It was not until noon the next day that Twain finally met all the members of the Forest team in the restaurant, whether they were players or coaches. There was no one in the restaurant at breakfast. Twain knew that these people must still be sleeping in after a night of revelry. Anyway, the season was already over. He would not ask someone to knock on their door.
After the team had lunch together, they would take a plane back to England. Then they would take an open double-decker bus from Birmingham Airport to Nottingham. They would be received by the mayor at the city square and then go up to the balcony of the City Hall to meet the fans gathered there. That would be the end of it. There were no plans to celebrate at the City Ground stadium in the evening because the stadium had been completely sealed off for the final preparations before it was demolished.
On the flight from Madrid to Birmingham, Evan Doughty and Allan Adams sat in the first-class cabin and did not look for Twain. Twain could not wait for them not to disturb him. He leaned back in his seat and sent a text to Shania, asking her where she wanted to go this holiday.
Most of the players were still catching up on sleep on the plane. The beautiful air stewardesses wanted to get to know them, but faced with a group of men who were snoring incessantly, there was nothing they could do.
After the plane landed in Birmingham, Twain and Wood were the first to walk down the gangway with the Champions League trophy in hand.
The reporters who had been waiting there for a long time swarmed up. For a moment, there were flashes everywhere. Some of the players who had not yet woken up nearly rolled down the gangway when they poked their heads out.
Twain was interviewed after he got off the plane and was asked to give an impromptu speech.
"This is a gift to all the Nottingham Forest fans." He raised the trophy in his hands, which shone silver under the afternoon sun.
Following that, he did not give an impassioned speech. Instead, he waved to the camera and said, "I love you all."
Then he squeezed into the crowd and left the scene under the protection of the police.
He left a few dumbfounded reporters looking at each other. Such a short speech was not in line with Twain's usual style.
Only Evan Doughty and Allan Adams knew why — there was no point in saying anything more since he had already decided to leave.
Twain put on a smiling face in front of everyone, but he was not in high spirits. If he could be alone, the smile on his face would disappear and he would fall into a daze.
He continued in this state until he reached the second-floor balcony of the City Hall and faced the tens of thousands of Forest fans below. He only went up when it was necessary for him to show his face. At other times, he hid behind the players and his gaze was a little uncertain.
Because every time he saw the passionate fans below, he had to think about how he would face them after he announced the news. What would those who supported him think? Continue to support him or spurn him? Would he need to wear sunglasses and disguise himself when he walked in Nottingham in the future?
And his players. How would his most loyal men feel, knowing that their leader had betrayed them? Twain did not even dare to think about such a future. He felt that he had let down the team, but he had no choice. He did not want to force himself to stay. Leading the team to win the club's unprecedented Treble was perhaps the only compensation for these people. It also made Tang En feel slightly more at ease.
When he made this decision, Tang En did not tell Shania. Otherwise, he might be able to seek Shania's comfort and support. But that would also make Shania worry about herself. Tang En was unwilling to do so, so he chose to bear the pressure alone.
"Boss! Hey, Boss! "Bale called a few times from the side to wake Tang En up from his daze.
"Ah? What's the matter, little monkey? "Tang En affectionately called Bale by his nickname.
"They're all shouting your name." Bale pointed to the sea of people below.
Tang En knew he had to wave again, so he squeezed forward.
The fans below only stopped shouting when they saw Tang En reappear. What followed was a huge cheer.
Tang En smiled and waved to them in greeting.
Wood handed him the microphone in his hand. It turned out that it was not as simple as just waving. He also had to say something.
Tang En took the microphone and looked at the people below. He opened his mouth but did not know what to say. So he held the microphone and stared blankly at the spot for a few seconds.
The cheers gradually died down. Tang En realized that if he continued to stare blankly, he would be noticed by others. He coughed and began to say, "Thank you all for being able to gather here."
Then he got stuck again.
"Uh … Thank you again for your … support this season." He almost said "support for the past 11 years."
"We've won the three most important championships." Tang En pointed to the three trophies of different sizes and shapes placed in front of him. They were the English Premier League Championship Trophy, the English FA Cup Championship Trophy, and the newly released UEFA Champions League Trophy. "These are three love letters to all of you. I love all of you. "
When he said these words, Tang En was not pretentious or hypocritical. He really loved this group of fans. After all, he had coached here for 11 years. It would be a lie if he did not have feelings for them.
Someone shouted excitedly, "I love you too, Tony!"
There was no lack of hot girls dressed in sexy and provocative clothes.
The players behind him whistled.
Tang En waited for the commotion to subside before continuing, "If not for your support, we would not have been able to achieve such results. I will remember all of you. This day belongs to all of you. Have fun! "He handed the microphone to the person beside him and retreated.
