The game against Argentina was considered the most important warm-up game before the UEFA European Championship because it was the strongest of the many warm-up opponents. In the end, England beat Argentina 2: 0 on their home ground. Tony Twain's team had not tasted defeat so far.
After the game, many English media touted the results that Twain led the team to achieve. Many English fans cheered even more. After so many years, England finally had a good manager. Now they no longer had to envy Scotland.
Twain wanted to laugh when he saw such a report. He himself was a genuine Chinese. In the end, the English still had to hold their heads up in front of the Scots in terms of coaching.
After the game against Argentina, Twain continued to prepare for the UEFA European Championship. He and his assistants were collecting information on the opponents in the UEFA European Championship group stage, as well as information on potential opponents. The progress of the work was a little slow. His coaching team was not as good as the one in the Forest team. It was not that their level was not up to par, but that they were not used to doing this kind of thing.
In addition, the information on the national teams was not as easy to collect as the clubs, especially the intelligence on the national teams in Eastern Europe. After the expansion of the UEFA European Championship, there were eight more teams and many more national teams that did not often appear in the top competitions of European football in the past. They were very mysterious to an island team like England. However, the appearance of such a team in the UEFA European Championship finals also increased the possibility of an upset, making the game more suspenseful.
"We can't ignore them just because they are unfamiliar and weak. We have to know the tactics and style they are good at, their past results, who are the threatening players in the team … I can't feel at ease if I don't figure this out." Twain said as he explained to the coaching team why he was so concerned about the intelligence research on the weak teams. "You can't guarantee that they won't fight their way out of their group and appear in front of us. If we don't know anything about them, we'll be the unlucky ones. I don't want to see that happen. "
For all the fans, the opening of a major competition like the UEFA European Championship was always something they looked forward to. With excitement in their hearts, they began to plan how to arrange their time during the UEFA European Championship so that they would not miss every exciting game. They would discuss with their friends which star players would amaze the world at the UEFA European Championship and which star players would become successful and famous. In their unease, they looked forward to the team they supported to pick up the championship trophy, defeat all the strong opponents, and trample on their corpses.
They would buy boxes of beer, coffee and snacks in advance and leave them at home. He would save up his annual leave during this period to settle down his wife, girlfriend, and child. For the next month, he would only let football accompany him.
It was such a blessing to be a fan …
As a manager, he did not have such romantic feelings during this period of time. They really need to settle down their wives, children or girlfriends. They can only let football accompany them. Because when they were busy, home was just a symbol to them.
Shania returned home to England to accompany her husband, but Tang En did not have much time to go home. Most of the time, he had to be with his coaches and study their opponents with them. At the same time, he paid close attention to the condition of the national footballers. If someone was injured, someone would call the club to ask about that player's injury and decide if there was a need to call in a substitute. Just after the game against Argentina, Tang En also specifically called several big national footballers' clubs, hoping that they could fully consider the importance of the UEFA European Championship to England. With the country as the most important, they would try to reduce the playing time of the England national footballers in the team. On the one hand, it would avoid the possibility of them getting injured. On the other hand, Tang En did not want to end up with a group of exhausted national footballers.
As a manager, Tang En needed to appear in public often. No matter where he went, he would be surrounded by the media. It was as if they had seen a talking gorilla.
He also often had to answer idiotic questions. For example, would so-and-so be called up to the national team? Was so-and-so and so-and-so in conflict? The chairman of so-and-so club was unhappy that the national team did not call up so-and-so. What do you think? Mr. so-and-so thought that his team had played too many games this season. His players were injured in the national team, but the club was responsible for paying for their treatment. The national team did not pay the club's salary. Why? What do you think of this statement? This is the strongest national team in history. Do you have the confidence to win the championship?
Tang En was in a bad mood during this period, and his temper was very bad. Almost every time he met the reporters, he could not help but start a war of words. The media was happy to publish such news. Harassing Tang En seemed to have become a common method for the English media to attract attention. The chief executive of the English Football Association, Shaun Barclays, had been suffering from migraines recently. It was all caused by Tang En and the media.
You bastards, can't you stop for a bit?!
