champion godfather

Chapter 587 Volume [-] Red Wood's Substitute

Rafinha (Note: The above "Rafinha", due to translation problems, I used to call it Rafinha, although I also think this name is very awkward. Today, some book friends pointed out the mistake, the correct name is Fa has one more word than mine, and I am happy to accept this book friend’s suggestion! Therefore, in the following text, "Rafinha" will be changed to "Rafinha") The purchase is a very morale transfer Action, although fans rarely pay attention to the Bundesliga, Tang En and everyone in the football world know that there are many, many talents in the Bundesliga, and Rafinha is one of them.His arrival has enhanced the team's strength on the right, and Rafinha can handle it both offensively and defensively.

After coming to Russia to report, Rafinha quickly devoted himself to the team's daily training.Twain wasn't worried about how the Brazilians in the team would integrate into the team. With Pepe, a fellow Brazilian, it shouldn't be a problem.

So far, the personnel on Twain's list have basically been introduced. There are players of comparable strength in the forward, midfield and defense lines, whether they are the main force or the substitute.There was only one problem that had been troubling Twain to be resolved—the problem of George Wood's replacement.

Last season, Twain used Sun Jihai as Wood's substitute, and his performance was quite satisfactory, but it was only satisfactory.Sun Jihai tried his best, but the difference in strength was too great. His performance against strong teams was not so reassuring.Moreover, with the increase of age, Sun Jihai's economic status and physical function are declining, and Sun Jihai was also plagued by injuries last season.It wasn't a major injury, but it was enough to sound the alarm for Tang En.

He didn't sell Sun Jihai because he recognized Sun Jihai's sportsmanship and his "panacea" attribute of being able to play multiple positions. If he sold a Sun Jihai, he might be in multiple positions such as right back, midfielder, left back, and right forward. Both need to introduce a similar substitute.

After all, Sun Jihai didn't come from a defensive midfielder who changed jobs. Tang En still decided to introduce a regular midfielder to enhance the team's strength.The midfielder has to meet several requirements at the same time:

1. Be able to accept the fate of being a substitute, and not lose your temper with the coaching staff just because you have been on the bench for a few days.

2. Although he is playing as a substitute, he must not be weak, but must be strong enough. As a substitute for the Forest team, at least if he is the main force in a mid-level Premier League team.

3. The salary requirement will not be high, the value will not be high, and it will not increase the team's financial burden. Moreover, once Dunn decides to give up, he will not be criticized for losing too much money.

4. It is best to be an Englishman, so as to facilitate the team's qualification registration for the Champions League.At the same time, it can also show that he has passed the level test of the Premier League and adapted to this kind of league.

Tang En was very strict with these four points and would not budge.After all, the player's substitute position is the "waist" of the team, the most important part of the team, more important than the striker and the goalkeeper.He would rather lack than abuse.

Therefore, the team has been unable to find a suitable candidate.

until the end of last season.

If anyone still remembers when George Wood represented Nottingham Forest's first team and who the opponent was, they will not be unfamiliar with this candidate.

In the second half of the 03-04 season, the English Football League (later the British Championship), George Wood was transferred to the first team by Tang En, and made his first appearance in the game against Reading. At that time, he was wearing the No. 33 shirt robe.

Reading is a team that has left a deep impression on Twain during his coaching career. Not to mention that they have played against the Forest Team in the First Division many times, and that their head coach Steve Koppel and Tang En's personal grievances, such as the "soccer violence scandal" that shocked the world in September last season, caused the two teams to forge a deep hatred.When the two teams met for the second time in the Super League, the police in charge of order on the field were on the verge of a formidable enemy, and there were as many as six members of the FA referee committee sent to the scene to supervise the referees' law enforcement. It's just sending two people to each game...

Against such a background, the substitute candidate Tang En had his eye on turned out to be a Reading player.

Stephen Sidwell (Steven_Sidwell), former Arsenal's youth training product, but has not been reused by Arsenal's head coach Arsene Wenger, and has always been loaned to low-level league teams.In January 2003, Wenger officially decided to give up the England U1 international and sold him to Reading at a low price.But no one thought that playing in the First Division would allow Sidwell to improve rapidly, and soon firmly conquered the head coach of Reading, Steve Koppel, and became the absolute main force of the team's midfield.

Remember one of Wood's brilliant defenses in his debut?It was Stephen Sidwell who was knocked to the ground by him at that time.

