Chapter 129: The Media’s Pet Part 2
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Hearing him mouth it like this, Edward and Allan looked at each other, and did not understand Twain’s attitude toward their plan. Was he going to join or refuse? If he wanted to join, then everything was fine. But if he refused, then although it would be a pity, they would have no choice but to look for someone else.
“It sounds as though… we are building castles in the air. If you randomly find a person on the streets right now, and tell him that Nottingham Forest will become a member of the G14, he will definitely think that you are crazy.”
“Tony…” Doughty just opened his mouth when he was interrupted.
“To achieve this kind of goals… If we really managed to accomplish such a goal, then it would be similar to a legend, right?” Twain continued mumbling to himself. “But…”
He raised his head and looked at the two of them. “The feeling of creating a legend must be incredible.” The two people opposite him laughed, because they saw that familiar, confident smile on Tony Twain’s face. “To be striving toward such a goal has filled my blood with fervor once again!” He clenched his fists and pressed tightly against the table, as he leaned over and growled, “I love it, I love this crazy plan so much!”
Doughty smiled and said, “As long as you like it, Tony. We can give you time, eight years or even 15 years for it. We know that managers of English football clubs always tend to have a long office term.”
“Moreover,” Allan added, “Tony, if your team can really advance into the UEFA Europa League in the next season, I think that we would be one large step closer to our goal.”
Tang En closed his eyes and thought for a while, before reopening his them again. “After the winter break, I will let you both see an entirely different Nottingham Forest.”
“We believe in you.” Both of them laughed.
“Hehe, speaking of the future, I’ve recalled something. I’ve once made a wager with Kenny Burns that the champions of the previous seasons Premier League would be Manchester United, and not Arsenal. In the end, I won and got a voucher for a lifetime’s worth of free alcohol at his bar.”
“I’ve heard of this incident.” Doughty nodded his head. “They all say that you have the ability to look into the future, just like a Gypsy shaman.”
“They are right. So Edward, in the future, you will definitely become the greatest chairman in Nottingham Forest’s history. And Allan, you will become a manager that will put Moggi and Kenyon to shame.” Tang En said while pointing at the two of them. After that, he pointed to himself and said, “As for me…”
This time, Doughty and Allan did not wait for him to continue, as they said together at the same time, “Will become the most noble manager in Nottingham Forest’s history!”
The three of them started laughing loudly, completely not caring about what kind of looks the surrounding customers gave them.
It may sound very cliché, but… when Nottingham Forest is mentioned in future football-related historical data or news reports, perhaps aside from Brian Clough, it is also reported that the three masterminds which created Nottingham Forest’s second glory had decided its future in an Indian restaurant.
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It was just as Pierce Brosnan had expected. From that afternoon onward, the press conference held by Nottingham Forest had been reported and presented to readers and audiences from all over England via newspaper and television. The media excitedly reminded the readers and audiences that: Although Nottingham Forest was still struggling in League One, their manager was still full of entertainment spirit.
The English media which liked to rake up the past even found out Twain and Shania’s “past”, so as to prove that Tony Twain was definitely not a manager that behaved himself. He was definitely not someone to be taken lightly.
The most enthusiastic The Sun even listed out all of the “news” which Tang En had appeared in, starting from 1st January 2003 until 18th December 2003:
During his first match directing the team, Twain had been knocked over by his own player, falling into a temporary comatose; When he held a press conference in front of the hospital, he accused the English Football Association of having a mastermind, because his team lost to the Premier League Team Westham United; When he went to London for his hearing, it was unsure what methods he used, but this amateur manager who had just begun his career as a manager and received a “heavy sentence” from the media before his court hearing, had ultimately gotten a sentence that was akin to tickling him—something that will only make him feel more comfortable; After a young fan passed away during a football hooligans’ riot, it was said that he had once barged into the hideout of the football hooligans alone, but no one knew what he said there; In the summer, he had charges pressed against him for allegedly abducting an underage girl—of course in the end, it was unsure what methods he used, and there was no further news regarding this matter; When they were on their way to Millwall to participate in the quarterfinals of the EFL Cup, they decided to switch to the subway instead due to a traffic jam. When he unexpectedly faced off against a group of Millwall fans on the train, he did not appear to be in an inferior position at all; During the match against Millwall, he broke the plastic baffle because he was displeased with the fans singing and insulting his team, but this action only resulted in louder jeers and insults directed at his team; During the press conference after the match, he spouted ravings and angered the Millwall manager and chairman; The day after the match, he scolded the Millwall Chairman saying that he was deaf and blind, and even scolded the Millwall Manager for not being a man in front of the countless reporters. On top of that, he even conveniently invented the term “Brain-disabled”—by the way, the media even agreed to put this entirely new English term inside the Oxford Dictionary and Encyclopedia Britannica. For this purpose, they even specially derived the special term “Brain-disabled person” based on this term, and even enriched the definition of “Brain-disabled” so as to differentiate it from “neuropathy”, “mental illness”, as well as “autism.” Of course, even though the editorial team for the Oxford dictionary and the Encyclopedia Britannica did not adopt the opinions of the media, it did not prevent the use of this entirely new and trendy word from becoming used widely all over England… but all of these happened afterwards.
After analyzing these “glorious incidents” of Tony Twain, the media excitedly discovered that they had finally found the successor to the maverick old manager, Brian Clough. Although his results were incomparable to the old manager whose team obtained the championship title of the UEFA Champions League, he did not lose out in terms of his personality.
Upon discovering this point, the media was soon able to dig out that picture which was taken in the summer: Clough was in front of Twain’s house, seated in the car smiling and shaking hands with Tony Twain while greeting the reporters. This seemed to further confirm their judgment.
Of course, there were also some who felt that it was a pity for Nottingham Forest to lose to Sheffield United during the playoffs last season. Because after getting tired Sir Alex Ferguson and French Manager Wenger’s mutual “insulting” of each other, the public urgently looked forward to a manager with more personality and entertainment value to enter this circle. But it just happened that Twain was unable to lead his team and advance into the Premier League, and his experience at League One and the Youth team caused him to be noticed by few media, and in turn lose the opportunity to be noticed by the public.
However, now that Nottingham Forest had already gotten two consecutive wins in the league and EFL Cup under Tony Twain, perhaps it was not impossible for them to advance to the Premier League through the playoff matches after the season.
Disregarding how the Millwall side would respond to this matter, at the very least Tony Twain is now absolutely famous. The whole of England knew overnight that there was actually a charismatic manager with such an outstanding character hidden within English League One.
Does anyone know the reason why the moment Mourinho entered England he was so popular with the media? And as a result his fame and image went up to become one of the most famous managers in the world? Just because he had a big mouth that the media liked, and a unique character completely unlike the others. The thirsty English media liked to hype up every single sentence, every action, and every scandal of his…
Now, before Mourinho arrived in England, Tony Twain had accidentally replaced his position in the media’s eyes… Tang En no longer had any confidence that the things which would happen in the future, would continue to be within the domain of his understanding.