In the depths of Mr. Barclays' heart, he groaned helplessly.
※ ※ ※
On the 16th of April, it was the 34th round of the English Premier League. Nottingham Forest had an away game against Newcastle United, who were fighting to avoid relegation. This game concerned the fate of the two teams next season. Forest needed to qualify for the Champions League so that they could earn more money. They were currently ranked sixth, six points behind fourth-placed Liverpool. They needed to fight hard for points in the next five rounds to avoid playing in the UEFA Europa League. Newcastle United, on the other hand, needed to stay in the Premier League to avoid relegation. Currently, they were on the edge of the relegation zone and could fall at any time.
This was a game of life and death. Therefore, it entered into a fierce battle from the beginning. Both sides had constant physical contact, rough movements, and dirty words.
As the core of the team, George Wood naturally became the opponent's focus. Regardless of whether it was offense or defense, Forest needed Wood to control the pace. He was the team's "metronome."
Now, he could not pass the ball immediately after getting it like he used to. He could leave the offense to his partner. He needed to control the ball and observe the situation on the field to decide how to attack. This way, the football would stay under his feet for a long time, giving the opponent an opportunity to take advantage of it.
Wood was brought down six times in the first half of the game. No matter how strong his body was, he could not stop the opponent's defensive movements. Kerslake's red jersey had changed color. Kerslake yelled on the sidelines. Whenever Newcastle fouled Wood, he would yell at the fourth official. It was as if he was possessed by Tony Twain.
But such yelling was of no use, because his people were using the same method to deal with the Newcastle United players.
The fourth official was well aware of what this game meant to both teams. He could not interfere with these movements. As long as nothing happened, he would turn a blind eye.
The situation did not improve in the second half. In fact, it became more and more hostile. The players on both sides did not prioritize scoring a goal. Instead, they were preoccupied with taking down the opponent's players.
Wood was furious. The opponent's constant fouls made it impossible for him to continue the game. He had to focus all his energy on dealing with those who violated the rules.
But he had not hit anyone so far, which was already a big improvement. His temper was finally not so hot when he was 30 years old.
In the 73rd minute, George Wood was once again shoved to the ground by his opponent. This time, he did not get up as quickly as he had done the previous 11 times. Instead, he lay on the ground and did not move.
Kerslake was still loudly reprimanding his opponent's despicable behavior. Next to him, his assistant, Eastwood, already had a strange expression on his face.
Wood did not roll on the ground in pain, nor did he raise his hand weakly to signal that he wanted to be replaced. He just lay quietly on the ground, as if he had fallen asleep.
The teammate closest to him was Gago. He rushed up to see what was going on, but was shocked by Wood's expression.
The team captain, who was known for his strength, was lying on the ground. His hand was pinching the tip of his right foot. His face was pale, his eyebrows were knitted together, and his face was covered in sweat.
But he gritted his teeth and did not make a sound.
"George!" Gago called out to him.
Wood did not answer him.
Gago knew it was bad. He hurriedly got up and gestured to the field for a stretcher and a substitution.
"This is bad …" Eastwood muttered after seeing Gago's gesture. Fleming had already followed the stretcher and ran up quickly.
Kerslake stopped spitting at the fourth official. That kind of action was meaningless now. Because Wood was already injured …
Fleming rushed to Wood's side and quickly scanned him. Then, he took off his right shoe and began to examine it.
Kerslake saw that after Fleming went up, he quickly turned around and gestured to him for a substitution. His heart skipped a beat — George Wood had never been injured, and had never been substituted because of an injury …
A bad thought emerged in his mind.
George Wood was eventually replaced by John Bostock. He was carried off on a stretcher. This was probably the first time he had been treated like this. He was a little dumbfounded as he lay on the stretcher. He was no stranger to being carried off the field after getting injured, but he still could not accept it when it happened to him for the first time.
