"How many times do we have to come to London a year?" Tang En asked casually as he sat on the bus to Fulham's home stadium, Craven Cottage, looking out at the London street view.
"Who knows?" Kerslake also answered casually.
"At least six times," Dunn said.
"There are six English Premier League teams … London is probably the city with the most top league teams." Tang En's gaze drifted into the distance. They were getting closer and closer to Fulham's home ground, but the place that caught his attention was not Craven Cottage, but the northeast.
Looking over there, the huge blue figure could not be seen under the gray sky, only the rows of houses.
Tang En could not see it with his eyes, but he knew in his heart that it was the direction of Chelsea's home ground, Stamford Bridge.
In the vast London, there were six English Premier League clubs, big and small. But for Tang En, there were only two opponents that he really cared about. One was Arsenal in north London, and the other was Chelsea in central London.
Historically, English football as a whole was strong in the north and weak in the south. In the north, Manchester United, Liverpool, Everton, and Newcastle were all well-known veteran powerhouses. Most of the teams that participated in England's top league were from the north. To discuss this issue, one had to go back to the earliest period of modern football — the background of the Industrial Revolution.
As most of the heavy industrial bases were concentrated in the north of England, and modern football developed rapidly among the working class, there was a rich football culture and accumulation, so it was not surprising that world powerhouses such as Liverpool and Manchester United emerged. In the south of England, the place with the highest concentration of football clubs was London. This had something to do with London being the capital, where the population was concentrated.
Although Fulham was founded earlier than the Chelsea Football Club, and the Stamford Bridge stadium was originally built for Fulham to use (because Stamford Bridge stadium was in the Fulham area), Fulham rejected the proposal. As a result, the Chelsea Football Club of today was born.
Before Bates took charge of Chelsea, the two clubs were unknown and not very famous. Bates' arrival brought the Chelsea Football Club its first glory, and then the Russian tycoon Abramovich brought the team a second period of glory.
After that, although Fulham also had the tycoon Fayyad to back them up, they gradually pulled away from Chelsea. Today's Chelsea was a quasi-powerhouse that could form a force in European football. As for Fulham? It was just an ordinary Premier League team.
Tang En cast his gaze in the direction of the Stanford team, a clear indication of the position the two teams held in his heart. Even if the opponent for this match was Fulham, Tang En still had Chelsea in mind. Who told the two clubs to be so close to each other?
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When the team arrived at the Craven Cottage stadium, CCTV5's set-up team was ready. They were allowed to film in the locker room for five minutes, although they could only film the players changing and going out to warm up.
Dunn was stopped by them for a brief interview, and Kerslake was in charge of the specifics.
In the locker room, he loudly reminded the players to hurry up and go out to warm up. Tang En had yet to arrive. He was blocked by even more reporters at the entrance of the stadium.
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"Two wins in a row. As long as they beat Fulham in this game, they can achieve three wins in a row. Manchester United's game is tomorrow. If they won the game, Nottingham Forest would temporarily take first place in the league table. This was a wonderful temptation for Tony Twain's team. Ever since he led the team back to the English Premier League, Twain's team had not tasted the feeling of being the league leader. Even if it's only temporary, it's worth fighting hard for. "
On the television, the experts were analyzing the game for the audience. If he had not said it, no one would have known that Nottingham Forest had never been first in the league before.
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When Tang En finally got rid of the reporters and returned to the locker room, the team's warm-up was almost done. Dunn was not there, nor were the CCTV reporters. They went to the stadium together to film the team's warm-up and Dunn's work.
The locker room, which had been filled with noisy music, suddenly quieted down. Tang En paced slowly in the room alone, turning in circles. His mind was not thinking about how the game would go, but about the team's future.
Suddenly, a burst of noise from the direction of the stadium broke his thoughts. He turned back to find the locker room door pushed open, and the players and coaches came in.
Dunn was still being interviewed at the door. The Chinese reporters were really taking advantage of every opportunity to film the situation inside the locker room. Tang En walked over and closed the door.
"Guys, if we win this game, we can be the boss," he said to the players who had just taken their seats.
