The match against Chelsea …
Ever since Tony Twain became Forest's manager, he had formed an indissoluble bond with Chelsea. Chelsea's manager, Mourinho, and he were regarded as the two most active managers in the football world today. Although some of the media's usual exaggerations were used, it was more or less the same.
So, once the two appeared in the English Premier League, they were compared together. Under such circumstances, it was difficult to not have any relationship.
The outside world said that Twain and Mourinho were enemies who had no dealings with each other. Judging from the way they gnashed their teeth every time they played, that was the case. But if that was the case, what would happen if Mourinho stepped forward to help Tony Twain's player, Pepe, to appear in court as a witness to resolve the labor permit issue?
Tang En had never considered the relationship between him and Mourinho. Because considering it would not help him win a game. Was he going to call Mourinho to throw the game if they were really close? If they were enemies, would he be afraid of Mourinho?
Moreover, Mourinho was not a beauty. What was the point of sacrificing so many brain cells for his relationship with him?
He did not care what relationship he had with Mourinho. He only cared about his team's record against Chelsea.
Nottingham Forest had maintained an undefeated record against Chelsea since returning to the English Premier League. This was where the Forest team had a psychological advantage. Last season, Forest did not lose at this home ground under such difficult circumstances. In the end, they even relied on Bale's brilliant free kick to score and turn defeat into victory.
Mourinho's team ran amok in the English Premier League. When they played against anyone, there was no opponent they had not defeated. His only worry was Tony Twain's Nottingham Forest.
This time, it was a good opportunity for him. Forest's main defensive midfielder, George Wood, was suspended. Without such a midfield barrier, Chelsea's attacking lineup could move unimpeded.
Lampard could finally play without any distractions. His insertions and long shots were quite threatening.
Twain certainly knew that his team's lifeline was the defensive midfielder. No matter how hard Sun Jihai worked, he could not make up for the gap in strength. Since Wenger knew how to use this to make a breakthrough, Mourinho must know too. Twain decided to let Sun Jihai rest.
That was the plan, but Twain did not want his opponent to know. The team went through a few days of closed-door training at the last moment. The outside world only thought that Tang En valued his twice-a-year "date" with Mourinho and did not think much of it.
An hour before the start of the match, when the media received the starting list from the club, everyone was dumbfounded.
"… We've obtained the starting lineups for both teams." John Motson picked up a piece of paper and shook it in front of the camera. "What were we analyzing just now? Mark? "He looked at the commentator, Mark Lawrenson, who was sitting next to him.
Mark Lawrenson, who had a beard because he lost that bet, touched the smooth skin on his lips. "I think Twain will stick to his defensive counterattack strategy in this game, so it's home ground. After all, his team was in a bad situation. Without George Wood, it would be difficult for the Forest team's midfield to stop the attacks of Chelsea's Lampard and the others. If the defensive line formed by Piqué and Kompany directly faces the Chelsea attacking players, the pressure on this young defensive line will be too great. "
Motson nodded. "Analyzing the situation before the game, you're right. Mark. But if Tony Twain no longer surprises you, he won't be called 'Tony Twain.' Although we still don't know his specific tactics, we can see from this starting line-up that defense is definitely not what he wants … "With that, Motson picked up the list and read it out." Goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, center backs Piqué and Kompany, left back Gareth Bale, right back Chimbonda. "Reading up to this point, he stopped to look at Mark Lawrenson.
"Midfielders — Franck Ribéry, Ashley Young, as well as Albertini and … van der Vaart!"
Lawrenson raised his eyebrows.
"Strikers Van Nistelrooy and Eastwood."
"Gareth Bale is an assist-type full back. His defensive ability is not as good as Leighton Baines. Instead, he's a Dutchman who is far stronger in offense than defense … "Lawrenson analyzed." Tony Twain wants to attack Chelsea on his own home ground? Gosh, this game should really be recorded. This is the first time Manager Twain has chosen to take the initiative to attack in a game against Chelsea! And on his home ground! "Lawrenson mocked.
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"What's going on?" Mourinho frowned as he held the opponent's starting list given to him by his assistant. "I thought that coward would definitely use the turtle-like tactic again …"
"Clearly, Twain wants to attack us on his own home ground," said his assistant manager, Steve Clark.
Mourinho glanced at him. Wasn't that obvious? Even a fool could see that Twain wanted to attack.
But … was the problem really that simple?
"Twain is a very cunning person … I keep feeling that something's not right." Another manager, Baltemar Brito, frowned and said, "Could it be that he's deliberately letting us think that they're going to attack, and then letting down our guard?"
This time, Mourinho glanced at the Brazilian again. Did we think that they would let down their guard because they were going to attack?
