The young reporter, Pierce Brosnan, was assigned by the newspaper to go to the City Stadium, where a high-profile press conference was about to be held. It was a press conference that excited all Nottingham Forest supporters in this summer's transfer market. Almost all the local media in Nottingham were there, and other media in London also sent people to attend the press conference.
Sitting at the table where the media's microphones were slowed down, the Forest team's new manager, Stan Collymore, was proud of himself. The club's new chairman, Evan Doughty, sat on his right and looked equally happy. Between the two sat a small Ukrainian, who was the protagonist of the press conference. No one had thought that he would come to play in League One, the former Tottenham Hotspur striker, Sergiy Rebrov.
This was the biggest player to appear in the League One transfer market so far! Maybe the new manager, Collymore, who was absent from the training session, was really looking for players everywhere …
Two million pounds. That was the current value of the Ukrainian, even though he was worth eleven million pounds when he transferred from Dynamo Kyiv to North London's Tottenham Hotspur FC in 2000. But after three years, the former partner of Shevchenko had long become a big burden that the Tottenham Hotspur team most wanted to get rid of.
He made twenty-nine appearances in the first season, but only scored nine goals, which was seriously inconsistent with his value. Then the Ukrainian striker was frequently entangled with injuries and only scored a total of twelve goals for the team in two and a half years. Such results obviously did not satisfy the team and the fans. Rebrov was a player signed by George Graham when he was in charge of the Tottenham Hotspur team, but as Glenn Hoddle became the Tottenham Hotspur manager, he began to gradually become a substitute.
The Tottenham Hotspur team was eager to sell the Ukrainian striker, who did not do much but still received a high salary. It happened to hit it off with Nottingham Forest, who needed to bring in a player with a high level, reputation, and appeal. Although the transfer fee of two million pounds was a little low, it was still acceptable for the player to stay in the team and continue to receive a salary, and then leave on a free transfer at the end of his contract. Tottenham Hotspur would not receive a single cent, so a "mere" two million pounds was still acceptable.
The Forest team also had to thank Tottenham Hotspur for their generosity. After Abramovich took over Chelsea, the transfer fees for almost all the players had doubled. They were lucky to be able to buy players from Tottenham Hotspur so cheaply.
After serious consideration, Rebrov felt that it was better to transfer to Nottingham Forest than to be loaned to a place like Turkey.
Collymore assured him that the team would return to the Premier League at the end of the season, promised him the position of the main striker, and showed him his grand plan for the team. These things moved Rebrov, and he decided to "condescend" to come to England's second division to prove himself again.
Of course, his salary was also the highest in the team.
Collymore smiled at the microphone and said, "I promised you that we would be in the Premier League next season. Do you believe me now?"
Rebrov also smiled and took over the conversation. He said to everyone, "Nottingham Forest is a great team with a glorious history. I hope my arrival can help the team return to the top. " His words won the favor of many of the Nottingham local reporters present. The Forest people liked to be mentioned to them in the glorious days of the past, but this history was too long ago and not everyone knew about it. Even if they were professional players, they often did not understand what kind of impressive achievements this team had achieved in the second division.
Therefore, Rebrov was able to take the initiative to mention this past, which immediately changed the attitude of the local media, who originally did not have much affection for this "Premier League product," they believed that this Ukrainian could really contribute to the team. But … Did no one think that this Ukrainian was just memorizing information?
Only Pierce Brosnan was lost in thought as he looked at the three men on stage. The Ukrainian striker did not prove himself in the Premier League. Could he prove his ability in the lower technical level of League One? In his view, Rebrov's failed Tottenham Hotspur career was not a problem of strength. It was the result of his personal style not matching the style of English football.
In his eyes, Collymore was far worse than Twain. Tony Twain couldn't do it. Could Stan Collymore do it?
Although he was often ridiculed by Twain, that person was capable. He would not deny a person because of personal likes and dislikes. Like Twain, he could not understand the appointment of the Forest team's new chairman. In his view, the failure in the play-offs was not Twain's responsibility alone — even though he took all the blame after the failure. He suddenly raised his hand and Collymore nodded at him, indicating that he could stand up and ask questions.
