After eight rounds of the league tournament, the Forest team had seven wins and one draw, with 22 points and an undefeated record at the top. The second-placed Arsenal had played one less game than the Forest team, with six wins and one draw and 19 points, also an undefeated record.
Ranking first in the league tournament was certainly something worth celebrating. It was infinitely good. But at the same time, they also had to bear the pressure of being the front-runner. To enjoy the glory of reaching the top, they naturally had to pay the corresponding price.
Nottingham Forest had now become a team that the entire English football world wanted to block. Every game, Tang En felt as if he was playing in the Champions League final. Because his opponents were always inexplicably particularly energetic.
In the ninth round of the league tournament, the Forest team fought hard for 90 minutes and defeated Birmingham City 3: 2. But they paid the price of Pepe's injury and absence for a month and Grosso's red card.
After the game, although they had won, Tang En still denounced his opponent, Birmingham City, with a dark face, for playing rough football.
"I think there's a bad habit in the English Premier League now. That is, any team that plays against us will be particularly energetic. I'm not just talking about how good their form is, but other than that, these teams' actions are very rough. I feel that this is not an English Premier League game, but a desperate game. Do you want to die if you lose the game? All opponents are used to using rough actions to deal with my players, but look at what the referee did? My player was sent off with a red card for standing up for the injustice, and the opponent only got a yellow card. I really wonder if all this was inspired by the English Football Association … "
Tang En's words, after being embellished by the media, caused quite a stir in the English football world. It also brought him a fine of 15,000 pounds. At the same time, the English Football Association issued a formal warning to him, hoping that he would mind his words and actions and not mislead the general public.
It was impossible to say how many times Tang En and the English Football Association had had this feud. Tang En did not care about the fine. If paying a little money could let him criticize something he did not like, it was actually quite worth it.
Looking at the schedule, it was not difficult to understand why Tang En suddenly flew into a rage after the game against Birmingham City and lashed out at his opponent and the English Football Association. Tony Twain, who had lost his defensive generals, Pepe and Grosso, was about to face the powerful Manchester United. The Red Devils were now ranked third in the league. They had unknowingly completed a series of surpasses and were eyeing the top two teams covetously.
In fact, to be fair, Gerosso had brought it upon himself to be sent off. Before he was sent off, his performance was mediocre. He had been at Nottingham Forest for more than three months, but he still could not fully adapt to the pace of the Premier League. This greatly disappointed Tang En. The "great Italian left back" in his mind seemed to have lost his magical aura.
It was not that Grosso was not capable enough. His assists were sharp, but he could not keep up with the pace of the Premier League wingers in terms of defense and was repeatedly broken through. Currently, the Forest team's left flank defense had become the focus of other teams' attacks.
The second yellow card he received was because he had stood up for Pepe. In the end, he was shown a yellow card by the referee because of his aggressive words. The first yellow card was because after the opponent broke through, he was unable to intercept in time and could only turn around to pull down the opponent, which was a foul.
If Tang En only wanted a full back who excelled in offense, he might as well use Gareth Bale. The problem was that Tang En needed a full back who could balance offense and defense. His impression of Grosso should be such a person. His performance in the Italian national team was so dazzling. Even when he missed many games at Inter Milan due to injury, he was still awe-inspiring.
Tang En now had to admit that when he bought Grosso, he did not carefully consider the difference in football styles.
Grosso looked like he was not used to the high-tempo game of the Premier League.
Taking advantage of the red card suspension, Tang En planned to put him on the bench to rest.
※ ※ ※
Next was the 11th round, the focal battle. The Forest team lost to Manchester United at home and lost 1: 2.
"Nottingham Forest's unbeaten streak of 18 rounds and 13 consecutive wins in the Premier League since March 17 this year has come to an end. Nottingham Forest has not lost in the league since the 0: 0 draw with Chelsea on March 17. Before being forced into a draw with Reading in the away game on September 15, they had won 15 consecutive games. This remarkable result was broken by Manchester United last night. "
The post-match summary summarized the game in a few simple sentences.
The actual situation was much more exciting than these few sentences. Tang En did not want to lose to Manchester United at home, so he gave it his all. Ferguson also did not want to lose at home, so he also gave it his all. To everyone's great regret, Beckham, who had been the center of attention before the game, felt muscle soreness two days before the game. Out of caution, Tang En did not put him on the squad list. In this way, David Beckham missed the opportunity to face his favorite team head-on.
Although there was no Beckham, the game was still very exciting. There were only three goals, but every minute was talked about by the fans on both sides for a long time. The two managers gave it their all, and the tactical arrangements were tit-for-tat.
In the end, Tang En lost because he was not as shrewd and ruthless as Ferguson.
Tang En was not in a good mood after losing the conversation between two powerhouses. When he was interviewed by the media, he did not speak if he could. When he was asked about "consecutive wins" and "unbeaten streak," he asked in surprise, "Is that so? They're actually unbeaten for 18 consecutive rounds, 15 consecutive wins … What a pity, what a pity … "Then he did not say anything else, making the media feel that the interview was too dull.
