(Apology announcement: Due to the author's own negligence, he brought Ribéry, who had been injured in England, to Turkey and sent him on the field. For the Frenchman, who could only walk with crutches, this decision was too cruel. He could not even walk, yet he was allowed to play in the game. This was indeed the author's negligence and carelessness, causing such a ridiculous scene. I'm really sorry! The rest of the chapter will be changed to Petrov. Thank you for everyone's reminders and corrections. I apologize again!)
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The home fans' revelry did not end until the game resumed. Tang En tried to speak to Dunn next to him, but when he opened his mouth, he found that he could not even hear his own voice. Loud noises came from the stands behind him, filling every corner of the stadium. The Beşiktaş players played with greater ease under the noise, while the Nottingham Forest players were a little tense. Affected by the unlucky goal concede and the fanatical atmosphere in the stadium, they could not even play at 50% of their usual level.
The situation was not good.
If it was just a goal concede, it was nothing to Tang En. He had seen many games where the team fell behind, not to mention it was only 12 minutes. There was still a lot of time to catch up later.
But if the team's overall performance was abnormal, it would be a headache for the manager for a while.
Hell's home ground was indeed worthy of its reputation.
He decided to stand out on the sidelines to give the players confidence and encouragement to calm them down. If he were still sitting in the technical area with his legs crossed, then it would not be the opponents who felt bad, but his own people.
He leaned forward and stood out.
Just as he left the shed of the technical area, Tang En caught a glimpse of a dark shadow flying from behind and falling to the ground from the corner of his eye. He looked down reflexively and found that it was a lighter …
Before he could look up, a second and third foreign object flew in. This time, it was a coin and a cell phone.
Tang En was shocked. It was not because the fans were throwing junk down, but because there really were fanatical fans who were crazy enough to throw their own cell phones down. He used to think that throwing a pig's head was appalling enough. What did this bro throw? Tang En glanced at it and realized it was the famous iPhone, and it had a red casing. Perhaps it was even thrown down by a beautiful female fan.
Tang En bent over to pick up the phone. He had wanted to remove the phone's casing and take out the SIM card to throw away. But in this situation, he obviously couldn't lower his head to study this thing. If he did it for too long, he would be noticed. Therefore, he fumbled around for a while but could not find the way, so he threw the phone back into the coach's seat. He made a "keep it" gesture to the bewildered Dunn and ignored the dense "raindrops" falling from behind him.
Do I need to make adjustments?
No, there was no need to adjust anything. Psychological problems could not be adjusted in such a noisy environment.
Tang En stood there, hoping to bring confidence and calmness to the players on the field. He wanted them to calm down and see him as soon as they turned their heads. He wanted them to know that he, as the manager, would always be with his team.
More and more items fell by his feet. Coins of various denominations and lighters were the main ones. Other than that, there were also mineral water bottles and bottle caps.
Tang En had been standing on the sidelines. He did not look back at the Turkish fans who threw things and shouted, nor did he complain to the fourth official. He hoped he could make it clear to his players that complaining about the other team's fanaticism at home might be a good excuse for them to lose after the game, but it should not have affected them.
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Beşiktaş took advantage of the situation to attack wildly, hoping to score another goal and completely defeat the Forest team.
For a moment, amid the wild cheers of the Turkish fans, the Forest team was battered and exhausted. Their defense was full of holes, let alone organizing an attack.
Beşiktaş 'offense was characterized by playing short passes and concentrating their forces in the middle and front field. Their defenders liked to rush forward, while the strikers had a wide range of activities to pull the opponent's defensive line and create opportunities for their teammates to plug in from the back to score. Therefore, Beşiktaş was not a team that relied on the strikers to score, but on the whole. They tended to put five or six players in front of the penalty area to create scoring opportunities.
Because they dared to put their forces into the offense and dared to press boldly, coupled with the atmosphere at the scene, it gave people the feeling that "Beşiktaş 'offense was endless, flowery, and imposing." He believed that the Forest players must have thought so. They were confused by Beşiktaş 'multi-point offensive strategy. They were sometimes on the left, sometimes on the right, and sometimes in the middle. There was nothing they could do but run back and forth to relieve the siege. Attack? Let's pray we don't continue to concede goals!
