Even though Raúl’s current condition could not be compared to before, and Ronaldo had already gotten fat enough to be out of human shape, the two players were superstars who could decide the win or loss of a match given just three seconds of time and some space. Forest did not have any such players. Tang En could not guarantee that his players would be able to, without the least bit of slack, pin down the two throughout the entire 90 minutes of the match.
Additionally, Forest’s current center back combination in the match had rarely been partnered.
Following an in-depth analysis, Tang En felt that it was much too tough, even on their home grounds, to defeat Real Madrid in Forest’s current situation.
Every day after getting home, Tang En would sit with Dunn and look through recordings of Real Madrid’s matches, hoping to find a weakness to exploit.
“I don’t think Real Madrid is undefeatable, provided you score first.” Dunn said to Tang En. “If you allow Real Madrid to get a goal first, then you can just wait and watch yourself lose.”
“We can have a guaranteed victory if we score first?”
“Of course not. But, it can improve your chances of success…” Dunn contemplated for a bit, and said, “by 20%.”
“What a depressing analysis. Forget it. I don’t want to care anymore about all of this. Regardless of if we can win, or our chances of winning, at the very least we have to go all out in the match.”
Hearing that, Dunn expressed it differently. “If you know that your chances of winning aren’t high, what’s the point of devoting so much effort to this match? This is not an elimination round. There are still many more matches to go in the Group Stage. If you suffer too much loss here, it would affect your future.”
Tang En interrupted him, saying, “This problem can’t be only considered from the match results or match schedule. In other words, it can’t simply be considered from the point of football competition itself. Do you know what Nottingham Forest depended on, this past two and a half years, to get from the EPL to the Premier League, and from UEFA Europa to Champions League? Skill? Sure, of course, we have skill; but we don’t have the kind of ability that would allow us to skyrocket like we did. Luck? Maybe. We haven’t gotten many injuries or illnesses. Our luck is pretty good too. But what’s most crucial is the spirit this Forest Team has. An undying spirit and a refusal to lose. It is exactly that spirit that allowed Forest to create so many unimaginable results that others don’t even dare dream of. We aren’t afraid of any team and we certainly won’t concede. Don’t you think I know the priorities of a match? Of course, I know. But, as the main manager of the team, I must stay unwavering; I must preserve this spirit for the team.”
“There are some matches that we seem to have absolutely no hope of winning. Even then, I will tell my players, ‘We can definitely win. We must make those who so confidently declared our certain loss eat their words!'”
Tang En balled his hands. His Forest Team was familiar enough with such things.
“Then, even if we really fail to win the match, in the end, the victors will always be us. I won’t keep arguing about the theory of an indomitable spirit, but if a team doesn’t even have that spirit… then, there’s no difference between Forest and those who are struggling, going back and forth in the lower levels of the league, thinking only of how they can prevent relegation.”
“I absolutely cannot tell my players to give up on this match and rest well to prepare for the next one. Perhaps that’s the truth; but, I must not say that out loud. Once I verbalize it, it means I approve of that attitude. In the future, when there’s a situation in a match, when the time comes that needs us to do our best, my players would remember those words. And then, they would say that since they have already given up once, there’s no big deal to giving up again. After all, they would have other matches in the future to play, and their manager would surely agree with doing so… That’s a very scary thought. It would spread like a pestilence.”
Tang En stretched out his hands and waved agitatedly.
“Quietly, without us realizing, it would erode the spirits and ambition of our players. At that point, the team would be finished. Regardless of how good the manager’s strategy is, they would be helpless managing such a team.”
“A team needs to have a soul. And the soul of Forest Team is knowing that something cannot be done, but continuing to try, regardless.”
Tang En ended his speech. Dunn raised his head and stared at him for a long while before slowly saying, “You’re indeed… more suited to being the main manager than I am.”
※※※
Just as they had analyzed prior to the match, Real Madrid was tough to deal with despite their numerous internal conflicts. But, Dunn was right about one thing: Forest scored first.
At the beginning of the match, Forest unexpectedly took up an all-offense stance, completely taking Real Madrid’s manager, Brazilian Luxemburgo, by surprise. He had thought that when going up against the mighty Real Madrid, Forest would first try to steadily defend. Contrary to that, Forest’s apparent strong start threw Real Madrid for a loop.
The superstars of Real Madrid seemed somewhat at a loss facing the aggressive attacks from Forest’s youth.
Finally, in the seventh minute, Casillas failed to defend the goal. Ribéry’s goal ignited the atmosphere in the stadium. Tang En also appeared extremely excited, as if he had seen the dawning light of victory.
