In the beginning, Nottingham Forest's locker room was noisy. Everyone was busy resting or listening to music to relax. When Tang En stood up from the corner, it quickly quieted down again.
"In the first half … I won't say anything nonsense. The problem we have to solve now is not how to defend against Barcelona's attack, but how to score their goals. "
As he said that, he turned to look at George Wood.
Some people followed his gaze and turned to the back.
"George, isn't it a little difficult for you to attack and defend at the same time?" Tang En asked with a smile.
George Wood shook his head. "It's okay."
"It's okay?" Tang En glared at him. "What do you mean by okay? Is it barely enough, or is it easy? "
"Well …" George Wood thought about it. "When I come back to defend, I might miss some opportunities because I'm in the backfield. Other than that … there's nothing else. "
"Use more passes, idiot." Tang En pointed at him. "You ran back and forth like a shuttle in the first half. I even wondered if you had the extra energy and time to look up at the situation around you. A playmaker in the midfield was not a role that could be filled with endless stamina. You have to observe the situation on the field, look at the positioning of your teammates and opponents, and then decide how to deal with the attack. A midfield playmaker does not rely on physical strength, but on the brain. " Although Tang En's critical tone was not harsh, he let everyone know that he was indeed criticizing George Wood and was not joking.
Wood nodded. He also felt that he was basically running for his life in the first half. How to organize the attack? This question did not linger in his mind much. He waited to get the ball before looking up to find a passing route. If there was a chance, he would pass it. If there was no chance, he would dribble the ball himself. He rarely thought like van der Vaart. So far, most of his passes were directly passed to the feet of his teammates, not to the empty space in front of them. This kind of ball was not easy to make mistakes, but it also did not create many good opportunities. Basically, the attacks that could pose a threat in the attack were all such penetrating passes. Always passing to the fixed feet would force the rhythm of the attack to a stop. At that time, as long as the opponent's rear defensive line was in a good position, they could easily stop an attack.
He did not have to run back and forth between the front and back fields in the second half of the game, but he needed to put more energy into defense because Nottingham Forest was playing defensive counterattack. How could they fight back if they did not defend? Wood was also the core of the midfield defense. He was really not used to watching from the side when the opponent was attacking and waiting for his teammates to snatch the ball before giving it to him to organize the attack …
"Also, although we are defending and counterattacking, defense is very important. But if we only defend and don't counterattack, we'll be completely defending. " Tang En had no intention of letting Wood off the hook. He once again raised his criticisms of Wood's defense. "You've been a defensive midfielder for too long, George. Actively defending is a good thing, but think about your own mission first. What are you doing here? "He looked at Wood and asked.
Wood replied, "Organize the attack."
"Looks like you haven't lost your mind from all the running. If you're always defending, defending, defending … how are you going to organize an attack? At the end of the day, you're just a human, not a monster that can clone itself at any time. "
"Then what should I do?" George Wood retorted.
Tang En looked at the others in the locker room. Some of them were attentively listening to the conversation between him and George, some were resting with their eyes closed, and some were simply listening to music.
He coughed and then said to George Wood, "It's very simple. Believe in your teammates. "
George Wood turned his head to look around. He found that many of his teammates were also looking at him.
"All right, guys!" Tang En let go of Wood and clapped his hands hard to get everyone to look up at him. "In the second half, we must score a goal. This is not an away game where we can just get a draw. You can't relax your defense, and you have to be a little bolder in your offense … If you lose the ball, I don't want to see you turn around and run back. You guys have to counterattack and intercept the ball. If you can't intercept the ball, you have to interfere with their advancement — you guys know what to do. "
"The first half of the first half was fine, but we gave Barcelona too little pressure in the second half. This won't do. Let's work harder in the second half. If those bastards still think we don't have the strength to fight back, then we'll teach them a lesson! "
He smashed his fist into his palm.
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On the other side, Rijkaard was writing and drawing on the tactical board. He was telling his men how to break through Nottingham Forest's dense defense.
"George Wood clearly needs to organize the attack. If I were Tony Twain, I wouldn't let him continue to focus on defense in the second half. In this way, Nottingham Forest's defense is sure to have gaps to drill through. Their overall defensive formation is well maintained, and there's no way to tear it apart by passing the ball. Sidwell is not a threat to you, Messi. "He looked at Messi sitting on one side.