Pierce Brosnan was no longer the intern reporter who had been ridiculed by Twain to the point of stuttering. He stared intently at Collymore and said his question word by word, "Mr. Manager, the pre-season training has already begun for ten days, and you've only signed a striker. May I ask what kind of lineup you plan to use to fight for the Premier League spot? "
When this question was asked, there was a small commotion at the press conference. Some people looked back at Brosnan, who was standing in the back with a microphone in his hand, while others glanced at Collymore with a smirk to see how he planned to deal with it. Others whispered to each other to discuss the issue. The English media had always been known to be difficult, tricky, and ruthless. It was not their style to surround a person and sing praises. It was the fine tradition of the media to stand up and disagree like Pierce Brosnan.
The smile on Collymore's face froze and then slowly disappeared. Rebrov, who was sitting next to him, also looked a little awkward — because the person who bought him was Collymore. Questioning Collymore's ability was equivalent to questioning his ability. Only Evan Doughty sat at the side with his arms crossed and a puzzling smile on his face. It was as if he was a spectator who had nothing to do with the matter.
Brosnan glanced at him and then turned his attention back to Collymore. If today's rookie rookie — yes, although Bruce had only been a regular for two or three months, facing Stan Collymore, who was coaching for the first time, he could call him a "rookie" or a "recruit" — did not give up until he gave him a satisfactory answer.
"This …" Collymore slowly opened his mouth and looked around. He was still thinking about how to answer the reporter's question. "… As you said, the pre-season training has only started ten days ago. We still have more time to improve the team. I think you will see more high-level players appear in the City Ground stadium. The team's transfer work is far from over … "He glanced at Evan Doughty after he finished speaking, hoping that he would come out and say a word for him.
Evan cooperatively took over the topic, "Yes, the Forest team's transfer work is not over yet. We believe in Mr. Collymore's ability. "
Brosnan obviously had no intention of letting them go. He pressed, "Mr. Chairman. Last season, Manager Tony Twain led the team to failure in the play-offs and was stripped of his position as manager. So I would like to ask, if we still stay in League One at the end of this season … "When he said this, Brosnan turned his head to stare at Collymore." Will Mr. Stan Collymore still sit here for the interview? "
The tone of the attack was very strong, and the press conference was suddenly filled with the smell of gunpowder.
Collymore's bad temper seemed to rise again. He opened his mouth to rebuke the reporter in front of him who did not know the immensity of heaven and earth, but he was interrupted by Evan, "I'm sorry, I never comment on things that have not happened in the future. If you ask if Mr. Collymore will be dismissed, I can only answer you when that day comes. All right, everyone. " Evan stood up and clapped his hands. "Let's go to the stadium. Hundreds of loyal Forest fans are waiting anxiously."
The reporters got up one after another, and Collymore and Rebrov, surrounded by them, walked to the stadium behind the press conference.
Pierce Brosnan did not follow at the front. He waited for everyone to leave before following from a distance. But he found that there was another person who deliberately lagged behind.
Evan Doughty looked back at Brosnan, and the other person was also looking at him. The two men's eyes met in the air. They both knew what the other meant, but they did not say anything in the end and continued to walk to the stadium.
When Collymore was being made difficult by Brosnan at the press conference, and when Rebrov's arrival attracted the attention of half of Nottingham, Twain was not at the youth team training base. He was not even in the city.
Collymore abandoned the team's training and said that he was searching all over the world for the players the team needed. Twain was doing the same thing as him. The difference between the two was that Twain was not just talking about it.
The sea breeze blew through his hair and lapels, and the air carried a hint of saltiness. This was a characteristic of the seaside port city.
Twain took a breath of the moist seaside air and continued to focus his attention on the stadium in front of him. There were quite a few people around him. Some of them were just ordinary fans, while others were like him, standing there with different purposes to watch a training match for the under-14 youth team.
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