Poor Sidwell, because of his position on the pitch, whenever the Forest team plays against Reading, he will face the "monster" George Wood again and again. If the situation is better, he will lose the ball, and if the situation is worse, he will be hit. Turning over to the ground and helping the team get a free kick, the worst thing is being knocked to the ground, and the referee turned a blind eye to it-because Wood didn't foul at all!
Of course, we can't judge Sidwell's ability based on the one-on-one between two people as the only criterion. In fact, he was able to secure his main position in the Reading team and played 35 games in Reading's first Premier League season. In the game, they all started and scored dead balls. This result is still very remarkable.

At the same time, because of this performance, he has attracted the attention of various club teams in England.Nottingham Forest is one of them.

Although the first game against the Forest team this season had very bad consequences, Sidwell was not directly involved in the entire conflict, and Tang En was not afraid of being isolated in the locker room after buying Sidwell.

This kind of buying of players from the enemy team is not uncommon in professional football.

When Luis Figo played for Barcelona, ​​he was the captain of Barcelona and the leader against Real Madrid. He scored several goals against Real Madrid and was a hero in the eyes of Barcelona fans.

Remember what happened after Barcelona regained the league title after a few years under Frank Rijkaard?At Barcelona's championship celebration, Eto'o, a striker from the Real Madrid youth academy, shouted in front of tens of thousands of people: "Real Madrid bastard, coward, come and salute the champion!"

This remark angered many Real Madrid people, but in fact it was Luis Figo who first yelled it...

While Eto'o was merely imitating his predecessors, Luis Figo switched to Barcelona's arch-rivals Real Madrid in 2001.

Even earlier than Figo, Luis Enrique, the former Real Madrid midfielder who later became a Barcelona icon.

Dunn wasn't worried about Sidwell's Reading background at all, and because he was a Reading player, he tried every means to shoot him.

Why do you say grab it?
Because the contract between Sidwell and Reading has expired after the end of the 06-07 season, his agent did not renew the contract with Reading, just waiting to find Sidwell a company with more development prospects than Reading. team.

Chelsea first expressed their appreciation for Sidwell. Mourinho's relationship with Abramovich continued to deteriorate, and Abramovich did not want to continue investing in the transfer market, forcing the Portuguese coach to find him. Those free players, Sidwell is one of them.

After Dunn heard that Chelsea wanted to snatch Sidwell, he immediately contacted Sidwell's agent and told him Nottingham Forest's interest in the 25-year-old midfielder.

At that time, Arteta hadn't left, and the Forest team didn't go all out to operate the introduction of Sidwell.

The situation is different now. Arteta's departure leaves the team short of an excellent player who can serve as a substitute in the midfielder position. Sidwell is very suitable for Dunn's series of requirements. The Forest team has also accelerated the negotiation with the opponent's agent. Contact pace.

Without the intervention of the Forest team, Chelsea and Sidwell may have signed individual contracts.But the addition of the European champions allowed Sidwell's agent to have a good talk with the clubs that pursued his players...

Sidwell himself is a clear-headed pro who knows what he's after.When he first heard that Chelsea was interested in him, he was very excited and told his agent that he would go to Stamford Bridge anyway, because it was a wealthy club with the best players on the planet.

However, when he learned that the Forest team that had just won the Champions League was also very interesting to him, he immediately changed his mind...Going to Nottingham Forest is also a good choice.

Nottingham Forest, which has just won the Champions League, is no longer the country team that was looked down upon a few years ago. It can be regarded as a quasi-rich club.

Frank Ribéry, Ruud van Nistelrooy, David Beckham, Edwin van der Sar, George Wood... Which of these people is not one of the best players in their respective positions?

Coupled with the results that this team has just achieved, it is really difficult to make people not interested in her.

The agent did not immediately reply to several teams pursuing Sidwell, but only said that he would give the answer after the vacation.In fact, it was clear that the other competing clubs were simply not attractive enough in the face of Chelsea and Nottingham Forest.Now it's just a matter of choosing Chelsea or Nottingham Forest.

The Forest team left for training in Moscow early, and someone in the club continued to be responsible for contacting Sidwell's agent, negotiating with him, and negotiating a contract that both parties were satisfied with.

Chelsea agreed to do this again, but none of them knew whether the conditions given by the other party could satisfy Sidwell, and they could only wait for Sidwell to speak out.

On July [-]th, Sidwell's agent officially announced that his client, former Reading's main midfielder Stephen Sidwell accepted a contract with a weekly salary of [-] pounds from Nottingham Forest. He became a member of Nottingham Forest in the season, and currently he has flown to Moscow to undergo a physical examination and then train with the team.

The forest team finally offered Sidwell a weekly salary of [-], while Chelsea offered [-]. This [-] became the decisive factor.Sidwell hoped to receive high-level football training while earning more money. Nottingham Forest fulfilled his wish, so he chose the Forest team and rejected Chelsea.