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"This is our home ground. Don't give those people outside a chance to behave atrociously here!" Like Tang En, Fulham's manager was a young man, the 36-year-old Chris Coleman. However, he was not as famous as Tang En.
Since he was also a young man, he was naturally unwilling to admit defeat. Before the game, both the bookmakers and the media were unanimously optimistic that Nottingham Forest would take all three points in the away game, completely ignoring the feelings of the home team, Fulham. Coleman did not want to prove that they were right. He did not have the idea of winning this game, but had the belief that "Nottingham Forest must not win." He instilled this belief into the players. Everyone in Fulham hoped to create some trouble for Tang En in this game.
※ ※ ※
The players from both sides came out, and the coaches from both sides also came to their respective positions.
"Tony, I'm a little worried." Dunn had just taken his seat when he turned his head to speak to Tang En. He had always wanted to say something, but he did not have the chance just now.
"Hmm?"
"Before the game, the Fulham manager said that they would create a lot of trouble for us …"
Tang En waved his hands nonchalantly. "Any manager facing us would say that. Even I would say the same to our opponents. It's no big deal, just pretty words to boost morale. "
"But, Fulham has five defenders on the field."
"Let them defend."
Seeing that Tang En was not worried about anything, Dunn did not say anything else. He also hoped that it was an illusion.
After the game started, Fulham indeed put on a defensive stance in their home ground. Coleman arranged for a 4-5-1 formation for this game. From the first minute of the game, they retreated to defend in their half of the field.
No matter how Nottingham Forest controlled the ball outside, they just did not come out.
They would rather get one point on their home ground than take the risk of attacking and allowing the opponent to counterattack. Now all of England knew how fast Nottingham Forest's counterattack was. A careless mistake could lead to irreversible consequences.
Coleman told his players that they would rather watch a scoring opportunity be wasted than rush up and lose their defense.
Under such tactical guidance, the first half of the game was extremely dull. Nottingham Forest had no good way to deal with the impenetrable Fulham. Other than a few long shots from van der Vaart, the Forest team could not find a more suitable way to break the goal. Both van Nistelrooy and Eastwood were closely marked and the penalty area was full of people. The dignified center forward van Nistelrooy was forced to pull to the side to receive the ball.
Needless to say, Eastwood was not a striker who relied on his body to confront the opponent head-on after his injury. Later on, he gradually pulled out of the penalty area to try long shots.
Throughout the first half, Nottingham Forest received eleven shots, eight of which were long shots. Van der Vaart took three shots, Eastwood took four shots and George Wood took one shot. Seven of the eleven shots were within the range of the goalpost, but none of them scored. Fulham's united defense did cause some trouble for the Forest team.
For Fulham, it was not easy to achieve a clean sheet. For this, they paid the price of four yellow cards. It was just that their fouls were scattered and not concentrated on the defenders. From the forwards to the defenders, there were people who received yellow cards. This was clearly also specifically instructed by manager Coleman. He could be said to have put in a lot of thought for the final result of this game.
"The first half is over! Nottingham Forest did not get any good chances under Fulham's crazy pressing and defense. Their quick counterattack did not have any space to display under Fulham's defense. Coleman's tactics were very successful. He contained the Forest team's offense! "
"I believe Tony Twain bought van Nistelrooy not to sell his jersey, but to make up for the Forest team's weakness last season of not being good at positional play. But van Nistelrooy's form is not good in this game. He has not shot a shot so far. "
The commentator was right. Twain could see van Nistelrooy's form was not good in this game.
But he still intended to continue to give van Nistelrooy a chance in the second half.
During the long break, Twain adjusted the team's lineup.
Ribéry, who was completely restricted on the left flank, was replaced by Petrov. Eastwood then withdrew from the penalty area.
Because Ribéry had been used to the glory of the English Premier League for the past two years, everyone had thoroughly studied him. This game was a wake-up call for Twain. Ribéry's role on the flank was becoming more and more limited. He had to think of another way out.