"In the second half, try to break through more. Break in and look for opportunities to disrupt their defensive formation. The most frightening thing about this kind of overall defense is that the opponent has one or several individuals who are good at breaking through. "
He tactfully criticized Messi for not being excited enough in the first half.
It was true that Messi's performance soon became flat, except for the three shots in a row at the beginning. Perhaps some people would speculate that he had just recovered from his injury and had not adjusted to his best condition. But in fact, Messi was just a little uninterested because the contrast between his previous expectations and the reality was too big.
After all, how could beating Sidwell be compared to the sense of accomplishment of beating George Wood?
Messi also knew what the problem was. He had to take the second half seriously. Anyway, for whatever reason, it was a good thing for him that George Wood did not defend him.
Recently, the media criticized Barcelona for getting rid of the "Ronaldinho dependence" and suffering from "Messi dependence." The problem could be looked at from two sides. On the one hand, it was said that Rijkaard was incompetent, and on the other hand, it was praised that Messi was too good.
When Barcelona attacked, everyone would try to give the ball to the little man, hoping he could create a miracle.
Since Nottingham Forest doesn't value me, I'll make you regret it! He clenched his fists.
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After the second half of the game resumed, just like the first half of the first half, Barcelona wanted to score, and Nottingham Forest also wanted to score. The two sides attacked each other, and the situation changed.
During this time, Nottingham Forest got three good chances to break the goal, and Barcelona also had two chances to break into the Forest team's hinterland. Unfortunately, no one grasped it. It scared the two managers on the sidelines — no matter which side got the chance to shoot, it would make the two managers leave their seats. The difference was that Rijkaard only got up slightly, while Tang En jumped straight out of the technical area.
After fifteen minutes of exciting attacks, Nottingham Forest and Barcelona realized at the same time that this kind of attack put their own goal in a very dangerous position. The five direct opportunities for both sides to threaten the goal was clear evidence.
Therefore, they tacitly chose to be conservative at the same time.
Nottingham Forest's steady defense was in line with their usual style, so it was not surprising. Barcelona also defended steadily and counterattacked, which was puzzling.
"Barcelona wants to fight Nottingham Forest's defensive counterattack?" the commentator exclaimed.
Tang En laughed in his seat. He knew why Rijkaard suddenly played conservative again. Because after a bout of attacks just now, he found that Nottingham Forest's offensive strength was not weak. Playing conservatively in key games would help them win. This manager, who was famous in the football world for his artistic football and offensive football, had no choice but to succumb to reality when his position was not stable and chose a more reliable game defense.
What made him happier was not Barcelona's performance, but George Wood's change.
One of the things he liked most about Wood was that he was obedient most of the time. After he criticized Wood's performance in the first half during halftime, Wood indeed made a targeted change in the second half.
He no longer let himself be exhausted between offense and defense. From a certain point of view, he learned to "play football while standing." Tang En always emphasized running to play football, but there were exceptions. As the conductor of the midfield, he hoped that his playmakers could have the air of a general and perform more steadily. Moreover, as a defensive midfielder, there was really no need to charge and break through the enemy lines every time. More often than not, they needed to directly launch attacks from the backfield. Learning how to judge the situation on the field was something that George Wood had to do.
Forest's attacks directly threatened Barcelona's goal three times. One of them was directly initiated by Wood, while the other two were indirectly initiated by George Wood. One of his direct passes to the flank gave Ribéry a chance to break into the penalty area to shoot. Although it was blocked by Valdés, Wood's 30-meter-long direct pass still left a deep impression. At that time, he was still in the center circle and the Forest team switched from defense to offense. If he continued to dribble, Barcelona's rear defensive line would quickly be organized. In that case, he would have no better way than to cross the ball. At that time, he looked up to the front and found that Barcelona's rear defensive line was still retreating and had not had time to organize a defensive formation. Although Ribéry was cruising on the side, there was enough space in front of him. With his speed …
He decisively sent the ball directly from the center circle to the flank area between Barcelona's center backs, Milito and Puyol.