After watching for about five minutes, Tang En's eyebrows tightened. In the end, he stopped frowning and turned all his energy into a roar. "George! What are you running around for?! Organize the defense! Don't run with the ball! Have you all been f * * king booed senseless?! "
It was no wonder Tang En was so angry. Nottingham Forest was most proud of their defense, especially their overall defense. The Forest team's overall defense was really like a dangerous jungle shrouded in layers of fog. Any opponent who entered would lose their sense of direction and be unable to extricate themselves from the quagmire. The overall formation was well maintained, with orderly advance and retreat. No matter how the opponent deployed, the Forest team's defensive formation would not be disrupted, so there were naturally fewer flaws.
But looking at the current situation, the Forest team's defensive formation was completely disrupted by the opponent's multi-point offensive strategy. George Wood's stamina was good. He ran from left to right, up and down. But defense was not a matter for one person. The Forest team's defense had always been an overall defense. No matter how good he was, he could not replace the other nine players.
The Beşiktaş manager was also inspired by the goal just now. He let Delgado run with Wood, but he did not really become the core of the offense. He just feinted to pull out space for his teammates to attack.
Therefore, Tang En wanted his players to reorganize the defensive line.
As a result, his voice had just risen when it was drowned out by the huge boos of the home fans.
George Wood relied on his abnormal physical fitness to chase back a ball that did not belong to the Forest team. Although he did not stop and rushed out of the sidelines, he rubbed the ball back with the soles of his feet the moment the football was about to go out.
Then the Forest team launched a quick attack, which finally hit into the Beşiktaş penalty area. It was just that van Nistelrooy's shot was deflected due to the close interference of the opposing defender, Gokhan Zan.
When the football brushed against the goalpost and flew out, the boos in İNönü Stadium subsided a little. Many of the Beşiktaş fans held their breath because of the frightening moment and naturally forgot to boo the opponent.
It was the quietest moment in the stadium since the start of the game.
"Twenty-seven minutes into the game, Nottingham Forest only managed to get their first shot … It's pathetic. Any team visiting in Turkey will feel pain, and I believe Tony Twain also feels it. His team has no chance in front of the powerful home team and the home fans. This is the second time in the game that they have attacked into the opponent's thirty-meter zone and their first chance to shoot. Correspondingly, Beşiktaş had seven shots, and four of them were on target. " The commentator smacked his lips. Such a disparity in statistics did not fully reflect the extent of Beşiktaş 'advantage in the game.
Twain found that his shouting had no effect in such a noisy environment because the players on the field could not hear him at all. It was not useless even if he shouted himself hoarse. He could not find a megaphone to hold and shout.
"This is a f * * king home ground!" Twain cursed. But he quickly regained his composure. He could only take advantage of the fact that the football was out of bounds or both sides had fouled. Only when the game was paused could he pull the Forest players close to his side and quickly instruct them face-to-face. Then they would relay the instructions to the other teammates.
It was a little strenuous, but it was a normal method. When watching a football game, it was common to see managers pulling their players to the sidelines to quickly make arrangements, while the players drank water and nodded. After a few sips, they returned to the field. Sometimes it was an adjustment for a single player, and sometimes it was for the entire team, like now.
By using the sidelines as a mouthpiece, Twain finally told his thoughts to everyone on the field.
Nottingham Forest withstood the frenzied offensive after Beşiktaş 'goal and gradually stabilized. Because the score had not changed further, it showed that they were not as embarrassed and disheveled as everyone thought.
They were only one goal behind, so there was still hope.
The Forest team's defensive system was re-established with the joint efforts of Edwin van der Sar, George Wood, and Ayala.
The rest of the game was boring.
Nottingham Forest had a solid defense. If there was no very good opportunity to counterattack, they would not easily press forward. In any case, they would defend to the death, defend to the death, and defend to the death. The highest goal was not to concede another goal.
Beşiktaş was bent on scoring again. The defenders and midfielders took turns plugging in, and the play was lively. But if one calmed down and looked closely, they would find that most of their attacks ended in front of the penalty area — either with long shots or destroyed by the Forest team's defense. There were few opportunities to break into the Forest team's penalty area and directly threaten Edwin van der Sar.
What did that mean?
It showed that Beşiktaş 'advantage was not as obvious as the statistics showed. It was just that their home advantage had injected a lot of exaggeration into it. So, in that case, there was still a lot to play in this game.
