Godfather Of Champions

During Eastwood’s farewell game, all the Nottingham Forest players were stirred by the scene of Eastwood’s tears at the stadium. As if they were collectively doped on performance enhancing drugs, they crushed their arch-rival, Arsenal by 2:1 at home. It was a farewell gift for Eastwood.

But everyone did not care much about the result of the game. In the post-match press conference, the reporters asked more questions about Eastwood.

Nottingham Forest was rumored to have offered Eastwood a staff contract. He would remain with the Forest team. The reporters seek confirmation on the validity of the news.

Twain told them it was true that Eastwood would remain in the team as part of the First Team coaching unit.

A reporter was also concerned whether the loss of a leading striker in the middle of the season would have an adverse impact on the team’s prospects. After all, the team’s results were not ideal. It was almost December and Nottingham Forest was in sixth place in the league tournament.

Twain rebuffed this statement. While Eastwood’s departure was a big blow to him, it was not enough to ruin his plans for the entire season.

The atmosphere of the press conference was good. Twain did not take his anger out on the reporters just because he had lost his cherished player. He tried his best to answer everyone’s questions, and his good attitude surprised everyone.

But if it continued to develop in such a manner, then it would not be a press conference with Tony Twain present.

Finally, someone stood up and asked a question that angered Twain.

“Mr. Twain. Do you agree with the view that Eastwood’s retirement today was already conclusive before he joined Nottingham Forest? If it hadn’t been for George Wood’s ferocious foul at the time, the Romani’s career could at least last until the age of thirty-four.” The man who stood up and asked the question, had a smiling, but his face looked extremely ugly in Twain’s view.

The man who asked such a vicious question was Twain’s old nemesis, Carl Spicer, who still had a shaved head to this day….

There had been media reports of this matter before. They think for Eastwood to choose to retire so early, the culprit was George Wood and not in Michael Dawson. To that end, they listed out Eastwood’s career information when he played for West Ham United’s youth team, proving that what they said was true.

While Twain did not blame Dawson as the killer for cutting off Eastwood’s professional career, he strongly disagreed that Wood was the culprit. The reason why he did not have a war of words with the other media in his column to refute the issue was not because he had a guilty conscience, but because he did not want to get caught up in the media’s treachery. It would not be a good thing for Wood and Eastwood as well as the entire team if the matter was blown up.

However, now it was clear that some people were not happy about Twain’s silence.

If you don’t want to say it, I’ll force you to say it in front of everyone!

The reporters were in an uproar when they heard Spicer ask such a question. Actually, many people wanted to ask such a question except they knew Twain’s limit. It was a difficult question to ask and they absolutely could not receive an answer if it were asked. There was nothing good in it for themselves to ask it.

Now the “hero” in their hearts had appeared! Carl Spicer clearly did not expect an answer from Twain. He asked the question for a simple reason—he was trying to make Twain angry, and all the source material for his news came from it. He did not care whether Twain answered the question or not. As long as Twain had a reaction, there would be good material for this evening’s <Football Matters>.

Twain glared at Spicer. He currently very much wanted to throw the microphone in front of him at the other man, then get up, grab the chair, pounce over, push the other man to the ground and use all his energy to smash—he did have the urge to kill the other man.

He managed to restrain himself and did not really do so. He just stood up slowly and pointed to Spicer. He spoke slowly so as to try to make it as clear as possible for the man who asked the question and other people, “There’s one thing I agree with, Mr. Carl Spicer.”

“What is it?” Spicer smiled and asked, waiting for Twain to answer.

“You’re a stinky bastard who deserves to go to hell!”

Twain finished scolding and turned around to leave the press conference.

His answer made the reporters present unusually excited, while Wenger, sitting next to him, smiled wryly. He served as the background in the battle between the reporters and Twain…

When he heard Twain swore that dirty remark with gritted teeth, Carl Spicer was delighted instead of being angry. He raised his fist and said happily, “Fantastic!” Then he turned and looked at the cameraman on his show to ask, “Did you record it?”

The cameraman nodded.

Spicer gave his partner a thumbs up. He got the result he wanted. He did not attend the press conference in vain.

“Eastwood’s retirement was painful for the Forest fans. But even the most hardcore fans can’t deny the fact—who was the one that had led to the early retirement of the promising Romani striker? It was none other than their most beloved team captain, George Wood.” On the evening show, Carl Spicer spoke frankly with assurance in front of the camera. Perhaps the thing he regretted the most now was that Twain did not punch him in the nose on the spot, so that he could rely on an attention-grabbing shiner to wordlessly denounce to the viewers that Tony Twain was a dangerous violent man.

“Am I talking nonsense? Let’s take a look at the evidence.”

The frame cut into the afternoon’s press conference at the City Ground stadium. Carl Spicer looked urbane on camera. When he threw out the question, what answered him with Twain’s vicious face and uncouth language. The images of the two men were really different.

