December 12th might be a memorable day for Tony Twain in front of so many people. Because it was the day he returned to his position as Forest's manager and began leading the team for a full decade. However, Tony Twain had two identities, so the 1st of January would probably be the date that he would remember more.
January 1st, 2014 was a full 11 years since he had transmigrated. This day could not be considered a "memorial," could it?
Transmigrating was not memorable, no matter what the outcome was. Because it meant that although you gained a lot, you permanently lost something else. What you gained might not be precious, but what you lost was irretrievable.
So on January 1st, Twain was still busy with work, preparing for the FA Cup in three days. It was the first round of the FA Cup for the English Premier League teams this season.
In Tang En's mind, he had basically won all the championships that he could, but he still had one regret. As the oldest and most important competition in England, he, as a champion manager, did not have any results in the FA Cup. It really did not match his current status and identity.
So, on January 1st, he made himself two New Year's wishes. One was: No matter the results of the other competitions this season, he must win the FA Cup!
The other was: I hope to have a child in the new year.
He had been married to Shania for four and a half years. As long as they had the chance to be together, the most important thing would be to make a child. Although pregnancy would definitely affect Shania's career, Shania herself didn't care about this kind of thing. But in the past year, Shania rarely mentioned the "child." Instead, she focused on her work.
In fact, Twain knew that Shania's desire for a child had not really decreased. It seemed that she just did not want to create pressure for herself. If a wife was infertile, the responsibility was mostly on the man. More than once, Twain had the urge to go to the hospital for a checkup. But when it came to it, he backed down. This kind of thing was really … better to let himself fantasize about it. It must not be his problem. It must be just bad luck. It's not like I haven't encountered something like missing the target before. During the military training at the start of high school, he had gone to the shooting range for target practice. He had hit zero on ten shots, and the guy next to him had hit 101 on ten shots. He had even hit ten, just that he had missed the target.
Sometimes, Tang En also wanted to call Dunn, who was in the same city as him. He wanted to beat around the bush to find out if Dunn had any convenient illnesses in the past or if it was a family hereditary history. But in the end, he only thought about it in his mind. He could only hypnotize himself. "It's definitely not my problem. It must be just bad luck …"
If he could also win the FA Cup, he wondered if his wish of having a child would come true …
On this day, Tang En did something that an outsider would find strange. He found a piece of paper and wrote on it, "I want a child, a boy or a girl, as long as he or she is healthy. No matter which deity you are, please help me if you see me! "
Then, he folded the note carefully, put it in a small glass bottle, and buried it under a tree in his garden. While he was burying it, he murmured, "In spring, I plant a seed. In autumn, I can harvest a child …"
Fortunately, Shania was not around. Otherwise, she would have been infuriated by Tang En's actions. If she had the time to "plant children," she might as well "plow" with him.
Desperate times call for desperate measures …
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Tang En only thought about having a child occasionally. If he thought about it every day, he would not be able to take it. This matter could not be rushed. Having a child and winning the championship were two completely different things. Winning the championship would set a goal, and then the whole team would work towards that goal. Having a child was not something that could be achieved no matter how hard one tried. Countless young couples accidentally did not wear condoms that day and won the bid, while couples who longed for children might not have any results even after years of hard work …
Nottingham Forest's first opponent in the FA Cup was the English Football League Championship team, Leeds United. The "Young Guards" of the past were no longer what they used to be. Now, their finances were in a mess, and their results were erratic. Last season, they almost dropped back to League One in the English Football League Championship. In the eyes of outsiders, it was their misfortune to meet Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup. But in reality, this was one of the opponents that Leeds United hoped to meet the most. This match was held at Leeds United's home ground, and the ticket revenue belonged to Leeds United. Nottingham Forest was now a star team. Tony Twain alone was enough to attract popularity, not to mention the other famous star players. They were all guaranteed ticket sales. To Bates, who was not considered a tycoon, a pound was also money. He would never abandon what he earned.