But Brito was right about one thing: Twain is a very cunning person. Things should not be so simple.
"No matter what, our preparation for the past week has been to use offense to deal with their concentrated defense. It's not a big deal for them to press out and fight now. If we attack, they will only have more openings. "Mourinho threw the Forest team's starting list to the side and turned to walk into the locker room. It was time to encourage the players and get them ready to go on the field.
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On the other side, Twain was already assigning tasks to his men for the day.
"… On our home ground, we're always hiding in the backfield waiting for the opponent to attack, and then we'll wait for the opportunity to launch a sneak attack … Don't you feel very unhappy with such a game?"
There was a moment of silence. Everyone did not know what the boss meant by his sudden question. Then, Eastwood stood up and shook his head. "We don't feel unhappy, boss. We're happy to win. "
"Stop bullshitting." Twain waved his hands. "Watching the opponent strut around in our home ground and press us down makes me very unhappy. How can you hot-blooded boys tolerate it?"
Someone below chuckled.
"On our home ground, we have to act like a home team. We're not afraid of Chelsea because they haven't beaten us at all. Your task in this game is to score goals and score more goals. Let the Chelsea boys see that we can remain undefeated against them not just by relying on defense! Attack! Attack! Other than f * cking attack, it's still attack! "
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When the players from both sides lined up on the sidelines for the media to take pictures, Twain and his coaching staff were already sitting in the technical area.
"Tony, do you think we can stop Chelsea by just attacking?" Kerslake asked from the side.
"Don't tell me we have any other way? Defense? "Twain retorted.
Dunn spoke up for Twain from the side. "Attacking is the only way to solve the crisis. Besides, I don't think Chelsea's offense is that strong. We might not lose if we compete in scoring. "
Twain smiled at Kerslake. "That's what I mean too. Shevchenko and Ballack did not mesh well with the team. Mourinho went one round and found that last season's lineup was still trustworthy. Now the whole of England is saying that we don't have George Wood, and that our defense is our weakness. Today, I'll let those people see why they say 'offense is the best defense.' Hey, David, aren't you looking forward to it? "
"Looking forward to what?"
"Looking forward to the scene of us pressing out and attacking wildly."
Kerslake looked up at the sky, as if that scene was in the blue sky.
"It's really a little hard to imagine … We always seem to be defending and counterattacking …"
"Then take a good look at today's game."
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At the start of the game, as analyzed from the starting list, Nottingham Forest had no intention of continuing to defend and counterattack on their own home ground.
In the coin toss, the captain, Albertini, won against the Chelsea captain, Terry. After the kickoff, Nottingham Forest used the ball possession they had and began to attack Chelsea.
Unlike in the past, the Forest team did not launch a quick counterattack. Instead, they let the football fall at their feet for a while, as if looking for a flaw in the opponent's defensive line.
It was rare for the Forest team to play ball control like that.
After all, there was still very little time for training. After the Forest team fell back a few times, they suddenly launched an attack. Albertini's straight pass gave van der Vaart a chance to get the ball in the middle. With his back against Chelsea's Essien, it was not easy for him to turn around, so he changed to pass the football back to Albertini.
Just when everyone thought Albertini would pass the ball again, he suddenly lifted his leg for a long shot nearly thirty meters away from the goal!
"Demetrio Albertini!"
It was a little far from the goal, but Čech did not let it go. His intuition told him that the ball was dangerous.
"Petr Čech! Beautiful save! "
The Czech Republic goalkeeper flew to the right and punched the football out with one fist!
But it was not over yet. The football did not fly to the sidelines or directly out of the end line. The ball that was hit by Čech flew to the flank. Ashley Young intercepted the ball in front of Ashley Cole. Cole cleverly did not choose to pounce on the second point with him. Instead, he guarded Young's forward route.
Everyone knew that Ashley Young was the Premier League's assist king last season, and people like Cole did not dare to be careless. His passing awareness was excellent. If he was not careful, he would send the football into the penalty area.
Even though Cole had been very careful, Ashley Young still managed to seize the opportunity. He did not dribble the ball to break through, but directly passed the ball. His leg swing was quick and hidden. Before Ashley Cole could react, the football had already flown past his face!
"Head it out!" Before Čech's voice trailed off, Terry had already jumped up and headed the football out in front of van Nistelrooy.
Van der Vaart saw the football flying towards him and did not hesitate to pull the angle. He drew his bow and nocked an arrow, swung his left leg, and volleyed across!
The Dutchman's choice to shoot directly was smart because the kick was sudden and hidden enough. The penalty area was full of people. If he accidentally brushed against someone, it could change direction. Maybe it would fly straight out of the end line, or maybe it would go straight into the goal? Coupled with Čech's showing off behind the crowd, his line of sight would be obstructed and affect his judgment of the ball's path.