“Okay. First we need to answer the question of why Mr. Tony Twain was flustered and exasperated after hearing my question. Will anyone believe that he did not have a guilty conscience? Obviously, like me, deep down inside him, he thinks I’m right, and absolutely agrees with my comment. That’s why his reaction was so intense—we all know Mr. Tony Twain is all about keeping up appearances and has a strong ego. He may agree on some things, but he won’t express it. Like this matter.”

Spicer smiled with delight. He felt the dagger thrown had hit the bull’s eye. The footage timely replayed with the scene of Twain’s swearing at the press conference.

“Of course, we have to look at things separately. George Wood’s foul that happened while he was still in the youth team, did lead to Eastwood’s early retirement. But without his kick, Eastwood might not have had such a successful career—he might be in another team and not have met Tony Twain as well not come to Nottingham Forest…”

It seemed that Spicer exonerated George Wood but in fact it was just a ploy he used habitually to package himself as a “fair and objective commentator.” He often did that when he needed to disparage a person.

For example:

“So, and so’s performance on the field was so bad, I wonder if he went to a nightclub last night to have fun. Of course, it’s normal that young people need to vent. After all, playing in a powerhouse team is very hard. Whether physically or psychologically, he needs to find a way to let out the built-up pressure ..”

From the looks of it, there was not a single word that was sensitive, and it sounded like he was considering the player. But the “rumor” about so and so’s outing with a prostitute the night before a game became true.

So now when he framed it in such a way, it was about making the matter of “Wood was the culprit who caused his teammate to retire” fait accompli.

He never hid his loathing of Tony Twain. As a team with Tony Twain’s deep imprint, the Forest team naturally did not please Mr. Carl Spicer. If his remarks and the episode could throw the Forest team into disarray, he would be happy to do so.

“You fell for his trick again, Uncle Tony.” Shania, who was watching the television at home on the couch, complained to Twain.

“I did it on purpose.” Twain shrugged.

“How could you purposely fall for his ploy?”

“It would really piss me off if I didn’t dare to scold him on the spot for fear of being used by him. Of course, I had to admonish him. I didn’t stand to lose that way. As for his tricks, I have my own ways.” Twain said it like it should be expected as a matter of course.

Shania pouted. She knew Uncle Tony was reluctant to admit his mistake and did not have his own way to deal with it. He just gave into his impulse at the time. From the time before they were married, she had lived with Uncle Tony for ten years. She was extremely familiar with the man beside her.

Twain did not want to hear Spicer talk drivel on the public broadcast, so he took out the remote control and changed the channel.

“I still feel that I have not scolded hard enough. I can come up with at least fifteen different ways of scolding him now.”

“You’re like a little boy, Uncle Tony.” Shania laughed when she heard him say so, “Why are you squabbling with him?”

When it came the handling of the media, the younger Shania’s was was more mature than Twain’s. Perhaps it was because she had been trained as well as influenced by her own mother, also a model, from a young age. No one could be liked by everyone in the world. A charismatic star like Shania also had people who did not like her. When these people in the media talked a lot of nonsense about her, she always ignored them and continued to do her own thing.

Twain did not answer. After a series of questions and answers with Shania, he started thinking about ways to reduce the impact of Spicer’s recent episode on the team.

He knew that Spicer was definitely not talking nonsense because Wood’s performance had fluctuated recently. He had always been constant like a pool of stagnant water with no outflow nor new inflow of water. Now a lot of ripples frequently emerged.

I hope this is not a sign of an earthquake…

“Uncle Tony?”

“Yes?”

“What exactly is the relationship between Freddy and George?” Shania’s sudden concern about the team slightly surprised Twain.

Shania had always been jealous of football. Although she was a Brazilian, she was not very fond of football due to the reason that football robbed her of Uncle Tony’s love. Naturally, her level of concern for her husband’s team was also superficial and limited to knowing the good or bad results.

Twain thought about it, because he was also thinking about what the relationship between the two men. In the team, apart from having to perform his duties as the team captain, George Wood rarely spoke and was a man of action. Eastwood, on the other hand, was talkative and the joker in the locker room. But the two of them rarely talked alone, and if they had to say something, it would be related to the team.

Twain knew Eastwood had a sore point and was unwilling to greet Wood with a smile on his face. He also knew Wood’s character. Because of his life history, his reticence seemed to be the outer shell of his fragile self-esteem, which made him seemed a little haughty. “Proud” was a nice way to put it. Therefore, Wood could not be expected to take the initiative to look for Eastwood and reach his hand out to him to say, “Hey, Freddy. The incident was my fault, I’m very sorry and regret it… But now that we’re teammates, I hope we can still get along well…”

The both inferior and proud, sensitive and taciturn George Wood was absolutely incapable of doing such a thing. Now that Eastwood had made it clear that he did not like him, he would not put down his pride and try to get closer.

As a result, the relationship between the two men appeared to be atypical in the Forest team, famous for its harmonious atmosphere within. Fortunately, they were men who attached importance to the bigger picture and would not deliberately pick a quarrel with each other in the team.

