When the Forest players saw Franck Ribéry in the locker room, they were all surprised.
"Hey, Franck, are you ready for training?" Eastwood asked curiously.
Ribéry waved the walking stick in his hand. "Of course not."
"Then what are you doing here?"
"I'm bored, so I came to see everyone."
Everyone replied with an "oh" and went back to their own business. Only Eastwood accompanied Ribéry and occasionally said a few words. The others were silent and did their own things. After yesterday's conflict, everyone was not in a good mood, and the atmosphere in the locker room was even more gloomy.
Tang En's lecture did not seem to have any effect.
The players gradually arrived, but the atmosphere in the locker room did not liven up because there were more people. On the contrary, the more people there were, the quieter everyone became, as if they did not want others to see their thoughts at this moment.
Ribéry frowned. He did not want this atmosphere to continue. He loved this team because it was this team that gave him a new life. He did not want this happy team to sink like this. He had to think of something …
He coughed twice and tapped the ground with his walking stick, making a sound that attracted the others' attention.
"I say … guys, do you want to have some fun?" He laughed.
※ ※ ※
Before Dunn went to the training base, he stood at the door of his residence, waiting for Tang En to come out.
The door he stared at was tightly shut. He knew that Shania and Tang En must still be inside saying their goodbyes. Ah, maybe Shania, the famous model, was helping Tang En put on his jacket, just like a real wife should do. He had always thought the relationship between these two people was very interesting, very interesting …
"I'm leaving." The door opened and Tang En's voice came out.
"Mm. Goodbye, Uncle Tony. "The little girl Shania's voice followed. "Come back for lunch!"
Tang En's figure then appeared at the door.
When Tang En walked up to him, Dunn asked, "How does it feel to have someone waiting for you to go home for lunch?"
Tang En raised his eyebrows. "Do you want to come and eat together so much?"
Dunn hurriedly waved his hands. "I'll settle it in the club's cafeteria …"
The two walked together to the Wilford training base. On the way, Tang En frowned again when he thought of the team's current situation. He knew that once there was a fight within the team, it meant that there was a crack within the team, and such a crack could not be healed. It would always be there. Nottingham Forest was no longer an impregnable fortress, both on the outside and on the inside. How to deal with the aftermath of the fight was what gave Tang En a headache.
Those who were not involved in the fight would inevitably have the same thoughts as Chimbonda and Bendtner at the time, but they lacked a reasonable excuse to vent. If he reprimanded them together, wouldn't that make the team's atmosphere even more depressing? Fifteen minutes into the morning training, there would be a lot of reporters filming and interviewing. If they saw any bad signs, would they exaggerate it in the media? Would the team's results be affected because of this?
These questions circled around Tang En's mind, causing the happiness he felt at home to vanish completely.
The 20-minute journey ended very quickly. As expected, Tang En saw quite a number of media outlets at the training base. Just like yesterday, they were here to interview and film, hoping to get some "insider information". Fortunately, the conflict yesterday happened at the end of training, and the media had all left. Otherwise, the number of reporters here today would be more than double that of usual. At that time, he would have a bigger headache …
Fortunately, for now.
"Good morning, Mr. Tang!" Pierce Brosnan waved at Tang En in greeting, but Tang En walked straight past as if he did not see him.
Only Dunn helped him clean up after him. "Good morning, Mr. Brosnan."
"Mr. Tang's … mood doesn't look too good?" Brosnan, who had been observing carefully, asked in puzzlement.
Dunn just smiled. "Not fully awake, I guess."
What a lousy excuse. It was already half-past nine, and he was still not awake. Tang En rarely slept in.
Brosnan was acutely aware of something, but he looked around at the other media reporters and said nothing.
There were other reporters he was familiar with who greeted Tang En, but he similarly ignored them and walked in. However, everyone was long used to Tang En's eccentric personality and did not find it strange. After all, Forest was currently without a win in a row. As the manager, he was under a lot of pressure. It was understandable that he was in a bad mood.
Dunn followed, and the two approached the manager's office. They saw Kerslake already waiting there.
"Tony, do we need to adjust today's training plan?"
Tang En shook his head and leaned over to turn on the computer. "The plan was set a few days ago. There's no need to adjust it. Why would you think of asking such a stupid question, David? "
"Uh … I just feel that the atmosphere in the team is not very good these few days …" Kerslake stammered.