But everyone knew that Tang En was in a bad mood. No one liked to lose, and Tang En did not like it even more.
In fact, there was another reason why Tang En was in a bad mood — in the game against Manchester United, Piqué and Ribéry were also injured. Piqué was replaced on the spot, and although Ribéry insisted on playing to the end of the game, the results of the post-match medical examination were not optimistic.
In the previous few seasons, thanks to the care of God, Nottingham Forest rarely had a large-scale outbreak of injuries. After they won the Champions League and the Super Cup, their good luck seemed to have been used up.
Were they injured because they were physically weak and did not perform well? Not really. Some injuries were due to the rough movements of the opponents, and some injuries were inexplicable. For example, Ribéry did not kick the football when he did a feint, but directly kicked the ground! It was unbelievable that such an amateur move appeared from the core of the French team. But it did happen.
When Ribéry was injured, he hugged his right foot and fell to the ground. But after a simple treatment, he returned to the field and continued the game. It looked like he was fine. Who knew that after the game, he would have to recuperate for at least a month before he could resume training.
In comparison, although Piqué's injury looked serious at first, the actual situation was much better. He only needed to rest for ten days before he could return to the field.
※ ※ ※
During this period, Nottingham Forest was unusually unlucky. They suffered heavy losses in the league tournament and even lost a game. They had not tasted victory in the Champions League group stage so far. In the first round, they tied with Porto in an away game. In the second round, they lost to Marseille by one goal at home.
When the results came out, many people were shocked. When the draw came out, the media had been optimistic that Nottingham Forest would be the first in the group. Now, after two rounds, they were ranked third in the group with one draw and one loss. After two rounds of the Champions League group stage, the defending champion had not won a single game. Some people had already speculated cynically that the Forest team was not planning to take the UEFA Europa League title after winning the Champions League title, right?
According to the rules, the third place in the Champions League group stage was eligible to play in the UEFA Europa League. If Nottingham Forest did not get the top two places in the group and got the third place, they could only "condescend" to play in the UEFA Europa League.
Pepe's injury was said by the team doctor to be the sequelae left over from last season's old injury. If he did not pay attention, it might relapse again. If he was allowed to return to the field too soon this time, it was more likely that he would hover between injury and comeback for the entire season.
Pepe was the absolute main force and core figure in the Forest team's rear defensive line. His absence was a heavy blow to the Forest team's defense. But Twain did not dare to let Pepe return to the team too early. After all, if he really became a glass man who was constantly injured, Pepe would basically be ruined.
Piqué had to rest for ten days. Kompany and Ayala would be the pillars in the coming days. Grosso was temporarily banished to the sidelines. Leighton Baines and Gareth Bale took turns to take up the post. On the right, Rafinha's performance was very stable. But Chimbonda was in low spirits because in the game when the Forest team slaughtered Portsmouth, they were all rotated. Twain had chosen Sun Jihai for the right back position instead of him. In addition, Twain had passionately said during the halftime interval that he would not change a player. As a result, he did not even get a minute of playing after being put on the substitute list. This made him very disappointed.
Before they won an important championship title, everyone could unite together for a common goal and work hard without a word of complaint no matter how hard or tiring it was. But once the honor was in their hands, there was no guarantee that there would not be people who had their own little calculations in their hearts.
To fight for a higher weekly salary, to fight for more opportunities to appear on the stage …
Twain felt a little headache coming on.
Now, the team had lost two games in a row, including the Champions League. A situation like losing two games in a row had only happened twice in the team's first season in the English Premier League. At that time, Twain and the Forest team were inexperienced. They were purely newly promoted teams and rookies.
The foundation of Twain's rule over this team was "victory and continuous victory." Victory could cover up everything and mend everything. But what would happen when the team could not win?
He did not know, but it was certainly not a good thing.
※ ※ ※
During this time, everyone could see that their manager, Tony Twain, was in a bad mood. There were too many reasons: Pepe and Ribéry's injuries, the undercurrents surging within the team, the declining results, and the disturbance from the media …
In daily training, Twain no longer joked with his coaches and players. He wore sunglasses and kept a straight face so that no one dared to laugh loudly, for fear of provoking the wrong boss and getting a grudge.
In fact, this was not the normal atmosphere that the Forest team should have. The Forest team's training had always been a combination of strict and relaxed. The three coaches, Twain, Kerslake, and Dunn, placed great importance on the quality of training. They absolutely did not allow the players to slack off during training. But at the same time as they trained seriously, Tang En would often crack some harmless jokes with the players and tell some corny jokes to liven up the atmosphere. Coupled with the good atmosphere of consecutive victories, everyone would complete the high-intensity training amidst laughter and laughter. They would not feel too tired.
But it was different now. Twain put on a straight face and pretended to be cool. He also did not tell jokes to liven up the atmosphere. Coupled with the fact that they had lost two games in a row, everyone looked to be preoccupied with their own thoughts. This oppressive atmosphere was really unbearable.