The opponent in this match was not strong. Twain sent out half of the First Team and half of the Youth Team. In the end, they easily defeated Leeds United with a score of 3: 0.
Adriano Moke was named the best player on the spot after the match. He contributed a goal and two assists. Forest's three goals were all related to him. His incisive breakthroughs and dazzling skills on the flank caught the opponent off guard. It also made the audience cry out in satisfaction.
Although Lennon's departure made Twain a little unhappy, Moke did not let him down and grew rapidly. It looked like his years of wandering outside had helped him a lot. Twain believed in the saying that hardships make people grow. That was why he deliberately made Moke's career not so smooth. Now, it looked like his initial efforts were not in vain. It was time to reap the rewards. He only hoped that Lennon would have a good time at AC Milan.
The FA Cup was Forest's first match in the New Year. Twain valued this good start. 3: 0, a complete victory. The opponent did not score a single goal. It seemed to be a good omen for the New Year.
The following month also confirmed his premonition. Eastwood and George Wood buried the hatchet, and the team's atmosphere returned to a happy and harmonious state. Morale was high, and everyone was united.
Nottingham Forest achieved an impressive record of four consecutive victories in the four League matches in January. Subsequently, Twain was also named the Manager of the Month. Nottingham Forest was named the Team of the Month, and George Wood was named the Player of the Month. In the League rankings, Forest also returned to the first group, ranked fourth.
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When it was February, another important competition was about to begin. The UEFA Champions League was reignited. As a member of the top 16, Nottingham Forest would play against Eindhoven in the round of 16. This opponent was the weakest opponent that Forest had faced in the first round of the Champions League knockout in the past few years.
Did it look like the UEFA was giving them special treatment?
Eindhoven played at home first. They tenaciously forced a draw at home against Nottingham Forest and succeeded in not allowing Forest to score. Aaron Mitchell, Ibišević, and a group of other strikers in the English Premier League could not break Eindhoven's goal. This made Twain very angry. He roared at a group of players in the locker room for a full five minutes, scolding them until they dared not raise their heads.
In the end, he said fiercely, "You'd better pray that it won't be another draw at home, and a draw with a goal scored at that!"
This dull 0: 0 match made many people gloat. Tony Twain was too arrogant in the European football scene. Everyone wanted to see him suffer. Moreover, they were forced to a draw by the "weak team" Eindhoven in the away game, and did not even get the away goal that he valued the most. There were even media outlets in the Netherlands that published optimistic predictions that it was not impossible for Eindhoven to eliminate Forest and advance to the top eight. There were many upsets and surprises in the football world. Being strong did not necessarily mean that one should win. Didn't Nottingham Forest rise from being a dark horse in the beginning? Moreover, strictly speaking, Eindhoven was a powerhouse and not a dark horse.
"Goal: Top eight!"
Before Eindhoven set off for Nottingham, the local Dutch media posted such an eye-catching headline.
Twain responded in Nottingham, "The goal is only to be in the top eight? What a good-for-nothing … "
He had to be tough with his words, but he could not be sloppy with his preparations. Twain gave up the previous league tournament for this game, in which his team finally stopped its winning streak. Of course, the people who disliked Twain would see this as "Nottingham Forest has been unlucky recently. After suffering a setback in the Champions League, they also stopped their winning streak in the league tournament. It looks like they're not doing well recently …"
Twain ignored them. Whether they were doing well or not, wouldn't they know once they came to try?
Before the game, Twain instilled a belief in his players that they must win.
"If you're eliminated by Eindhoven at home, you can imagine what the consequences will be."
This sentence was much more effective than roaring a thousand times at them, "We'll definitely win because the other side is a piece of sh * t!"
The fear that could not be seen was the real fear.
