no need to talk about the goalkeeper. The center back position also needed to be strengthened. Pepe and Piqué were both still young. Tang En was inclined to find older, more experienced, and capable defenders in the transfer market to make up for their lack of experience.
Then he would think of ways to find a substitute for Wood. Otherwise, if Wood was suspended due to accumulating yellow cards or red cards, it could become a point of collapse in a crucial match. Think about the Champions League final. If there was George Wood, even if Edwin van der Sar was sent off, Tang En would not think that his team was one player short of their opponent, Barcelona.
If he could have a qualified substitute, then in the final stages of the match against Arsenal, Tang En could completely replace Wood with a substitute to minimize his risk.
Tang En's plan was very good, but he did not have the time to put it into practice.
Just as he wanted to start adjusting the team from the defensive line, a fact was placed in front of him, telling him that he had to change his plan and start adjusting the forward line.
※ ※ ※
"Our reporters captured the image of the French striker, Anelka's two elder agents walking out of a restaurant with Benítez. This Spanish restaurant is Benítez's favorite place to eat in Liverpool. The question is, what are Anelka's two elder agents doing there?"
If not for Tang En's sudden impulse to turn on the television to watch a sports match, he probably would not have seen the news. And he would have been kept in the dark until the other side laid their cards on the table.
So, it was not hard to imagine what Tang En was thinking when he saw the news.
He felt cheated.
He still remembered what he had said to Anelka: When you want to leave, you must let me know.
But now?
If he did not watch the sports news, he would not even know that Anelka's two damned elder agents were in private contact with Liverpool! (To be continued, if you wish to know what happened next, please log on to WWW. QIDIAN. com. More chapters. Support the author. Support original reading!)
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