“Well… They are not friends in any case.” Twain thought for a while and did not know how to explain it specifically, “They’re almost never together alone and say more than three sentences to each other.”

Shania tilted her head and looked at Twain, “Then why don’t you create an opportunity for them to talk alone?”

Twain stared blankly for a moment.

That’s right. All along, he had thought that he could not let the two people feel awkward and not to inflame the conflict. So, he turned a blind eye and thought that it did not endanger the team’s internal atmosphere anyway. He should just let them be as they were sensible people.

Now obviously it could not go on like this…

George Wood’s ups and downs in his condition had affected the team’s performance. This was what Twain wanted to see. Also, if the issue were to go on, someone the team might really think so— it was the team captain who harmed Eastwood. Because Eastwood’s popularity was good, it could be scary if this thinking were to spread. It could shake the foundation of the team’s unity. When a captain no longer had prestige in the hearts of his teammates, it could cause a chain of adverse effects.

The matter must be settled.

Shania had given him a good idea.

Twain came up next to Shania and moved his body over.

Shania was alert, “What are you going to do, Uncle Tony?”

Twain smiled, “To thank you, Shania!”

Shania rolled her eyes and said, “Your naughty smile gave you away, Uncle Tony. Are you thinking about that again?”

Twain put away his smile and looked serious, “I suddenly got a little jealous of Freddy when I saw his two kids. I want a baby, Shania.”

They had been married for five years. No matter how hard they tried, Shania’s body had no respond at all. Although Twain never showed it, Shania knew he was anxious and even had some worries. What could she do as a wife? She could only use her own gentle and young sexy body to comfort her husband. She had secretly went for a checkup when she was in America. She had no problem physically at all…

Uncle Tony had suddenly mentioned a baby again. He was apparently motivated by Freddy’s two children. Eastwood’s son and daughter were really adorable. Everyone would want a child like that.

When she heard Twain say so, Shania raised her head and kissed him first. The two of them made passionate love on the couch…

The next morning, when Twain drove to Wilford, Eastwood was already waiting for him.

“You don’t have to be so early, Freddy.” Twain look at his watch. It was only eight-thirty. He usually came early. He did not expect Eastwood to come earlier.

“Ha, chief! It’s the first day of work, I have to be proactive, don’t I?”

Twain glared at him and said, “Don’t call me chief. You’re now one of the coaches in the team now, like me.”

Eastwood shook his head in disbelief and said, “Actually, while I was waiting for you here, I had been thinking about how to address you. Then I realized that I still like to call you ‘chief’ the best. I’m used to it. Aren’t you used to hearing it, Chief?”

Twain helplessly acknowledged this address and no longer continued to get hung up on the detail.

“Well, chief… This is my first time as a coach. What kind of work would you like to assign to me? Or… what do you think I can do?” Eastwood put his hands together. His new identity still made him a little awkward. “Even though I train with the coaches every day, I don’t know much about it.”

Without his wife’s advice from yesterday, Twain had originally intended for Eastwood to work with and learn from the other coaches and not to take care of specific matters yet. Then he could simply take coaching classes at the League Managers Association to get ready for his coaching license test.

But now there was clearly a more urgent job for him to do.

“Well… it’s like this, Freddy. What are your thoughts on…George?” Twain thought over and asked.

Eastwood paused for a moment. He did not know why the chief asked the question, but he knew that the chief was definitely not having a casual chat with him. He thought it over before he replied, “Not a friend.”

Twain laughed. He recalled his answer to Shania last night.

“Well, I can understand why you would think that, Freddy. But now I hope you can help…actually it’s not considered a help. Since you’re now a coach, you have to treat everyone equally. I want you to do one thing for the team as a coach…”

“Does it have anything to do with his recent poor form and distracted performance?” Ever since Carl Spicer pitched the question at the press conference, the media began to follow suit. In their view, such a piece of gossip was clearly more entertaining and attention-grabbing than to reminisce about Eastwood’s career.

“It’s so easy to talk to smart people.” Twain exclaimed, “Yes, that’s it. No matter what you think of him, I hope you can let go of this part of the relationship. It’s okay even if you temporarily let it go…Get the steadfast and hopelessly wooden block back for the team.”

This was an unexpected “mission.” Eastwood had never done the job of “psychological coach.” Not to mention, he had to face his “enemy” who caused his current predicament… But he also knew that his current identity did not allow the interferences from his personal feelings. The chief strongly stressed teamwork. This request was not limited to the team. It also applied to the coaching staff.

It was a really troublesome job.

“Okay, chief. I promise. But … You have to make me think about how best to go about it.”

Twain let out a long breath when he saw him agree and smiled, “Of course, but don’t think about it for too long. Our team’s current ranking is not very optimistic.”

“I know, chief. Don’t worry, I won’t let you down.”

Eastwood said goodbye to Twain and then turned to walk away.

Twain stood in the office, looking pensive.