More than 80 media reporters from all over the world swarmed into the press conference in the afternoon, filling the spacious press hall of the Crimson Stadium.
Evan Doughty and Allan Adams attended the press conference.
At first, the reporters were more reserved, asking questions about O 'Neill's resignation or asking about who the next manager of Nottingham Forest would be. But after a few questions, the reporters could no longer hold back. They all raised their hands and stood up to ask questions about Tony Twain.
"May I ask if what Tony Twain said in his open letter is true?"
"Did they drive out the meritorious manager just because they could not meet his demands for absolute power in transfers?"
"Does the club admit that not renewing Tony Twain's contract was the biggest failure?"
"It is said that there was a large group of fans protesting at the entrance of Wilford this morning. Can we talk about it?"
"Mr. Allan Adams, you said that the club would give the fans an explanation about Tony Twain's resignation. Can you reveal a little bit about what kind of explanation it is? "
…
The two of them were badly battered by the torrent of questions. They were obviously not the kind of people who were good at dealing with reporters. Now they knew how stupid it was for them to attend the press conference — they could have appointed any press officer to attend and act as a spokesperson.
Later, they had to use their killer move —
"I'm sorry, the theme of this press conference is an official response to Martin O 'Neill's resignation application. We will not answer any questions that have nothing to do with it." Allan Adams stood up to act as a shield for Evan, but for how long?
The reporters rolled their eyes and changed their questions:
"May I ask if Martin O 'Neill's resignation is the same reason as Tony Twain's?"
"It is said that after the press conference for the friendly match between Forest and England, O 'Neill and Twain had another secret talk. Is his resignation related to this?"
"There are rumors that the Nottingham Forest locker room is not united and that Martin O 'Neill does not have the trust of all the players. Is this related to Twain's influence? "
"Does the club have any countermeasures for losing two managers in two months?"
…
In any case, the reporters just wanted to force the two men to say what they thought about Tony Twain.
Allan Adams had to frequently look around to talk to him, and his answers were out of place. The reporters were not satisfied with his attitude, and the questions they asked became sharper.
"Rumor has it that you received a commission from Inter Milan for Lennon's transfer. Is this true?"
"Nonsense!" Allen finally got angry. "Such rumors are slander against me. I reserve the right to sue!" He stood up and waved his hand excitedly.
Evan Doughty, sitting next to him, glanced at him and winked at the press officer.
The press officer hurriedly stepped forward to "rescue" them. "Gentlemen, today's press conference will end here …"
Before he could finish, Alan and Evan had already turned around and walked away.
The reporters were not satisfied. They chased after them and asked questions until the two of them completely disappeared from sight.
"What a jerk … he's not cooperating at all!" The reporters who didn't get any valuable news complained unhappily.
"Don't worry. Didn't Allan say that the club will give the fans a satisfactory answer in four days? We'll wait and see. "The older colleague smiled happily. "It's been a good summer. It would be even better if every summer was like this … "
※ ※ ※
When the footage of the press conference was broadcast on television, many Forest fans laughed happily when they saw Allan Adams and Evan Doughty in a sorry state.
In the beginning, everyone might still have some doubts. How could the club's top management do such a self-destructive thing?
But now, as the media reported more and more and the inside story was dug deeper, no one doubted that these two men were the culprits who drove Tony Twain away.
Yes, they used the word "drove away". Although it was Twain who chose not to renew the contract, after knowing the truth of the matter, no one still thought that Twain was responsible. If it was not for the club's top management refusing to relinquish power and wanting to keep Twain in check, how could Twain not renew the contract? This was where his eleven years of hard work and countless fans supported him. There was really no need for him to leave.
Therefore, there was no doubt that it was the club's top management who drove Twain away.
There was also the same laughter coming from the Forest bar.
The divided bar was gradually healing. Now everyone was no longer arguing whether Tony Twain had wronged them. They felt that they had wronged Twain. The English fans were like this. They dared to love and hate.
Only Bill seemed to be still twisted.
He did not come here much recently. Even when he did, he would drink alone in a corner. If anyone went up to talk to him, he would be cold and indifferent.
It was like this today. After he came, everyone was busy watching the television and laughing at the club's chairman and business director. No one noticed him. He was also happy to do so. He found a corner and sat down by himself. Then he made a gesture to Burns behind the bar for a drink.
Burns instructed the waiter to bring him a drink and said to John next to him, "He's here again."
John glanced at Bill and said, "I saw it."
"Aren't you going to say something? You two are good friends. "
"He's in a mess right now. I won't go up and join in the fun. Maybe in a few days … Actually, he'll be fine once he figures it out. If he can't figure it out, no one else can say anything. He's almost fifty, but he's still like a child … "John muttered.
Burns laughed when he heard the last sentence. "In my opinion, all fans are like children. You did a good job bringing people to Wilford this morning … Have you thought about what kind of response you'll get? To be honest, I don't think the club will publicly admit that it was a mistake for them to let Tony leave. At least not for this period of time … "
John shook his head. "I just want to embarrass them and let them know that not everyone in this world dares to say no to them. Even though that person is the club's chairman, us fans can still give him the middle finger! If they don't give us a satisfactory answer, then every home game, we'll use our actions to express our dissatisfaction with the club. Besides … "He was silent for a moment. "… Consider it an apology to Tony. After all, our people once booed him mercilessly at the Crimson Stadium. That booing must have hurt him. If … I mean, if Tony returns to the Crimson Stadium, I want to bring people to apologize to him. "
"I don't think there's a chance." Burns poured cold water on John.