"That's a psychological problem. You just focus on training. I'll solve the psychological problems of the players. "
Kerslake nodded. "You're right, Tony. But I think you need to get your own psychological state back to normal first. "With that, he handed over a mirror.
In the mirror, Tang En still had a deadpan expression, no different from the day before and the day before.
Kerslake did not move the mirror away after shaking it. Tang En also kept staring at himself in the mirror.
"Tony, we all think you're the undisputed core of this team. So if you can't get back to normal, then this team can't, "Kerslake said.
Tang En took the mirror from his hands. "Thank you for the mirror, David."
"Then I'll go do my work." After bidding farewell to the two, Kerslake walked out.
Dunn looked at Tang En and then at the door before also getting up. "I'll go do my work too."
Tang En did not urge him to stay. He nodded.
He turned on his computer and pulled up the training plan document for the day. Tang En glanced at it and had a general look. Then he went online to briefly browse the sports news. He did not find any reports about the internal fight in the team yesterday. It looked like no one had spread the news. He was relieved.
After doing all this, he got up and went to the training ground, ready to start his morning's work.
※ ※ ※
The media that had been surrounding the main door had now rushed in. They set up their cameras outside the training ground and started filming. Then, a sharp-eyed reporter discovered a problem. Nottingham Forest had already started training. Then why did they not see Chimbonda and Bendtner?
Someone told the people around them about this discovery. Thus, the reporters quickly started discussing this topic. Tony Twain had always been strict in managing the team. If they were late … then wasn't their tardiness too long? Chimbonda and Bendtner were not the main core of the team. Did they not want to continue playing under Tang En if they dared to be late for training for so long?
What was even stranger was that Tang En, who had strict requirements for the team's discipline, did not look unhappy at all. It was as if he did not care that there were two people who were late. There were not many people in the Forest First Team. They were all familiar with those few faces. There was no reason for him to ignore the two people.
This was too strange. Could something have happened that we did not know about?
Just then, Kerslake came over to inform the media that their filming time was over.
Only then did the group of media pack up their equipment and retreat. No matter how many questions they had in mind, it was not the time to ask them. There would be a routine press conference after the afternoon training anyway. The team's manager, Tony Twain, would definitely be there. Accompanying him would be a player. This player could be the captain, George Wood, the vice-captain, Edwin van der Sar, the most popular player, David Beckham. It could also be any ordinary player. They would answer the reporters' questions about the recent happenings in the team. According to the different personalities of each player in attendance, some of them would open their mouths and speak to the satisfaction of the reporters. Some of them would be cautious and unwilling to talk more. There were also some who simply refused to cooperate, which made the reporters very unhappy.
Now, the reporters had their own plans. They would take advantage of this half-day to find out where the missing Chimbonda and Bendtner had gone. Then, they would wait until the afternoon press conference to launch a concentrated bombardment on Tony Twain.
※ ※ ※
After the reporters left, the training ground suddenly became much quieter. Other than the players' own shouts and the coaches' whistles, there were no other sounds.
Tang En still wore his sunglasses and watched from the side. The specific training subjects were handled by specialized coaches. The two assistant managers were responsible for coordination. There was basically nothing for him to do.
The team's training was no different from usual. Tang En's focus was on observing the players' emotions. He wanted to see how deep the impact yesterday's incident had on the team. The players did not have much expression on their faces. They all looked very focused on training. It was not yet time for a break, so he could not tell how everyone's usual mood was.
He looked down at his watch. They had already been training for half an hour.
"David," he called out.
Kerslake looked back at him.
"Let them rest," Tang En said, pointing to the players on the field.
Kerslake nodded and then blew the whistle in his mouth. "Rest for 15 minutes!"
The players panted heavily as they walked off the field. They slowly gathered and rested in a corner. This was no different from usual. The players always gathered together. The coaches also formed their own groups and did not interfere with each other. The players had topics that the players were interested in, and the coaches also had topics that the coaches chatted about.
Tang En watched for a while and felt that it was completely the same as usual. As the manager, it was not convenient for him to walk over and listen to what these people were talking about. So, he gave up on the idea of continuing to observe and planned to chat with everyone to ease his emotions. David Kerslake was right. He did not have to always put on a stern face and keep people at a distance.
He wanted harmony and love.
※ ※ ※
"Hey, he's turned around. This is an opportunity!" Eastwood said to the people around him as he watched Tang En turn around.