Although Petrov was also a winger and his characteristics were simpler than Ribéry's, he had the advantage of being unfamiliar. The English Premier League teams still did not understand him and lacked research on him. Substituting him might have the effect of a surprise attack.
Eastwood's exit from the penalty area was to display his long shots and ability to plug in from the back. Eastwood's long shots from the top of the penalty area were still very threatening. When faced with the opponent's heavily defended penalty area, free kicks and long shots were the solution.
Speaking of free kicks …
Bale did not follow during the halftime break. Dunn let the substitutes all warm up on the field.
Hopefully they could be used in the second half.
Twain nervously arranged the team's tactics for the second half in the locker room. He was not as calm as he was at the start of the first half.
CCTV5's filming team did not get permission to enter the locker room to film during the halftime break. They could only continue to wait on the sidelines and exchange their views on the first half.
They were a little embarrassed about the situation because no one expected the game to be so tough. Nottingham Forest could not break through the situation for a long time, and the climax they were looking forward to did not come.
"Hey, Happy's End won't become Bad's End, will it?" someone asked.
"Who knows?" The head of the production team, the producer of the show, shrugged. "This is not something we can control. Look at the effect of the two sets of plans I had you prepare in advance, right? No matter how they play, our show can still be successfully produced. "
"That's true … Head Zhang, who doesn't want their own team to win? Speaking of which, I didn't expect Nottingham Forest to have such a close relationship with China. A Chinese player, a Chinese assistant manager, and the manager is a China expert who fanatically loves Chinese culture. "
"Yeah, maybe even if they suddenly visit China a few years later, it will be a very normal thing."
"If such a thing really happens, we must invite them to the station to record a special episode!"
"Don't dream about it. Have you forgotten about the mess with Real Madrid back then? The Nottingham Forest manager is not a person who is easy to get along with. He has a perverse personality, who knows what he will do when the time comes? "
Hearing the head say so, everyone stopped talking about it. Real Madrid stood them up a year ago, and it left a deep impression. For them, it was not a good memory.
※ ※ ※
Just as this group of people were discussing, the players from both sides came out again, and the second half began immediately.
The two sides changed sides to play again, and the scene was no different from the first half. Fulham still defended the penalty area, determined not to go out. No matter how the Nottingham Forest fans provoked them with boos and insults, they were like turtles hiding in their shells.
Tony Twain could no longer sit in the technical area like he did in the first half. He had long been standing on the sidelines, closely watching the changes in the situation on the field.
Looking at the somewhat anxious Twain, the television commentator suddenly laughed. "Fulham's performance reminds me of Nottingham Forest a season ago. At that time, Twain's team also left their opponents at a loss like this. I didn't expect Nottingham Forest to be dealt with like this by their opponents. Manager Tony Twain, to think you would have such a day … "
Petrov flashed a few times when he went up, but van Nistelrooy's form in this game was really too bad, and he did not take advantage of it. In the 70th minute of the game, Twain finally decided not to continue waiting for van Nistelrooy's form to return. He replaced the Dutch striker with Nicklas Bendtner. Bendtner's header was stronger than van Nistelrooy's, and his body was stronger. Twain hoped he could score in front of the opponent's goal.
After Bendtner came on, Fulham withdrew even more fiercely. Petrov and Ashley Young did not have a chance. The penalty area was crowded with Fulham players, and any long shot would be blocked. Looking at the Fulham players, it did not look like they were playing a game at all. Instead, they were using their bodies to block the bullet holes.
In the 80th minute, the score was still 0: 0. Twain's stubbornness rose. He knew Fulham wanted to get a point at home, but the more the other side wanted to, the more Twain did not want them to get what they wanted. You want a draw? A draw as a victory? I'm going to beat you! I'll let you get zero points!
At the last moment, he replaced Leighton Baines with Gareth Bale, who was very good at free kicks. In any case, Fulham's crazy fouls meant that the Forest team did not lack free kicks in the front field. It was just that the first few free kicks, van der Vaart, did not play well. He either shot high or was directly blocked by the human wall.