"I think so too …" John took a sip of his drink and said in a muffled voice.
※ ※ ※
"Damn it! Those damned reporters! " At the press conference, Allan Adams had been acting as a shield. But in private, it was Evan Doughty who was angry.
Allan followed behind Evan and did not say a word.
The two men were walking from the parking lot to Evan's mansion, which looked like an old castle.
"They want to see us make a fool of ourselves. We can't let them get what they want. After publishing a statement on the official website about O 'Neill's resignation, shut up. Wait a few days … "
Evan stopped when he mentioned the matter of a few days. He stood where he was and was silent.
Allan was also curious about what kind of answer the club would give the fans in a few days so that they would not cause trouble.
"How are you going to answer them, Evan?" He asked.
Evan seemed to have made a difficult decision. He exhaled and then said to Allan beside him, "With O 'Neill gone, don't we just happen to be short of a manager?"
Allan nodded. He did not know what this had to do with his question.
"I've decided to look for Tony."
Allan was taken aback. He suddenly understood. "You're going to look for Tony to replace O 'Neill? Are you crazy? "
"I'm not crazy, Allan. The best way now is to get Tony back. Only he can manage that team. Only he can calm the fans down. I've thought about it for a day. This is the only solution. "
The dumbfounded Allan stared at Evan for a while before he suddenly smiled bitterly and said, "We've gone around in a big circle and we're back to the starting point."
Evan did not say a word. He knew it was embarrassing to do this, but it was the only way to protect the future of Nottingham Forest.
"I don't think he'll agree. He's a vengeful person. We've offended him and he'll never come back." Allan felt that this idea was ridiculous.
"I can apologize to him, give him the power and freedom he wants, and give him the highest salary …" If Evan had said this two months earlier, then none of this would have happened. Unfortunately, not everyone could predict the future.
"What about his contract with the English Football Association?"
"I plan to go to London and try to get him to serve as the manager of the national team …"
Allan sighed heavily this time and shook his head. "You're crazy." Then he left Evan alone and walked forward.
In fact, Evan was not sure if it was appropriate for him to do this. However, this was indeed the most perfect solution he could think of. As long as Tony could return to lead the team, all the problems would no longer be considered problems. He would lose some face, but in the long run, he would gain more than he would lose.
※ ※ ※
Tang En was very surprised that he could still receive a call from Evan Doughty. So when he saw the name displayed on the phone screen, he froze for a few seconds before he remembered to pick up the phone.
"I thought you had already deleted my phone number and destroyed all evidence of my existence, Mr. Evan Doughty." After Tang En picked up the phone, he immediately became sharp-tongued.
The person on the phone smiled bitterly. He knew he would get such a "welcome speech."
Evan ignored Tang En's sarcasm and told Tang En the reason for his call.
Tang En's reaction was similar to Allan's. He asked loudly, "Are you crazy?"
"I know this idea is a little crazy …"
"More than a little? Looks like you've been forced badly by those reporters. "Tang En mocked.
"But I'm here to apologize to you, Tony …"
"Apologize for what?"
"There might be some misunderstanding between us …"
"There's no misunderstanding, Mr. Doughty. There's no misunderstanding at all. My departure only shows that the two of us have different ideas about football and Nottingham Forest. Since that's the case, there's no need to force me to stay there. Of course, you can't leave, so only I can leave. That's how it is. What do you want to apologize for? "
Hearing Tang En's words, Evan began to feel that his idea would not work.
"I still hope you can consider the possibility of returning to Nottingham Forest …"
"There's no need to reconsider, Mr. Doughty. I have a two-year contract with the English Football Association. During this time, I won't go anywhere. Nor will I return to Nottingham Forest to coach. "Tang En said resolutely. He seemed to really not want to return to Nottingham Forest.
"Your players need you, Tony …"
Tang En laughed. He even laughed out loud. "You're the king of this team, aren't you? You were willful and rash in the beginning, thinking that you could control everything. Now that you realize that you can't hold back, you want me to go back and clean up after you? I'm sorry, Mr. Doughty. I'm tired of this. Good luck to you, and good luck to your Nottingham Forest. "
With that, he did not wait for Evan to say anything else and directly hung up.
After hanging up, he felt a raging fire burning in his chest, wanting to find an exit to rush out. So, he threw the phone in his hand out. The phone hit the wall and shattered into countless pieces.
He drank two glasses of water to calm himself down again.
You decided to abandon me when you're riding on the crest of success, but you still have the cheek to ask for my support when you're in a terrible predicament. Evan, ah, Evan, is your brain filled with shit? If I agree to your request, what will I become? A tool that you can casually order around and discard? A whore that can sleep with you as long as you pay?
I'm sorry, to me, there are indeed many things that can be negotiated with money, but not my dignity.
You can lick your own shit!
※ ※ ※
Tang En violently hung up on Evan. When he called again, he realized that he could not get through at all.
He sat on the chair, clutching the phone in his hand, and looked out the window at the Wilford training ground.
The scene of the three of them drawing the grand blueprint of Nottingham Forest in an Indian restaurant ten years ago had already become a yellowed old photo.
The G14, which had once been the goal of the three of them, had long been disbanded in a deal with the UEFA six years ago.
The blueprint that they had envisioned had long been shattered into pieces. Since that was the case, why should they stay together? Then you go your way, and I'll go mine.
I've apologized to you, but you didn't accept it. I've also expressed my goodwill to you, but you rejected it. From now on, we don't owe each other anything. I don't care what happens to you, and what happens to Nottingham Forest has nothing to do with you.
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