However, after taking the lead, the pace of the match gradually fell under the control of Real Madrid. Pepe, after all, was not an actual defensive midfielder; it was a little exacting for him to be marking Zidane. Forest could only depend on their stamina and a numerical advantage in certain areas of their defense. The price of that was a lack of opportunity to attack.
The Forest Team, who had gained a lead, conversely became suppressed by Real Madrid and appeared to be in a sorry state.
Before the end of the first half, Real Madrid equalized the score. The scorer was neither Raúl nor Ronaldo. It was the midfield player David Beckham, who shot off his signature move: a Full Moon Scimitar free kick.
Beckham’s popularity in the UK was immense; after his goal, applause from the home team fans could be heard in City Ground.
Tang En could do little against such losses. Before the match, he had already emphasized not giving Real Madrid too many free kick opportunities at the front of the penalty area. His players had all taken the job seriously. Faced with Real Madrid’s tidal wave of attacks, they only gave them two such opportunities in the danger zone; the first was kicked out by Beckham, while the second was a goal.
The goal was not a loss due to their strategy. It was a loss because of the individual capability of a football star.
“David Beckham! A flawless goal! Edwin van der Sar had no cards to play!”
Seeing Beckham hug his teammates in celebration on the field, Tang En suddenly remembered that that person would be heading to America, a football desert, two years later, and end his professional career there. Whatever the reason for it, it still felt regrettable.
The situation did not take a turn for the better in the second half. Real Madrid continued their domination of both sides of the field in the away arena. No one usually felt anything special, but when Wood was absent from the match, everyone could feel the difference. It was not a problem of having one less player; they felt as if they had two less.
Pepe could not defend against Zidane at all. Other than having a large skill difference, the demands of a defensive midfielder were completely different from a center back; he found the position quite challenging.
Tang En decided to go all in. Taking Wes Morgan off, he moved Pepe back to his position of center back, into familiar territory and one that Pepe excelled at. Then, he substituted in a forward – Bendtner. That way, Forest changed their formation to 4:3:3. Basically, they gave up on midfield defense in the hopes that a crazy enough offense would be able to force back Real Madrid’s bluster, allowing them to score another goal and gain an edge in the situation.
Tang En half-succeeded. Forest, who had just adjusted, displayed an imposing spirit that was unexpected by Real Madrid players; they managed to push back Real Madrid’s offense.
Facing Forest’s wave after wave of attacks, even Real Madrid could not afford to be too careless; after all, their defensive line had never put anyone at ease. Luxemburgo’s team started to focus heavily on their defense. For a long period, there were no changes to the score.
The match looked as if it would end with a draw. Tang En thought that would not be too bad if it were to be the case. At least they could not be losing points first.
What was the difference between powerhouses and normal football teams? It could not be said that they had brilliant managers, or that their strategies were better than a normal team’s. However, they had superstars: players who could, on their own, be a deciding factor of the match.
In the final five minutes of the match, Ronaldo, who had been on a stroll for the past 85 minutes, suddenly sprang into action. He successfully reversed an offside and received a long pass to the backfield from Beckham. Breaking through into the penalty area, he easily got past Edwin van der Sar and, with a push, shot into the open goal. The score became 1:2. Forest had fallen behind on their home ground.
“Five minutes! It’s not over yet!” With a wave of Tang En’s hands, the whole team pressed forward. Whether they lost by a goal, two goals, or even three made little difference; a loss was a loss. This was not an elimination match, so there was no away goal rule. With the whole team pressing forward, perhaps they might be able to even the score.
Tang En’s aim had gone from winning the match to equalizing the score.
In the end, things did not go as he wished. Reality was cruel. On their home ground, Nottingham Forest lost 1:2 to the “Galácticos,” Real Madrid.
Real Madrid had a great opening for their new season of the Champions League. Meanwhile, Forest Team’s prospects of advancing had a shadow cast on them.
In the press conference after the match, Tang En expressed his indignance at their loss. He continually emphasized that his team had lost to two people, Beckham and Ronaldo; in other words, what he meant was that Real Madrid did not truly defeat Forest.
“I acknowledge that Wood’s absence has brought us tremendous trouble. I will give everyone a surprise the next time we go to Bernabéu.”
This fitted Tang En’s style of never losing the verbal battle despite losing the game. But, how many would take his words seriously?
Some of the reporters from Spain started laughing, and so did a few of England’s media. The prior laughed disdainfully, but the latter… That was a little more complicated; Pierce Brosnan was also among the laughing members.