The media had always thought that he was the Iron Warrior, and he himself thought so too. He did not expect that the Iron Warrior would actually rust at the age of 30 …
The television commentator did not know what to say in the face of this scene. He was silent for a long time and felt that he had to say something before he said, "George, George Wood left the field injured. It looks like he won't be able to participate in this game … This is really an unexpected scene. George Wood, who never gets injured, is actually injured … Let's take a look at what just happened …"
Newcastle's Spanish left back, José Enrique, rushed up from the side and tackled Wood. It did not look like the collision was intense, but after the tackle, Enrique's body naturally twisted. Wood's right foot happened to be trapped between Enrique's legs, and was cut by him … As the supporting leg, his right foot bore all the energy. If he was not injured, then Wood should have been taken to the laboratory for dissection.
As the patron saint of England, "Saint George," the Newcastle fans stopped cheering and booing after seeing Wood leave the field injured. Enrique desperately tried to explain to the referee and the Forest players who rushed up, "I didn't do it on purpose, I really didn't do it on purpose …"
Was there any use in explaining at this time?
The referee pulled out a red card for Enrique!
Kerslake stared at the fourth official and said, "If you had intervened earlier, this would not have happened! Now we can only pray that George's injury is not serious, otherwise … "He and the fourth official both thought of Tony Twain's angry face at the same time.
Kerslake left the fourth official and turned to run to the other side. He had to see how Wood was doing.
Fleming faced his questioning gaze and shook his head. "It's not looking good, David."
"How bad?" Kerslake's heart sank.
"I think it's fractured …"
Kerslake only heard a "boom" in his mind.
At a crucial moment in the fight for a ticket to the Champions League, the captain and core fractured, which meant that he could not play in the next four rounds. He could almost foresee his fate at the end of the season. Evan Doughty was not a patient club chairman.
He was empty-handed this season and did not win any championships. The Champions League was his last hope.
It looked like he had to start planning for next season …
He also had one thought, and that was … what about the England team?
※ ※ ※
Tang En only heard the news of George Wood's injury after this round of the league tournament because he and Walker did not watch the game at Newcastle but went to Manchester.
When the news reached Tang En's ears, he still did not believe it. He thought he had heard wrong, or that Walker was joking. "Are you sure it's George Wood who's injured? It's not any other George? "
Walker shook his head. "Which other George is there in the England team?"
"How did he get injured?" Tang En did not first ask "how's the injury" because he felt that even if Wood was injured, it should not be a big problem. At most, it would be considered as bleeding. He was more interested in how he got injured.
"He was tackled by the opponent's defender and his supporting leg was injured."
Tang En tried to replay the scene in his mind, but it felt awkward no matter how he thought about it. So, he casually asked, "How's the injury?"
"The big toe of his right foot is fractured."
Tang En cast a surprised gaze on Walker's face. His expression was as if he had heard about the Martians invading Earth.
"It's true. I just spoke to Fleming on the phone." Walker could understand why Tang En would make such an expression. At first, he and Tang En were similar.
Tang En averted his gaze and stared aimlessly at other places. He did not stop at all.
"F * ck!" He suddenly cursed. "F * ck! What a f * cking son of a b * tch! "
It was as if he had gone mad. Vulgarities poured out of his mouth. Fortunately, there was no one else in the room other than Walker. Otherwise, others would have been very surprised. On the other hand, his old partner, Walker, was familiar with Tang En's temper and was not too surprised.
"I even f * cking called the English Premier League coaches, hoping that they would arrange less killing tactics against the national footballers … Those bastards from Newcastle United turned a deaf ear to my words? Does that old bastard Kinnear (Newcastle United's main manager) not know what George Wood means to England? Our main core has fractured his big toe! This is not a f * cking cold! "
Tang En spun around in the hotel room, waving his arms agitatedly and cursing loudly.
Walker also did not try to persuade him to calm down. He knew that Tang En was under a lot of pressure and had a bad temper. It was a good opportunity for him to vent. Who knows, it might even be beneficial.
After scolding everyone that needed scolding, Tang En slowly calmed down. He asked, "How long did Fleming say it would take?"
"… Three months." Walker was a little hesitant when he said it. He was worried that Tang En would scold him again.
Fortunately, Tang En was only stunned when he heard the deadline. He did not say "f * cking" the moment he opened his mouth. His gaze went past Walker to the blue sky outside the window.
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