"Boss is a little strange …" Bale muttered to Wood in a low voice.
Wood looked at Tang En and did not respond.
"Maybe he's too tired …" The others also sensed that something was wrong with what Bale said. If it had been in the past, Boss would have given an impassioned speech that would make the supporters rejoice and the opponents angry and frightened. Then, he would bring the atmosphere to a climax. But today, Boss was like a lyrical poet. It was a little … how should he put it? Sentimental, perhaps …
His statement was agreed with by the others. These days, Boss was indeed very tired. This was in everyone's eyes. It could not be fake. As players, they were only physically tired. As a manager, it was mentally tired. Since he was mentally exhausted, he naturally didn't have the strength to give an impassioned speech here.
The revelry with the fans continued into the night. The Forest players and the three trophies finally disappeared from the balcony on the second floor. Their entire team went to the mayor's dinner, and the fans gradually dispersed. They would continue to celebrate this great season in their respective bars.
※ ※ ※
On the same day, the media also became lively.
The Spanish media were quite indignant about Nottingham Forest winning the Champions League title. They believed that the Forest team had no reason to win the title at all. The trophy was stolen by them. From the team lineup, to the sporting fashion, to the hearts of the people … Real Madrid was more qualified to pick up the trophy than them.
In addition to criticizing Tony Twain for not having the demeanor of a champion at the post-match press conference, they also held on to Pepe's red card, looking like they would not stop until Pepe was forced to retire.
The Real Madrid club had not yet spoken, but Ángel Torres, the president of Real Madrid's little brother, Getafe, who had a Real Madrid membership card, had already jumped out to publicly attack Pepe. He claimed that "Nottingham Forest should expel such a violent player from the team."
Although Pepe made a public apology in the English media the next day and shed tears of remorse, the Spanish people did not care. There were still some Spanish media clamoring for Pepe to be banned permanently. The reason was: "In the UEFA Champions League final, in such an important and closely watched game, such a violent act occurred. It is a disgrace to football. Such a person does not deserve to play football!"
Marca was concerned about the UEFA's reaction to the matter. The UEFA's reaction was very quick — in fact, they handled all the punishment decisions related to Nottingham Forest and Tony Twain quite quickly — on the second day of the game, they had already made a decision: Pepe was suspended for 15 games in European-wide competitions and fined 50,000 euros. That meant that even if Nottingham Forest could still reach the Champions League final next season, Pepe would miss all 13 games. In addition, Pepe would also be suspended for the UEFA Super Cup at the end of August, and then he would be suspended for another game in the next season — if the Forest team could still enter a European competition by then, whether it was the UEFA Europa League or the Champions League, or even be eligible to participate in the UEFA Super Cup.
This was quite a severe punishment.
The Nottingham Forest Football Club did not appeal, but calmly accepted the fine. As a result, the Spanish media speculated whether the Nottingham Forest Football Club was also going to impose punishment on Pepe … Unfortunately, they did not receive such news. The Forest Football Club did not announce any form of punishment for Pepe — he would not even lose a cent of the championship prize.
Pepe was actually very depressed at the beginning, because after he calmed down, he also felt that he had caused a big problem. He even considered retiring in his heart. If it were not for the Boss, maybe he really would have done so.
It was the Boss who found him at lunch the next day and pulled him to a corner to talk for more than half an hour. He explained to him the club's and his own position, which was that they would never continue to be entangled in this matter. What was in the past was in the past. Tang En expressed understanding for what he had done at the time, and there would be no further punishment.
Tang En's tolerance and understanding made Pepe moved to tears, and it also strengthened his determination to continue to be loyal to the Forest team.
Now, Tang En was still dealing with various social engagements. When he was free, he would fight back against the Spanish media in his own column. The Spanish people would have a chance to endure Tang En's verbal attack.
Most of the English media was hyping up another incident that had nothing to do with the championship — whether Tony Twain's fate with Nottingham Forest had come to an end. Since the incident was exposed by The Sun, it was like a tropical storm, sweeping through the entire English news world. As for Tony Twain leading the team to win the Treble, such news seemed to be common and insignificant …
At the celebratory dinner held at the mayor's official residence, the mayor also asked about the matter. The Forest team's big three laughed harmoniously under the mayor's concern, as if there were no contradictions at all. Tang En repeatedly promised that he would consider renewing the contract after a few days of settling down. Evan Doughty also vowed to the mayor that the club would provide their meritorious manager with a contract that was worthy of his achievements.
But the mayor would never know what the three men were thinking.