No one wanted to be scolded by the boss in the locker room for five minutes or longer, and no one wanted to be ridiculed by the outside world after losing to Eindhoven. No one wanted to lose the game and the championship title. This Nottingham Forest was a team with a tradition of victory and championship titles. They had long been used to victory and glory. Failure? They hated failure.
Eindhoven's manager, Hooper Stevens, was still clear-headed. He was not encouraged by the media. He still deployed the defensive counterattack lineup that he used at home in the away game. He expected that Twain would be eager to attack because he wanted to advance, so he only needed to defend and counterattack and score a goal out of the blue. He had such confidence because his team had successfully held on for 90 minutes at home.
Indeed, as he had expected, Tang En arranged for a ferocious attack at home. Mitchell, Ibišević, Bentley, Fernández, and Şahin. Twain's 4-4-2 only had one defensive midfielder. Gago and Tiago did not play in this game. Wood led the midfield to resist Eindhoven's counterattack by himself.
When he saw this starting lineup, Stevens was still snickering. But within ten minutes, he could not laugh anymore.
Nottingham Forest had already hit the goalpost with two shots. And Eindhoven's defenders, who performed well in the first leg, could not defend against the assault of Nottingham Forest's attacking players.
In the non-stop singing of the home fans, Nottingham Forest finally blasted open Eindhoven's city gate in the 27th minute. The scorer was Ibišević. His powerful header smashed open the goal guarded by Sweden's national goalkeeper, Isaksson.
It was as if a thousand-mile long dike had a hole in it. Following that, Eindhoven was defeated like a landslide and was washed away by Nottingham Forest's flood-like offensive.
In fact, the lineup was not much different from the first leg, but Nottingham Forest, unwilling to lose to Eindhoven, exploded with energy that Eindhoven did not expect. It was as if a nuclear bomb had exploded. The shock wave drowned them, and no one survived …
In the 40th minute, Mitchell scored with a header. 2: 0! The Forest team's high-altitude bombing tactics were quite successful in this game. Eindhoven's defenders were helpless against Ibišević, who was 1.88 meters tall, and Mitchell, who was 2.02 meters tall.
Stevens fidgeted on the sidelines and was very anxious. Trailing by two goals, this game was not going to be easy to play … Eindhoven needed to score two goals … But looking at the Forest team's posture, if they pounced to attack them, they could score a goal. What was the use of conceding more goals later on?
In the second half, the Forest team continued to maintain the fierce offensive of the first half and had no intention of letting Eindhoven take a breather. It looked like Twain was clearly stimulated by the comments of the outside media. He must let everyone see if this tiger's butt could be touched or not.
In the 51st minute, Nottingham Forest scored another goal. This time the scorer was Bale, who scored with a direct free kick.
This goal completely crushed Eindhoven's fighting spirit.
It looked like the tiger's butt really could not be touched …
Subsequently, Eindhoven completely lost the initiative on the field. They tried to counterattack, but only provided more opportunities for the Forest team to be counterattacked.
At the last minute, the Forest team broke into the penalty area through a teamwork. The defender made a mistake in clearing the ball and headed the football to Mitchell. It was a pie that fell from the sky. Mitchell did not hesitate to stretch out his foot and poke the football in, sealing the victory of the game at 4: 0.
"Look at the performance of the Eindhoven players. I'm afraid there's only one thing on their minds now, and that is to escape this noisy stadium as soon as possible!"
Despite leading by a large margin, the Forest fans in the stands of the City Ground stadium had no intention of letting the Eindhoven players go. Every time the visiting players took the ball, there was a burst of fierce boos waiting for them. Unless the football was on the Forest team's side, they would not have the slightest chance to breathe.
When the referee was very considerate to end the three-minute injury stoppage time in a minute and a half, the entire Eindhoven team was finally relieved. After this match, their disgust for Tony Twain and this team would probably grow even stronger …
In the post-match interview, Twain was very cool. He was a man of few words. When someone asked him how he saw the victory of the game, he only said, "I'm sorry to disappoint some people!"
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