Eastwood and Ribéry had always been the two clowns in the team. The two of them also had the feeling of "heroes cherishing heroes" and played along. With them around, the atmosphere could not cool down. Now that Ribéry had left the team due to injury and Eastwood was also constantly suffering from minor injuries, they were not in the mood to play by themselves.
This situation persisted until Ribéry returned to the team.
On this day, before the daily training, Twain met the "blade warrior" Ribéry on crutches at the side of the training ground. He was a little surprised.
"Didn't you say there's still a month before you resume training? You can get out of bed and walk so soon? "
Ribéry grabbed the guardrail beside him with one hand and raised his crutches with the other. He smiled at Twain and said, "With this, I can go anywhere."
Twain laughed dryly. "But you can't train yet."
"I'm here to see everyone. I'm taking this opportunity to rest. "
The others arrived one after another. Ribéry was busy greeting them one by one. So, Twain turned around and went in first. Ribéry glanced at him a few more times as he left.
After the team started training, Ribéry was not in a hurry to leave. He watched alone at the side of the field.
Although everyone's faces were brimming with warm smiles when they greeted each other, the atmosphere completely changed when the training really started.
The people who were just smiling at each other on the training ground were simply like enemies who had killed their fathers. Each of them was full of murderous intent as they glared at each other. Seeing this scene, Ribéry gently shook his head. The situation did not look good.
At the end of the training, according to the Forest team's usual practice, there were a few small-scale intra-team matches. The winner was decided by one goal. In the end, there was no reward for the winner, but the loser had to run a lap as a penalty.
The purpose of such a match was to cultivate the players' desire to win. At the same time, it was also a way to entertain and relax. Compared to the boring and tedious training subjects, most players still liked to have the ball at their feet and be able to play freely in a match. Although the atmosphere of competition was usually very strong, everyone talked and laughed. Naturally, they would mercilessly jeer at others' mistakes, but there was always a relaxed smile on their faces.
What Ribéry saw today was different.
The smell of gunpowder was very strong from the start.
As a result, less than five minutes into the game, Chimbonda's ferocious shovel from behind in defense overturned the tall and sturdy Bendtner, who rolled on the ground several times. The gunpowder that had been accumulated finally had a chance to explode, and it was suddenly vented out.
Pepe, Piqué, Eastwood, Beckham, Ribéry … They were all injured one after another. In this context, whether it was a competition or training, everyone would pay special attention to this aspect. Everyone was afraid that they would get injured and become the next person to sit in the stands. The position that they had worked so hard to obtain might disappear with this injury.
Bendtner, who had been suppressed by van Nistelrooy, finally had a chance to perform. He scored a hat-trick in the game against Portsmouth and was selected for the best lineup of that round of the Premier League game. He saw this as a chance to enter the main lineup. Now that he was shoveled to the ground by Chimbonda during training, not to mention whether he was injured or not, his teammate's behavior made him very angry. It was a fluke that he was not injured. What if he was injured?
Therefore, after Bendtner rolled a few times on the ground and found that he did not seem to be injured, he immediately jumped up from the ground, rushed to Chimbonda, and threw a punch!
Chimbonda had just gotten up and did not expect Bendtner's reaction to be so fast. He was caught off guard. Bendtner's straight right punch accurately hit the target. Chimbonda, who had just gotten up and had not yet stood firm, was hit so hard that he fell on his butt.
But do not underestimate the French defender, Chimbonda! After all, he was black. His physical fitness was different from ordinary people and his ability to withstand blows was also very strong. He had just sat down when he turned over and jumped up again, stretching out his foot to kick at Bendtner. Although the kick did not hit the target, it stopped Bendtner's pressing and made him temporarily retreat to defend.
At the same time, it also gave time for his teammates next to him to come up and pull the fight.
For a moment, a group of people poured in and separated the two men. It was unknown whether there was any more physical contact in the chaos.
Kerslake, who was in charge of the referee, blew the whistle in his mouth like a siren. The shrill whistle made the already noisy and chaotic scene even more chaotic. Everyone was a little hot-blooded. Chimbonda was struggling to break free from his teammates' interception and wanted to go up and beat Bendtner. The big Danish man also did not show weakness and waved his fists at him, clamoring, "Come on!"
The coaches of the coaching staff all rushed into the field to separate the two angry sides.
Tang En stood on the sidelines with his sunglasses on, coldly watching everything happening inside as if it had nothing to do with him.
Ribéry reflexively turned his head to look outside the training ground. Fortunately, it was near the end of the training and there was no media on the scene. Otherwise, if such a scandal were to be revealed, it would set off an uproar. What made Nottingham Forest proud was that they had never had an internal conflict scandal, so the impression that the team gave their opponents was united and terrifying. But if the enemy knew that the fortress was not as indestructible as it looked … What would happen?
Ribéry breathed a sigh of relief that he did not see the media. He turned back and saw his still noisy teammates and suddenly felt that they were very unfamiliar. The situation was f * * king terrible!
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