With his strength, there was no doubt about the speed of the ball's rolling. Like a knife cutting through butter, he passed the ball between Barcelona's two defenders. In front was an empty penalty area. There were no Barcelona players or Nottingham Forest players. Just when people thought it was a missed pass, Ribéry appeared behind the entire rear defensive line with the image of a high-speed run. He received the ball!
What followed was a shot without hesitation. Unfortunately, he pursued power too much and the angle was too straight, so it was blocked by Valdés.
But the City Ground stadium still rang with bursts of applause, for Ribéry and for George Wood.
Even Tang En, who was off the field, could not help but stand up and applaud George Wood when he saw the penetrating pass like a scalpel.
If George had directly sent the ball to Ribéry's feet, then Barcelona's Puyol would have been happy to challenge Ribéry one-on-one, and the Forest team's offense would have been forced to a dead end. The ball that was passed to the front of the attacking player was like a channel that led downstream for a pool of stagnant water. The entire offense came to life in an instant.
"This is the talent that Demetrio said he saw in him!" Tang En said to the people around him in a boastful manner.
"Unfortunately, it's still too little." Kerslake shook his head.
"It doesn't matter," Dunn said. "In the beginning, it only flashed once in a while. Now, it's flashing a lot. In the end … "
Tang En continued his words. "In the end, it will flash into a patch of light that will never be extinguished!"
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On the field, Wood was a little vexed after seeing Ribéry waste this opportunity. But what occupied his heart was more excitement. When he saw the football roll out from his feet and accurately pass through Barcelona's two defenders, Ribéry tacitly plugged in to receive it. That feeling was completely different from when he was a defensive midfielder and overturned his opponent … How should he put it? One was destruction, and the other was construction.
But there was one thing that was definitely the same — whether it was destruction or construction, he was excited after success.
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It was precisely because of Wood's sudden, enlightened activity that Rijkaard discovered that Nottingham Forest's offense was still very powerful even without van Nistelrooy, Eastwood, and van der Vaart. He was worried that if he continued to attack like this, the Forest team would succeed in their sneak attack. Considering the outcome, not conceding a goal was the most important thing. So, he ran to the sidelines to let the team slow down a little and take it slow.
When he pulled back, the Forest team followed suit. Even though Barcelona rarely counterattacked, it would be a big mistake to think that they did not have the ability to fight back. Twain did not want the foolishness of "besieging the opponent for eighty-nine minutes and being defeated by the opponent's sneak attack in the ninetieth minute" to happen to him.
Messi performed well in the first half and also got a shot. But although his shot passed Edwin van der Sar's ten fingers, it was blocked by Pepe's body on the goal line. It was Barcelona's best chance to score in the game so far.
Barcelona retreated, and the person who was really liberated was actually George Wood. He did not have to put more energy on the defense in the backfield. He began to try to move his position forward. At times, he looked more like an attacking midfielder than a defensive midfielder.
The game gradually came to an end in a stalemate between the two sides. If no one could score a goal and the score was still 0: 0, then Barcelona and Nottingham Forest would have to go through overtime to determine which team would advance to the final. If overtime still could not determine the winner, then there was only one last move left — a penalty shootout!
No one wanted the game to really come to that point. Not to mention the penalty shootout, even overtime was a great test for both sides' stamina.
As a result, in the last ten minutes of the game, the two sides once again exerted their strength and launched an offensive.
Messi became active again, and George Wood also received more balls from his teammates. He already looked like the "midfield command tower."
On this side, after Messi broke through Sidwell, he passed the ball straight to Eto 'o, who inserted into the penalty area. Eto' o's shot was saved by Edwin van der Sar.
On the other side, George Wood suddenly forced a breakthrough on the flank with his speed. After attracting the attention of both Abidal and Yaya Touré, he passed the football back to Beckham. Beckham passed the ball in the first instance. Bendtner pressured Barcelona's tallest defender, Márquez, to head the ball into the goal. It was pounced on by Valdés and bounced off the crossbar.
Later on, after George Wood found that Barcelona was focusing on defending against his pass, he decisively took a long shot from a distance of thirty meters. Although it flew directly to the stands, Twain and the others saw George Wood's true heart — he did not reject being an offensive player.