As long as he suppressed it, it would be …
Loud cheers rang out in the City Ground stadium. They seemed to have seen the moment the football entered the net in advance. But this time, they were wrong.
Čech still made the right reaction and judgment under very difficult circumstances.
Van der Vaart's shot did not touch anyone and flew straight to the goal. After Čech took a small step to the left, he found the football in his field of vision and immediately pounced sideways without hesitation. The 1.97-meter-tall behemoth descended faster than gravity. He stretched out his hands and firmly caught the flying football in the air!
"It's on the goal line! The Nottingham Forest fans rejoiced for nothing! "
Van der Vaart regretfully held his head in his hands after he saw Čech save his shot through the gaps in the crowd.
"He really is a world-class goalkeeper on par with Buffon!" Motson exclaimed. He did not know what else to say. Čech's performance on this ball was perfect.
Tang En saw this scene off the field and remembered the Czech Republic goalkeeper's "past" encounter. But he had sacrificed Paul Gerrard to save him …
He did not have to wear a tank helmet to guard the goal now, nor did he have to worry about his form slipping due to his injury.
He really was a living torch of the new era …
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"Despite not scoring a goal, Nottingham Forest's offense still made the Chelsea people nervous. They're used to this opponent shrinking in the back half of the field and fighting back with them. Now it's time to change their impression. "
Mourinho turned his head from his seat to look at Tang En, who was also sitting in the technical area.
The Forest team had changed a lot this season. They could no longer look at this opponent with the same old eyes.
"José, Tang En wants to play offense with us." His assistant manager, Clark, could see it.
"Then let's play." Mourinho shrugged. He did not care.
"Should we … shrink our defense and fight back against them?"
Mourinho glanced at him. "What for? When we played against this opponent, did we ever shrink our defense? "
Clark shook his head. "No …"
"Then that's it. Our original plan was to attack. It's good that they want to attack against us. I know what that bastard Tang En is thinking. They can't defend against our offense, so they want to attack in place of defense. If we're pushed back by their offense, then we'll be falling for his trap. If we don't retreat, we'll attack if they attack. Let's see whose attack is stronger! " Mourinho absolutely could not tolerate something like being pushed back by Tony Twain. To him, Tony Twain was not as simple as an ordinary opponent in the league.
Not only did they have to win the game, but they also had to look good on the field. Otherwise, it would give this foul-mouthed guy an excuse.
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Looking at Chelsea and Nottingham Forest fighting against each other, Tang En was not worried at all. He simply crossed his legs in the manager's seat.
"Manager Tang En doesn't seem to be worried about his team's fragile defense …" Motson sighed after seeing the scene of Tang En crossing his legs and shaking them.
"John, you're right. He really doesn't consider which line of defense he can defend at all, because it's useless even if he thinks about it. He unexpectedly chose to attack in this game in order to put pressure on Chelsea by attacking and force the opponent to retreat. That way, he can achieve his goal of defense … "At this point, Mark Lawrenson paused, as if he suddenly realized something." At the end of the day, deep down, he still wants to defend! This conservative utilitarian manager! "
Lawrenson did not hide his dislike for the man.
Motson also did not intend to improve his impression of Tang En. He laughed at the side and said, "But for now, he's successful, isn't he?"
"Successful? Apart from the EFL Cup title, has he won any other competition? He didn't even win a warm-up tournament like the Amsterdam Invitational. John, I don't know where the 'success' you speak of comes from. "
Motson shrugged and did not continue to harp on the topic.
He had brought a declining aristocratic team that had almost been relegated to England's third division and was troubled by a financial crisis back into the English Premier League. In the first season, they were in the top eight of the UEFA Europa League, and in the second season, they were runners-up in the Champions League. If this was not considered a success, then the countless professional managers in the world were useless.
The BBC's arrangement was also very interesting. Whenever there was a Nottingham Forest game and the BBC had the right to broadcast it, the commentary partners would inevitably be the "pro-Town" John Motson and the "anti-Town" Mark Lawrenson. Lineker and Alan Hansen would make a cameo appearance, but the opportunities were few and far between.
If Tang En had heard Mark Lawrenson's evaluation of himself, he would have agreed with this enemy's evaluation of himself.
He did not think he was very successful now. It was very simple. Because in four seasons, he had only won one EFL Cup title, which was of little value. Apart from that, he was always a step and a half away from true success. In Tang En's mind, the evaluation of his success was definitely not based on his tactical attainments, the development of young players, and his affinity with the players. He only valued these things. Only a championship title was proof of his success.
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