After learning that Sidwell had become his man, Tang En was very happy.This signing can be described as killing three birds with one stone. It not only expanded the strength of the team without spending a penny, but also increased the thickness of the bench in the midfield. It hit Koppel's arrogance.In the end, this time Tang En defeated his old rival Mourinho's Chelsea in the transfer market.

There has never been a better result than this.

※ ※ ※

Sidwell also came to the Forest team's training base outside Moscow with some trepidation, because the whole world knew about the grievances between the two teams last season, and he didn't know what his new teammates would think of him, who came out of Reading. people.

Since George Wood has always been promoted by the media as a "villain" with a simple mind, well-developed limbs, and a bad temper who only commits frequent fouls and is sent off, Sidwell doesn't know if he will be punished by the captain in the locker room. Wood brings people to isolation.

In the end, when they arrived at the training ground, after Tang En introduced Sidwell to the team as a matter of routine, Wood took over and introduced Sidwell to his new teammates in the tone that he always tried to appear calm but actually was somewhat indifferent.

No one talked about the grievances between the two teams last season. Enthusiastic people like Ribery and Eastwood started joking with Sidwell as soon as they met, which made Sidwell breathe a sigh of relief.For the team that won the European championship, Sidwell still has some admiration, and he doesn't want to isolate him here because of some things about his former club.

The biggest star in the team, Beckham, is also very approachable, and he has no airs in front of Sidwell, and judging from his conversation with other people, they get along very well.Sidwell was completely relieved.

The only person with a bad face is Pepe. He was injured twice in the game against Reading. The second injury almost made him unable to play in the Champions League final. How could he have such a "painful experience" forget it?He shook hands with Sidwell and said nothing more.

Sidwell doesn't care either. It's impossible to have a good relationship with everyone on a team. There will always be some particularly good teammates and some not-so-good teammates.He is mentally prepared for this.

※ ※ ※

Sidwell's signing didn't cost the team a penny, and the Forest team, which had a lot of money left, decided not to continue looking for new players.Because Tang En told Evan and Allen that the Forest team's current lineup was sufficient, not to mention that they had already cooperated tacitly and there was no need to make major adjustments.In Twain's words - "This is a championship-level team."

Next, Tang En began to renew the contracts of the players in the team. After winning the Champions Cup, the Forest team had the conditions to raise the salaries of the players.Sidwell, who played as a substitute in the Forest team, already has a weekly salary of [-] pounds. It is impossible for the main players of the Forest team to live on the previous salary standard, right?
Franck Ribery, Eastwood, Pepe, Piqué, Bale, Barnes, Zimbonda... and others all got a new contract, and the above salaries satisfied everyone, so They all signed.

The Forest team that won the Champions Cup is no longer the poor boy they used to be. Twain also knew that these players must be offered a new contract that satisfies them, otherwise even the most loyal players may be poached by their opponents with high salaries.

The large-scale contract renewal is actually Tang En's response to the transfer rumors that are flying all over the sky.

With the success of the Forest team in the Champions League, the players in the team have also become high-profile targets in the transfer market.Tang En didn't want his team to be divided up by those giants who were eyeing him.Externally, his method of dealing with various transfer rumors is very simple and rude-"not for sale".

He just said that there is no "not for sale" in the world, and he made his whole team "not for sale".

There is really no good way to deal with such a rascal.He insisted not to sell, and the club stood behind him. The relationship between the players and the head coach is like a newly married couple.No matter how you look at it, the Forest team is now at its best, and they still have the opportunity to create new achievements that are more brilliant than last season.

Twain said so to his players, and his players also believed it.

A Champions League is not enough, after all, we have not yet won the league title, the FA Cup title has not yet been encroached on.

Continuing to use honor to stimulate them is one of Tang En's internal methods, and the other method is naturally the large-scale contract renewal just mentioned.

Honor will become a passing cloud in the future, and only the contract is the most effective way.

After confirming all the members of the first team for the new season, the forest team's team training officially kicked off. After Tang En's demeanor, he devoted himself to training the forest team's overall tactics.Defense is still the top priority, which is the "repertoire" of the Forest team, but the team also pays more attention to the team's offensive tactics when encountering positional battles.

Next season, as the defending champion of the Champions League, whether in the European arena or in the league, the opponents facing the Forest team may choose to counterattack to deal with them.

At that time, how to break through the dense defense and how to deal with the opponent's quick counterattack after a solid defense are all problems that Twain and his coaching staff need to solve.

But Twain won't have a headache. He has confidence in his team and the entire team behind him.Now this team is full of momentum, and nothing can stop the forest chariot from advancing.

Not AC Milan, not Real Madrid.

(End of this chapter)