As time passed, the score remained 0: 0.
Rijkaard had long been standing on the sidelines directing the game. At this moment, Twain could not sit still and got up from his seat.
He turned his head to look at the big screen. Time: 84 minutes and 58 seconds of the game; Score: Nottingham Forest 0: 0 Barcelona.
Beckham was a little tired, so he decided to replace him. Lennon's impact might have a miraculous effect at the last moment.
Sidwell could also be replaced and let van der Vaart go up to fight at the last moment. However, in this way, George Wood would return to the position of defensive midfielder. In addition, van der Vaart's condition for his debut was unknown. After all, there were not many events left for them unless they planned to play overtime.
Forget it. George's performance had already satisfied him. He could not be blamed if he still could not bring the team a victory. After all, as a playmaking midfielder, he still had a long way to go.
He called van der Vaart and Lennon back from the warm-up area and prepared to instruct them on how to attack.
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George Wood glanced at the two teammates listening to Twain's instructions on the sidelines. One of them was the team's original playmaker, van der Vaart. It only took him a second to know Tony Twain's thoughts.
He did not want to play overtime and wanted to resolve the battle in the last few minutes. His own offensive performance clearly did not satisfy him. Otherwise, why would he bring on van der Vaart? He was here to take over his task.
What did this mean?
It meant that he did not complete his task.
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Messi faced Sidwell again. He intended to attract Pepe to come up to assist in the defense after a breakthrough, and then pass the football behind Pepe for Eto 'o to insert.
When he easily bypassed Sidwell and looked up to find someone, the ball under his feet was shoveled away by George Wood.
For nearly ninety minutes, no matter how much Messi stirred up trouble near the Forest team's penalty area, George Wood did not bother with him once. Messi had almost forgotten the opponent he had once considered the most dangerous.
So, he bypassed Sidwell. His mind was full of Pepe and he did not notice the danger around him.
George Wood took advantage of him looking up and neglecting to guard his feet. He suddenly rushed out from the side and shoveled the ball under Messi's feet!
Nottingham Forest did not give Barcelona time to react. Pepe, who had come up to defend against Messi, just received the ball that Wood shoveled over. He intended to pass it to someone else, but he soon saw Wood, who had just climbed up from the ground, waving at him. His movement was subtle, but he saw it and signaled for him to pass the ball over.
Pepe faced Messi and made a posture to dribble the ball to break through forward. He tricked Messi into swaying his center of gravity and then passed the football to George Wood, who ran in front.
"He's the playmaker. Stop him!" Puyol shouted from the backfield. It was basically Wood who organized the offense for the entire game. Even a fool would know who the most dangerous person was when the Forest team fought back and who the most important person to eliminate was.
This time, without waiting for Yaya Touré, Xavi pounced first. He intended to wait for George Wood to pass him and take the opportunity to intercept the ball, or force Wood to slow down and turn around, so that the Forest team's quick attack would fail.
George Wood did not intend to pass Xavi, but he also did not intend to turn around. He looked at Xavi and passed the football to Beckham on the right flank.
Then he bypassed Xavi and continued to run forward.
At the same time, Nottingham Forest began their quick counterattack. Gareth Bale, who was brought on in the 25th minute of the second half, and Ribéry plugged forward from the left flank together.
Xavi turned his head to look at George Wood's back, and at the same time, glanced at the other Forest players running forward, and then looked at Beckham, who was almost within reach. He finally decided to tangle with the Englishman who was average in possession of the ball and leave George Wood to his teammates.
Beckham knew Xavi's intention when he saw him closing in. There were only two options: to intercept his ball, or to trap him in place so that the football could not be passed out.
He did not give Xavi a chance to complete his task. He immediately passed the football to the side diagonally in front of him. The person who received the ball was none other than George, who had just passed the ball to him!
He had already moved from the middle to the side. After receiving the ball, Yaya Touré also pounced over before Wood could dribble a few steps. All of Barcelona's defensive players had the same idea: either directly intercept the ball, disrupt the attack, or obstruct the attack.