"This … isn't too good, right? Are we really going to do this? " Van Nistelrooy frowned. "The boss has been in a bad mood recently. If we anger him …"
"What are you afraid of? Usually, the boss always scolds us. Don't you want to take the opportunity to take revenge? "Eastwood encouraged his other teammates. "Besides, if the boss is angry, just push the blame to Franck. This is what he said himself. Anyway, the idea was his. The boss won't argue with a lame man, right?"
As Eastwood said this, everyone pinched their chins and looked up at the sky, deep in thought.
Finally, someone thumped his palm. "Let's do it!" The one who spoke was Petrov. "Should we put some ice cubes in?" Not only did he agree to do it, he also added.
This suggestion made many people excited.
But Eastwood shivered. "Hey … Wouldn't that be too much …"
A group of people turned around and glared at him. "Don't you want to take the opportunity to take revenge?"
Eastwood raised his hands. He had lost.
Then everyone looked at George Wood, who had been sitting quietly at the side. He did not say anything, but the pairs of eyes had already made their intentions very clear.
Wood looked at everyone and said, "I'll be responsible for carrying him up."
Everyone laughed.
"That's settled then. But we have to find the person that the boss trusts the most and is the least likely to frame him to lure him out. " Eastwood nodded. As soon as he said this, everyone turned their eyes to Beckham.
Beckham raised his hands. "OK, I know what I have to do. But I always feel that picking this time to tease the boss is a very dangerous thing to do … "
Eastwood, however, looked very excited. "We won't do something without risk. It's so boring, isn't it, guys!"
His words were unanimously agreed. So, Beckham carried everyone's expectations, stood up, patted his butt, and walked toward Twain.
※ ※ ※
He had just turned around and was about to walk toward the coaches when he heard someone calling him from behind, "Boss, Boss!"
It was Beckham.
"Ah, David … Although I told you to call me that, it's still a little awkward every time I hear it …" Twain turned around and asked. "What's the matter?"
"Well … uh." Beckham looked back at his teammates, but everyone acted as if they did not see him, minding their own business and resting.
Tang En followed his gaze and looked over, but did not see anything strange.
"What's the matter, David?"
"Uh … Someone's looking for you." Beckham casually made up a reason.
"Who?" Twain thought it was strange. Why did they not come here directly?
"Franck." Ribéry's name flashed in Beckham's mind, and he blurted it out. Since he was the one who came up with this plan, he would use him as the reason. "Uh, it's not very convenient for him to walk. He wants you to go out and meet him. He's in the parking lot."
This reason was considered sufficient.
Twain nodded. "OK, I'll go now."
Beckham completed his task. He watched Twain walk out of the training ground before turning back to the players. He found that George Wood and Eastwood were not there.
"David, Freddy said when you come back, we'll all go watch a good show together."
The group glanced at the resting coaches.
※ ※ ※
Twain walked out of the training ground. There were not many people in the huge training base. Most of the training ground was empty. Without the media around, the place seemed deserted. He walked alone through the training ground and the office building, arriving at the parking lot next to the indoor training hall.
The parking lot was similarly quiet, filled with the private cars of the players and staff. Twain saw Ribéry's red Citroën inside, and he smiled. This kid was not well-behaved even though he was injured. He came to the training base all day. Out of everyone, Twain was probably in the most normal mood.
But …
Wasn't he looking for me for something? Where was he?
Twain stood in front of Ribéry's car. He bent over to look inside, but did not see anyone in the car. He got up and looked around. Still, there was no one. The entire parking lot was filled with cars. There was not a single empty space, but there was no one.
If Ribéry wanted to play hide-and-seek with him, this place was quite suitable. But … why did he want to play such a childish game with him?
The parking lot was next to the indoor training hall, and Ribéry's car was parked at the foot of the wall. Twain stood beside the red Citroën and looked around. "Franck!" he called out, hoping that Ribéry, who was nowhere to be found, could hear him.
"I'm here, Boss!" His wish was fulfilled. The voice came from above … above?
Twain looked up in surprise.
The indoor training hall had a balcony on the second floor, which was used to store some miscellaneous items. Twain looked up and saw the familiar scarred face. He was smiling happily.
"Woooow —"
A bucket of ice-cold water fell from the sky, drenching Twain completely when he was unprepared.
"Splash —"
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