Chapter 264: Wood Learned to Be A Star Player Part 1
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
At Forest Bar in Wilford, Nottingham, the beer in the cups was all splashed upwards, and everyone raised their fists up and yelled. The sound from the television set was drowned out by their yells, but no one wanted to hear the commentator clearly at that point.
"Even though it was a draw, the Forest team's single point was as precious as three in terms of the process. They forced their way into an equalizer with Manchester United in this away game. As a newly promoted team, it's extremely difficult to get results like that! George Wood is undoubtedly the hero and leading player of this evening! Whether it was the process or the result, this goal was perfect!"
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At the Old Trafford stadium in Manchester, George Wood stood at the spot where he had shot the goal. He did not run with open arms, did not take off his jersey and throw it to the sky, did not even do a fist pump. He just stood in the same place, turned, and saw his excited teammates dashing towards him.
He had never scored a goal in a game, nor did he know how to celebrate after scoring a goal. Should I yell and swear to express my feelings?
"Well done!" Ashley Young rushed up, grabbed him, and shouted in his ear, "What a beautiful job!"
Then more teammates swarmed round him; even the goalkeeper, Darren Ward, had bolted from the backfield. The exhausted-looking Forest players now looked as energetic as when they had first come onto the field.
Twain knelt on the ground and smashed the turf. An excited Kerslake pulled him up. "He did it! He really did it!"
The Forest players on the field and the substitutes huddled together. The referee looked down at his watch and blew the whistle three times to signal the end of the game.
The Manchester United team continued their "bad luck" for the season, allowing Nottingham Forest to equalize the score in the last ten or so seconds on their home ground.
Even though the Forest team had only gotten a draw, they looked like winners as they celebrated Wood's last-minute goal.
Twain fist-pumped as he looked at his players. Then he remembered that there was somewhere important he had to be. He turned toward the middle of the two technical areas, and Sir Alex Ferguson was waiting for him there.
"It was really a good game." Despite losing, Ferguson still had a smile on his face. It was not easy to restore his expression back to normal in such a short period of time. "Your team is terrific, Mr. Twain."
"Thank you very much for your compliment, Sir Ferguson." Twain's tone was not as sharp and unkind as before. After all, for him, a draw was a victory. There was no need to be ungracious.
Ferguson nodded and left. Just as he turned around, the Scottish man's smile completely disappeared. The question that he had in his mind over the summer now had a definite answer: will they pose a threat to us? Yes, they are already a threat.
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Twain stood on the sidelines as he watched Ferguson leave. Then he looked back at the players, who were still celebrating. A smile emerged on Twain's face as he saw George, looking stunned while surrounded by a swarm of people.
He believed that if Wood were to repeat exactly the same shot, there was a 99% chance that he would not be able to make the goal.
In fact, it did not matter how the goal was made; what mattered was the outcome. Wood had become a real superman for once. A hero. The one.
I think he'll remember this game for a very long time.
Nice work, kid. Keep on playing like this, and your future will be bright.
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Wood finally managed to break free from the hugs of his teammates after much difficulty. Everyone went on to the players' corridor and back to the locker room one after another. Wood was about to leave the field when he ran into Roy Keane on the sidelines.
Apparently, the Manchester United captain was waiting for him.
When he saw Wood coming, Keane took off his jersey and handed it to Wood. "You've done a good job, lad."
This was the first time Wood had ever encountered a situation where his opponent had voluntarily requested to exchange jerseys. He was a little overwhelmed. Twain happened to see it. An exchange between players would usually have nothing to do with a manager, but he walked over anyways to remind Wood, "Why are you staring like that? Swap your jerseys!"
Wood heard Twain and looked back at him. Twain winked.
Accordingly, Wood bent his head to take off his jersey and exchanged it with Keane's number 16 Manchester United jersey.
When Keane touched Wood's jersey, he could feel that it was completely soaked with sweat; it was damp and heavy. This kid really uses all his physical strength to run. He thought of that last goal. Only a jersey like this would be worthy of that goal.
It was an opportunity borne out of ninety minutes of running.
He saw a shadow of his former self in this young man. How he had worn the Nottingham Forest jersey for his appearance at Anfield to play the most powerful team at that time. On that day, his career had begun.
Looking at Wood, he nodded. "We'll play against each other often in the future. Don't let me down, lad." After that, Keane turned and walked to the corridor.
Wood did not say anything; he did not know what to say. Twain patted him on the shoulder. "How're you feeling, George?"
Wood looked at Twain and said, "Very good."
"You're really not humble at all..."
"What do you mean?"
"No, nothing. This is good." Twain smiled. "Do you know who that person who exchanged jerseys with you is?"
Wood nodded.
"It's not easy to get his admiration or recognition... Go, get back to the locker room." Twain pointed to the left of the fork, which led to the visitors' locker room. Continuing straight led to the press conference room, which was Twain's destination.
"Another thing, George. You should smile at times like this." Twain pointed to Wood's face and said before he left, "You performed really well. Why don't you smile?" Twain grinned.
Wood moved his lips and finally smiled. Well, it would be more appropriate to say he just imitated Tony Twain's expression.
Twain laughed happily when he saw Wood's odd smile.
"Remember, George. Don't get discouraged when you fail. Enjoy your victories to the fullest. We're going back to Nottingham tomorrow morning, so enjoy tonight!"
After giving a pat on Wood's shoulder, Twain went straight to the press conference room.
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At the post-match press conference, Twain made the reporters present laugh when he spoke.
"A football match is like life: full of ups and downs." He shrugged and said with a smile, "I'm very happy with my players' performance. It may have been a draw, but there was nothing more that I could have asked them to do. This really is perfect. Manchester United didn't lose on their home ground, and we didn't return empty-handed."
Ferguson glanced at Twain.
"I'm very satisfied with the result of the game, and even more satisfied with George Wood's performance. I think... those reporters, the ones who were so excited about the Forest team's internal conflicts a few days ago, must be feeling stupid now." After he praised the team and finished talking about the game, Twain changed the topic and his fighting style returned again. "And, to those who think that I favor Wood without grounds… After watching this game, would anyone still dare to say that I trust him for no reason?"
The reporters did not laugh, nor did they utter any reply.
Looking at them, Twain smiled again. "That's why I said I'm very happy with the performance of my players in this game. Very, very satisfied."
After saying that, Twain stopped talking. He just leaned against the back of the chair and listened quietly to Ferguson's speech with a relaxed smile on his face.
The pleasure of his retaliation against the media was intense; he was afraid that if he continued to speak, he would break out into laughter. If Wood's last goal hadn't happened, he might be in another mood now. The reporters would pester him with endless questions about his failure. No matter how hard he tried, it would be useless once he lost the game. The media were always good at sensationalizing any matter which seemed normal, and turning it into something that looked like the end of the world.
There was nothing special about Ferguson's speech. Before the game, it was a trade of barbs with both parties sharply opposed to each other. Now, his tone was a lot milder. Without any thinly veiled insults or sarcasm, Ferguson praised the Forest team's performance in the game and specially complimented George Wood's spirit of perseverance. He then obliquely criticized the performance of Manchester United. He did not name names, but said that someone had not considered the whole team. As for the person he was referring to, anyone who watched the game should know.
Now, the media's attention had transferred to the Manchester United team's infighting.
When Ferguson was criticizing Cristiano Ronaldo, Twain gave him a glance. The red flush on the old man's face was even deeper, he had probably been venting in the locker room a moment ago.
Twain sat, remembering. Cristiano Ronaldo was temporarily expelled from Manchester United by Ferguson and returned to Portugal to recover in the middle of December 2004; now it was November 28, not far from that day.