There were also players who heard similar news from other places and ran to the Boss at the banquet to ask if he was really leaving.
This was the most difficult thing for Tang En to face. He did not want to lie in front of his men, but now was not the time to say everything. He could only perfunctorily say, "You'll know when the time comes." He also pretended to be mysterious so that everyone would not think too much.
In the end, he simply hid outside alone to get some fresh air.
This was a corner of the official residence's garden. It was very dark and no one usually came here. Tang En hid here, thinking that he could finally get through the night. He did not expect another uninvited guest to barge in.
"If I said, 'Huh? What a coincidence? ', you definitely wouldn't believe me. "The visitor held a wine glass and seemed to have come out to get some fresh air.
Tang En looked at him without saying a word.
The man continued, "There's no need to do this, right, Tony? Since you've already decided to leave, shouldn't the grievances between us be written off? "
Tang En's voice seemed to come from his nose. "Good evening, Mr. Allan Adams."
He was finally willing to talk to him. Allan smiled. "I don't have any thoughts about you, Tony. Everything I do is based on financial considerations for the club. Just like how everything you do and think is based on the team's results. The two of us … uh, if we don't do this, maybe we can be friends. "
"Maybe," Tang En said coldly. If not for the man in front of him, his fate with Nottingham Forest would not have ended so early.
"Can I ask you about your plans after you leave here? No, it's not a question about where to go with your wife. It's something about football … "Allan waved his hands.
Tang En thought about it and then shook his head. "I don't know. I have no plans. Maybe I won't touch football for a while. "Then he laughed coldly." Are you still worried that I'll go to Manchester United and become Forest's enemy? "
Allan did not say a word. It seemed like he had tacitly agreed.
"I'm not interested." Tang En shrugged. "I can't say for sure what will happen in the future, but I won't be coaching any English Premier League team in the next few years."
He did not say why, but the reason was already obvious. He had led Nottingham Forest for a whole 11 years. Everything about the team had long become one with him. He was Forest, and Forest was him. He really could not imagine himself standing in front of another English Premier League team's coaching area and directing the team to play against Forest. When he was at Forest, he successfully put the other teams in the English Premier League on the opposite side of Nottingham Forest. They had all become Forest's enemy. So how could he change his identity and become such an enemy now?
Allan seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. When they first signed the contract with Tang En, they definitely did not think that today would happen. Otherwise, he would definitely write in the contract: "Once both parties decide not to renew the contract, Party B will not be able to coach in the same league for five years after the expiration of the contract." At least he would feel a little more at ease now.
Was he afraid of Tony? To be honest, he was afraid. Afraid of becoming an opponent of Tony Twain. This person would not even recognize his own family when he went crazy.
After confirming this matter, Allan was no longer in the mood to continue reminiscing with Tang En. He found an excuse to leave, leaving Tang En alone.
Tang En looked at the brightly lit doorway. The clamor could faintly be heard.
He suddenly felt a little lonely, but he liked this kind of loneliness. If possible, it would be best to let him be lonely until the end of the banquet, and then go back to hug his lovely wife.
After staying in the darkness for a while, Tang En returned to the lively hall. Kerslake came up to him. "Where did you go, Tony? I couldn't find you just now. "
"I went outside to get some air. Why are you looking for me? "
"Well … I heard some rumors." Kerslake looked at Tang En.
"You want to ask me for confirmation?"
Kerslake nodded.
Tang En hesitated for a moment.
"You'll know when the time comes, David." He still used the same excuse to dodge.
"When will the time come? If you want to renew your contract with the club, it should be within these few days, right? "
"Then you'll know in a few days, David." Tang En patted his old partner on the shoulder.
He was not lying on purpose, but he had not thought of how to bid farewell to the people closest to him. After today, the team would be directly disbanded. Everyone would go their separate ways and go on vacation. They would not see each other until the next time they gathered. Due to the World Cup, the first to return to the team were the players who were not selected for their respective national teams. Tang En had to commentate for the World Cup, so his assistants would lead the team first. By the time the World Cup ended, his contract with the club would have long expired.
He also knew that Evan and Allan would not really wait until June 30th to find a successor. The news could not be kept under wraps for a few days. Even so, he still wanted to drag it out. At the very least, he wanted to think of a way to bid farewell to these people.
"If there's the latest news, I'll be the first to inform you, David." Tang En smiled.
"Alright …" Kerslake sighed helplessly. "My phone is on twenty-four hours a day."
"Thank you, David."
"What are you thanking me for? Sigh, I don't know why, but I just feel a little uneasy … Did I drink too much? "
Kerslake muttered and turned to walk away.
The troubles in Tang En's heart grew bigger and bigger.
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