George Wood did not give Touré a chance to take advantage of. He directly passed the ball to Ribéry in the middle.
Ribéry moved from the left to the middle because he had to receive Wood. Barcelona's defensive line tensed up when they saw him take the ball. As the European Footballer of the Year, he could not be ignored. Ribéry was a good player whether it was a threatening pass or a shot himself.
Iniesta was not a player who was good at defense. He had to come up and prepare to flank. The man in front of Ribéry was the Argentine center back, Milito.
If Ribéry wanted to shoot directly, Milito would go up and block. If Ribéry wanted to break through, then Iniesta on the flank could give him some scruples.
Ribéry neither shot nor broke through. He passed the ball.
The figure who received the ball was familiar to all the Barcelona players — George Wood.
George Wood, who had just been on the side and now quickly moved to the flank, had just received the ball when Abidal unceremoniously stuck close to him. Now he was basically in front of Barcelona's penalty area. How could he not press a little tighter and let the opponent move freely in such a place?
Abidal pressed up. As he tested Wood, he stretched out his foot to poke Wood's ball, forcing Wood to turn around.
Wood turned around as he wished, but he used his heel to knock the football into the space behind Abidal.
"David!"
Beckham ran up with all his might and appeared just behind Abidal. He was not offside! Because Gareth Bale plugged in and suppressed Puyol's side, Beckham appeared behind the others but alone in front of Puyol.
Abidal was focused on stealing Wood's ball and might not have noticed, but Márquez saw it clearly. Just before George Wood received the ball, Beckham ran over from afar. When Wood received the ball, he suddenly sped up and rushed over.
At first, Márquez thought Beckham was going to receive George Wood's return pass, but he soon found he was wrong. Because Beckham did not rush toward Wood, but bypassed the two men. Just at this moment, he suddenly moved forward and wanted to put Beckham in an offside position. He did not look at the situation in the distance. He was still very confident in Puyol.
Puyol was obviously aware of this. He wanted to move forward again to create an offside position, but it was too late.
Just half a step away, Beckham received the ball in a situation where no one was marking him!
Bendtner and Arshavin, who had just interfered with Márquez in front, ignored Márquez, who looked back at the assistant referee with his hand raised, and rushed to the goal!
"Watch out for his pass …" Before Valdés finished shouting, he saw Beckham swing his right foot.
Abidal panicked and turned to pounce on Beckham, while George Wood stood in place waiting to watch the show.
Márquez and Milito went back to chase Bendtner and Arshavin.
Although Valdés looked at Beckham, he did pay attention to the position of the Forest team's two strikers out of the corner of his eye …
Beckham made a kick. It was not a curving pass with the inside of his foot, but a volley shot with the outside of his instep!
At the same time, Valdés pounced to the outside, ready to block the pass. As soon as it flew out, he was horrified to see the football fly past him from the other side. It was so fast that he did not even have time to turn his head to see the situation behind him. But it was no longer necessary, because he heard the roaring cheers of the entire stadium …
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! The ball's in! "
Five passes ended the battle.
David Beckham pointed at George Wood with both hands and pounced on him with an excited smile on his face.
George Wood's excellent performance throughout the game, as well as his continuous passing and organization of the attack as a passing relay station, made him the main target of Barcelona's rear defensive line. Franck Ribéry had a reputation. When he took the ball, Barcelona did not dare not defend. No one cared about the veteran Beckham, who could not run anymore. At most, he could pass. Our defensive line was so well organized that Bendtner would not have many chances if he passed in …
As a result, Beckham came to plug in and shoot!
"Some people say that Nottingham Forest runs a nursing home. With Hierro gone, there's Albertini, van Nistelrooy, and Edwin van der Sar. Now that Albertini has retired, there's David Beckham. But who did they rely on to win the Champions League last year? That old guy Albertini! What about this year? Nottingham Forest fans can start looking forward to David Beckham! "
The commentator exclaimed excitedly.
What he said was tantamount to announcing in advance that Nottingham Forest had obtained a ticket to the Champions League final.
In fact, there were still three minutes left in the game before the injury stoppage time.