Twain was relieved and returned to the technical area. The "rain of lighters" and "coins" outside gradually stopped.
Walking back to the technical area, Twain did not forget to pick up a few Turkish coins and lighters from the ground. He played with them repeatedly in his hand.
Kerslake found it strange. "What are you picking these things up for, Tony?"
"Free souvenirs from the trip to Turkey. It would be a waste not to take them." Twain waved the one-lira coin in his hand. "And this, the official souvenir of the Beşiktaş club …" He picked up a metal lighter with the Beşiktaş team logo embossed on the surface.
Kerslake could not help but smile bitterly when he saw him like that. "We're all behind, and you're still in the mood to collect souvenirs …" He stopped before he finished speaking because he saw Dunn hand a red iPhone to Twain. "This is also a souvenir?"
Twain took it and nodded to Kerslake. "Sort of."
Kerslake looked back at the stands behind him. "Why isn't anyone throwing gold watches and diamond rings …"
"Don't even think about it, David." Twain gave Kerslake a punch with a smile and then pointed to the field. "We might be behind, but I'm not worried at all now. Because I've found out that Beşiktaş is just a paper tiger. All the reactionaries are paper tigers. There's nothing to be afraid of. But it's too noisy here now. There are a lot of things that can't be said. I'll tell them my plan in the locker room during halftime. "
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Amid the deafening cheers of the Turkish fans, the referee's halftime whistle was almost drowned out. It was only by his hand gestures that everyone knew the first half of the game was over. With a one-point lead, the home team walked off the field contentedly and accepted the cheers of their supporters with their chests held high.
The Nottingham Forest players lowered their heads and ran quickly to the tunnel. On the one hand, they avoided the debris that could be thrown from the stands at any time. On the other hand, they also wanted to go back as soon as possible and get as far away from this hell as possible. Twain was the last to enter the tunnel. He stood on the sidelines, braving the sparse rain of debris. He watched everyone return to the locker room before he got up and left. At the entrance of the tunnel, he met the opposing manager, Sağlam.
The other side spoke to him in Turkish. Twain did not understand a word of it. He just maintained a polite smile on his face. After saying these words, Sağlam turned and walked into the tunnel. Twain followed. In fact, he did not need to understand Turkish to roughly know what the other side was saying.
Because he was familiar with that expression — he often had it on his own face.
It was a show of strength. In their own home ground, with so many people shouting and cheering, it was understandable that they were in the limelight.
But there was an old saying in China — the one who laughs last laughs best. This gentleman must not know.
There were still forty-five minutes left. It was not certain who would win and who would lose.
Twain's guess was close to the mark. After Sağlam met Twain by chance, he suddenly thought of the insults he had received at the press conference the day before the game. In addition, the team was in the lead. On a whim, he ridiculed Twain a few words. He did not expect Twain to understand his Turkish. It was purely to vent.
Aren't you putting on airs, Englishman? Who's in the lead now? It's us, Beşiktaş!
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The locker room door was opened. The noise outside rushed in at once and then disappeared — the door was closed.
The players were startled by the change in the voice. They looked up at the man standing at the door, their backbone and the team's true spiritual leader, Tony Twain.
At this moment, the expression on this man's face was not friendly.
"You've all disappointed me. The atmosphere in the City Ground stadium is also famous for being fanatical in England. Could it be that Nottingham Forest, trained in this atmosphere, is so vulnerable? "Twain's opening remarks were concise and went straight to the point. "Look at your performance in the first half. It's not much different from dog sh * t. The only difference is that dog sh * t doesn't run around."
Twain was merciless when he really wanted to scold people, whether it was the reporters, opponents or his own people. It was so acrimonious that it made people feel a dull pain in their bones. So, the only way not to be scolded was to always stand on his side.