After Bale came on, the team's free kicks were automatically handed over to him. The young Bale did not have stage fright. He had many records of saving the team with free kicks at the last minute. Twain hoped that this time would be no exception.
Nottingham Forest quickly obtained a free kick in the front field 25 meters away from the opponent's goal.
"Gareth Bale stands in front of the ball. There are only eight minutes before the end of the game. He runs up and raises his leg — Ah!! "
Amid the loud boos at Craven Cottage, Bale's beautiful left foot curled into the boundary between the goalpost and the goalpost. As the football flew toward the goal, the Fulham goalkeeper did not move at all — he had completely raised his hands in surrender.
"He's too fixated on angles!"
Twain was so excited that his heart almost stopped. If the ball went in, Fulham, who had defended for more than 80 minutes, would be finished. The situation he was most happy to see would happen. The despicable Coleman would be like a deflated ball. After the game, he would walk over with the attitude of a victor, pretend to be gracious, and shake the other man's hand. He would hypocritically comfort him. "There are still 35 rounds left in the league tournament. Please keep up the good work, Mr. Coleman!"
But now … the reality he longed for did not appear.
"Damn it!" He cursed under his breath. He was not cursing Bale. The little monkey had gone well enough. He was cursing his bad luck.
Such a precise free kick did not go in … After the football was kicked, the Fulham fans could only use desperate boos to try to stop the ball.
"Tony, an away point is not bad …" Dunn reminded him again.
Twain, who was scratching his head in frustration, looked up at Coleman next door, and then shook his head at Dunn. "No, we can still win. We can definitely win. Fulham is an arrow at the end of its flight. Can't you see that they're exhausted? Just a little more pressure, one more straw … One straw, and they're f * * king finished! " With that, he could not care less about Dunn's explanation. He got up and walked to the sidelines, motioning for the whole team to press forward and strive to score at the last minute.
Even Pepe rushed up to participate in the attack. Nottingham Forest's backfield was a large empty area that they themselves did not notice. All the Forest players thought that Fulham should thank God that they could hold on to this point in the end. How could they have the strength to counterattack?
The impossible had finally happened. Just as the fourth official raised the signboard for three minutes of injury stoppage time, Fulham intercepted the ball in the backfield and suddenly kicked a long shot to the front field. Their right midfielder, Wayne Routledge, who was on loan from Tottenham Hotspur, received the ball and ran all the way. The player, who was known for his speed, left the Forest team's defensive players far behind. Then he faced the attacking Edwin van der Sar single-handedly and cleverly chose a lob shot!
"Wayne Routledge — GOOOOOAL! The unthinkable happened. Fulham, who had defended for 90 minutes, actually took the lead! This is likely to be the goal that determines the final outcome of this game! Listen to the cheers at Craven Cottage … It's deafening! "
Amid the commentator's loud shouts and the home fans' wild cheers, Twain unexpectedly did not fly into a rage. Instead, he turned around and slowly walked back to the technical area. Then, he sat down and exhaled heavily.
"We've been made a fool of, Dunn. That bastard Coleman didn't think of one point from the beginning, but three points … Damn it! "
Dunn knew what Twain meant by that. That Clauric had only been replaced by Coleman at the last minute of the second half. He was not originally a striker, but he was used as one. He was waiting for the moment when the Forest team became restless and pressed forward to counterattack.
This was originally Tony Twain's favorite trick, but he didn't expect to fall for it this time.
When Nottingham Forest was seen by more and more people as a strong team, Tony Twain, as the manager, also had the demeanor of a "strong team manager." He set his sights high and far, but he could not see the path in front of him.
What was a truly strong team? What was considered to truly have the mentality of a strong team? For the young Tony Twain, he still had a long way to go.
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“Bad_end。” The man standing beside the camera marked with the "CCTV" logo looked at Twain, who was sitting in the technical area and talking to Dunn in a low voice. "What an unexpected result. There's a saying in the English media that's right — this is a manager who won't do as you wish. "
"Hey, Boss Zhang …"
"Hmm?"
"Are we here to film Dunn or Tony Twain?"
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