Tang En did not have time to celebrate the goal with the people around him. He pulled the excited van der Vaart and Lennon to seize the time to explain the tactics. He had just explained that they would wait for the dead ball to be substituted. But now they definitely had to change the tactics.
A trailing Barcelona would be like a wounded beast. At the last moment, they might explode with amazing energy. If they were careless, they would be eaten up. Barcelona only needed one goal to equalize the score, and the team going to Moscow, Russia, would change from Nottingham Forest to Barcelona.
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After celebrating the victory, Tang En brought on van der Vaart and Lennon to replace Sidwell and Beckham, who had just scored the goal. When the veteran Beckham came off the field, he received a standing ovation from the fans.
After hugging Beckham, Tony Twain gave a thumbs up to George Wood on the field, affirming his contribution to the goal.
He was afraid that Wood would have other ideas because van der Vaart did take over Wood's offensive command. He needed to do what he was best at — defense.
Messi finally came face-to-face with George Wood near the end of the game, but he had already been exhausted by the Forest team's overall defense in the previous game. How good could his stamina be when he had just recovered from an injury?
In the face of George Wood's abnormal stamina, he had "the heart to kill the thief, but the strength to reverse the situation."
A speed-type striker like Eto 'o's role was limited without more space. Henry? How much of a threat could he be when he was blocked by the Forest team on the flank and could not get in?
Although the second half stoppage time was as long as five minutes, there was a burst of dissatisfied boos in the City Ground stadium. But Nottingham Forest's Wall of Sighs showed no signs of collapsing. The advantage in stamina guaranteed by the rotation was on full display at this time.
When the referee blew the whistle at the end of the game. The entire City Ground stadium, and even half of Nottingham, was covered in cheers.
Tony Twain walked to the sidelines, intending to wave his arms and shout to celebrate the victory, but he was suddenly lifted up by the players around him and raised above his head!
"Breaking into the UEFA Champions League final three times in a row! Tony Twain has engraved his team's name in the history of the Champions League, to be mentioned in the same breath as Real Madrid, Ajax, AC Milan, Juventus, Bayern Munich, Benfica, and to be mentioned in the same breath as the greatest managers in history! They're the first to do it in the New Era … This is crazy! "
"It's incredible! It's unbelievable! They really did it! "
Tony Twain was lifted above his head by the players and raised his hand to accept the cheers of the crowd. Even though he had not won the Champions League title, he was now good enough to accept this courtesy. To bring a small team that had been unknown for nearly thirty years back to the top was really not something that an ordinary person could do casually.
"I have to say … Tony Twain is still not likeable, but his results make everyone envious. Those who criticize him also hope that the team they support can have such a magical manager. Most of the players he poached from all over the world were unheard of. And now, they have all grown into the pillars of Nottingham Forest. The saplings have grown into towering trees! "
"Wood! Wood! Has grown into a tree! Forest! Forest! Nottingham Forest!! " Not a single Forest fan left the stands at the City Ground stadium. Now they were singing a song for George Wood.
"Yes, Franck Ribery, who played in the lower leagues in France, became the European Footballer of the Year. Pepe, who once faced the predicament of not having a ball to play for in Portugal, is now the core of the Forest team's defense. Gareth Bale, who was almost rejected by Southampton, is now the youngest international player and goalscorer in Welsh history. Eastwood, who once could only play amateur football because of injury and almost gave up, has become the main player of the Forest team … Of course, we can't not mention George Wood. Who would think of him now as a layman who only started playing professional football at the age of seventeen? His performance in today's game deserves nine points! "
"Why not ten points?" His partner asked.
"Ah, because he's still young and has plenty of room to grow. His future is worth looking forward to. I don't want to give him a shocking eleven points when the time comes. "
These players, like George Wood, surrounded Tony Twain and celebrated the victory with him. Who cared about the feelings of the Barcelona people?
Twain did not even have the chance to shake hands with Rijkaard. He saw Rijkaard walk away alone. He knew that Rijkaard's position as the manager was certain to be lost, but he did not feel the slightest sorrow for Rijkaard. He just watched Rijkaard's back gradually disappear into the crowd and warned himself for the umpteenth time in his heart:
If I lose the game, he will be the same as I was at that moment.
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