"It was only in the last ten minutes that your performance was a little bit better. But it's not enough. If you want to separate from this damn place with three points, this performance is far from enough. "Twain stretched out his right index finger and shook it. He suddenly raised the volume of his voice. "It's even better! I'm standing on the sidelines. Behind me and above me are all things thrown down by those Turkish bastards. "He took out coins and a lighter from his pocket and showed them to the players. If one of these things hit the back of the head, it would definitely be broken and bleeding. "But I'm standing there, completely ignoring such provocation and demonstration! What's the big deal! If you can win, even if those idiots tear down the stadium stands and smash them down, I won't f * cking hide! You have to show that kind of courage! The enemy wants us to feel afraid and then raise our hands in surrender, so that they can defeat us effortlessly and then humiliate us. But at the same time, it also exposes their weakness. In fact, Beşiktaş is not as good as they appear. You think they are tricky and difficult to deal with, but it's just an illusion brought about by the fans' cheers! "
"They can't even break into our penalty area. Other than long shots, they're destroyed by us. Such an attack is too weak! What's there to be afraid of? Why are they so rampant? It's not because our defense isn't good enough. In fact, it can't be any better. It's because our offense is f * cking weaker than theirs! " Twain began to draw the formation of both sides on the tactical board. Then he pulled all the circles representing the Beşiktaş defenders into straight lines to the front field. "Their defenders are very fond of pressing forward to participate in the attack, whether it's the full backs or the center backs. And they don't have so-called wingers. Once the two side midfielders enter our three defensive zones, they will choose to cut inside and break into the penalty area from the flanks, or pass to the middle. This will push our defense back to the middle and create enough space for their two full backs to plug in and assist. "
"But, at the same time?" Twain circled a large circle with his pen in Beşiktaş's back half of the field and then pressed down hard. "There's a blank space over here! Large tracts of no man's land with countless defensive loopholes. As long as our offense can break through, it's a f * cking golden opportunity! But it's a pity that I hardly saw us have a decent attack in the first half that could take advantage of this blank space. "Twain threw the marker pen away and clapped his hands. "You're only thinking about how to defend against the opponent's offense, but you haven't thought about how to use their offense to help our defense. Offense is the best defense. You're getting tired of hearing this, aren't you? Ordinary fans will keep saying it, but do you know the true meaning of this sentence? As long as we add fire to the offense, one or two threatening attacks, we can make them restrain themselves and greatly reduce the pressure on the back field. Only then can our offense dare to press forward and dare to invest our forces. This is what 'offense is the best defense' means! "
"If we want to shut up the twenty thousand idiots outside, we have to step up our offense in the second half. We have to be resolute and do everything we can to send the football to the front, whether it's a pass or a personal breakthrough. In addition, in the face of such great pressure, everyone should keep their heads clear. I don't want to see any more unnecessary mistakes. "Twain glanced at Lennon. If it had not been for this kid's momentary hot-headedness in the first half, how could the Forest team have been caught off guard by the opponent?
If it were 0: 0 now, it would have been Beşiktaş, not Nottingham Forest, who would have walked off the field dejectedly.
Lennon also knew that Twain must be talking about him. He lowered his head and did not say a word.
"Why do we use the 4-1-1 formation? Why do I have to line up two offensive midfielders in the middle instead of two defensive midfielders to play 4-3-1? Although this is a defensive counterattack, the real key is not 'defense,' but 'counterattack.' In the first half, we were pressured to the point where we could only defend. In the second half, we have to counterattack! I don't believe you can still not be angry after being beaten like this. Do you want to see the Turks say after the game, 'The European champion was also wiped out by us?' I don't f * * king want to! "
Twain waved his hand and then looked at his watch. "There are still a few minutes left. Take a break. You can listen to soothing light music and think of a warm home, beautiful wives and lovers to ease the frightened hearts of the first half. " He waved his arms and drew circles in the air, as if that would ease the players' emotions. "Hey … Are you really scared? Do you need psychological intervention? "He asked with a glare. "Oh … No way? It's not like we're playing football in Iraq! "
The exaggerated expression and the huge contrast in the words before and after provoked a burst of laughter from the people in the locker room.
"No one's scared, boss!"
Twain nodded. "It's good that you're not scared … Anyway, when you return to the field and hear the deafening boos, you feel a little weak in the legs. Think about it, if we lose this game, there will be countless people waiting to divide our corpses. No one will sympathize with us. They will only laugh and mock us to their heart's content. And we don't even have the right to refute! Because we're the losers! The losers have no human rights! "
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When the Forest players returned to the field again, the banner that read "Welcome to Hell" hung in the stands across the tunnel was still there, but no one gave it another look.
Because the Nottingham Forest players suddenly remembered something, which they had forgotten in the first half because the game was too intense.
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