Godfather Of Champions

“This is AC Milan’s first time playing against Nottingham Forest in history and also their first time against Nottingham Forest in the Champions League final. For them, the Forest team is an unfamiliar opponent, even though they come from England like Liverpool. AC Milan wears white jerseys for this game and will attack from the right side of the field toward the left. White jerseys always seem to bring them good luck. AC Milan wore white jerseys when they won the Champions League finals in 1963, 1989, 1990 and 2003. And this stadium also brings good memories for AC Milan and even for the current Forest team captain Albertini. In 1994, AC Milan had a big win of 4:0 over Barcelona here and dealt a heavy blow to the Barcelona dream team that Cruyff coached.” After the start of the game, the commentator took some time to introduce some background knowledge to the television viewers, coming from an angle to analyze which of the two teams was more likely to win the championship.

“The referee for this game is the German, Herbert Fandel. He has not refereed a game played by Nottingham Forest before, but he has refereed AC Milan’s games, and AC Milan won all five of them! Could these circumstances illustrate that AC Milan’s odds of winning are higher for this game?”

“I have a different opinion, Steve. Analyzing from a historical angle, Nottingham Forest has reached the finals three times and won the title twice. Their winning success rate is better than AC Milan. I don’t think the historical data can explain these issues. The winner of this game is not based on historical data, but the level of their play in this game. If AC Milan thinks that they will win for certain, they may suffer a setback… Similar situations have appeared many times in the Champions League tournament. Of course, it did not happen to AC Milan. I think the managers on both sides have a deep understanding of this.”

Maldini won against Albertini during the coin toss, so the Forest team got the right to kick off.

Before the game, everyone thought the Forest team would continue to stick to the defensive counterattack they were best at for such an important game. However, judging from the opening minutes, the Forest team was very proactive — shortly after the kick-off, they launched a siege on AC Milan’s goal.

They made two shots in five minutes, all within the goal post range. It showed countless people that the Forest team was just as capable of playing a threatening offense.

Could it be that the Forest team was going to play offensive football in this game against AC Milan?

It would be a rarity. How could Tony Twain, who enjoyed a reputation of conservative play in the European football circle, give up defense in such an important final game in favor of a risky offense?

Ancelotti decided to bide his time. Just judging by five minutes of the Forest team’s performance, he could not figure out what was on Twain’s mind. Did this five-minute offense indicate that the Forest team really planned to attack, or was it just a normal offensive because the ball was mostly controlled by Forest players?

He needed to continue to observe.

What he had anticipated was that the Forest team would play defensive counterattack in such an important game, just as they had along the way. They had relied on solid defense and excellent counterattacks to beat their opponents. It had caused him to wrack his brains.

AC Milan was not afraid of the teams that pressed in and attacked. They were only powerless against the teams that defended their penalty areas to death.

If the Forest team really wanted to press in and attack, it would be exactly what Ancelotti wanted. The opponents would only accelerate their failure. If the Forest team still insisted on playing defensive counterattack, Ancelotti had also made arrangements. What AC Milan had done for the last week was practice how to break their opponent’s compact defense.

Before the game, Ancelotti warned his men that no matter what tactics their opponents used, they just needed to stick to their football rhythm and patiently play with their opponents to find a chance to strike a fatal blow and the victory would be in their hands.

It was very similar to what Twain said to his team. Was it a case of great minds thinking alike?

Five minutes later, AC Milan had control of the ball. Ancelotti saw that the speed of the Forest team’s withdrawal was not as fast as he thought.

More often than not, Nottingham Forest stayed in the front field and tried to counter-press. If the strikers were unsuccessful at intercepting, they did not just wait there for their teammates to intercept the ball and pass it to them. Instead, they immediately turned and ran back to participate in the defense. In addition to the counter-pressing in the front field, the midfielders were also very aggressive in their tackles. George Wood ran at the expense of his strength, from one end to the other. The number 13 could be seen in almost every corner of the midfield. Albertini provided support at his side.

“High pressing?” Ancelotti frowned He was still unsure.

Judging by the few Forest team games he had studied, the Forest team seemed more accustomed to retreat to the penalty zone. Then they would confine themselves within the thirty-meter zone to allow the opponents to pass the ball back and forth outside. No wonder Twain was criticized by the media for having conservative play and being ugly to watch. Even though such a defense could bring victory, it was disdained by many people.

Ancelotti looked at the back of the Forest team again. Despite the busy front and midfield, the players on the rear defensive line had no intention of coming up to help. They stood in formation at the back, waiting quietly for AC Milan’s potential offensive.

It appears to be a little disjointed? Ancelotti thought. The midfield and front field were inseparably close with the wide distance between the back field and midfield. Were they not afraid the big space would be exploited?

The AC Milan manager carefully recalled the performance of every line of the Forest team within the opening five minutes. The front and midfield were very active in the offense, making people think they were going to play offensive football. But the rear defensive line had never pressed over the midline and the two full backs also did not attack forward… Twain’s choice in the left back position was Leighton Baines who was better at defense and not his preferred, Gareth Bale.

Looks like defense is the main theme?

As Ancelotti observed, AC Milan’s field commander, brain and midfield leader, Pirlo was also watching. He also found that there appeared to be a fault zone between Nottingham Forest’s midfield and rear defensive line, which could be used…

Pirlo readjusted the football under his feet and shot a meaningful glance at Kaka who looked back at him.

Kaka got the message and plugged in.

Meanwhile, the football flew from Pirlo’s feet and rolled quickly on the turf toward Kaka. Ribéry shoveled midway but came up empty.

Kaka turned around and saw the football roll toward him, but at the same time he saw another thing — a man.

The Nottingham Forest red jersey stood out on the field. George Wood rushed toward Kaka along with the football.

The ball was bound to be received, but it seemed difficult to avoid the person. Kaka decided to protect the football and used his body to block.

He received the ball and used his skill to get the football over to protect it in front of his body, and then… Then he was thrown forward by Wood…

“Beep!” The referee’s whistle sounded with the boos of the AC Milan fans.

“George Wood has fouled! Looks like Wood’s closely marking Kaka for this game!”

Kaka helplessly laid on the ground as he waited for his teammate, Inzaghi to pull him up. Although it was not as obvious from the outside, the other man was stronger than he thought.

Pirlo ran over for the free kick. He had no regrets about the interruption of the attack. At the very least, he got a free kick in the front field. He also seemed to understand why the other manager dared to set aside such a gap between the rear defensive line and the midfield…

Because of that strong and tireless runner, number 13.

With him around, the empty section was not a void.

After he figured it out, Pirlo wondered about another question: There was really no need for Tony Twain to give Wood such a big responsibility. He just needed to draw the entire team back and that would do. Why did he arrange for the front field to press in but not let the rear defensive line come up to coordinate with the defense?

Pirlo decided to continue looking for the answer during the game.

He would first do this free kick and then figure it out.

Wood’s foul was timely. If he had waited for Kaka to dribble the ball forward and then fouled, it would be too close to the goal and he might also have had to use his back to tackle the ball to stop the swift Brazilian. It would not have been as simple as a free kick.

Twain told him to foul a little further away from the danger zone, which Wood kept in mind.

The television screen displayed the distance of the free kick — thirty-four meters from the goal.

If he shot the ball directly, the success rate would not be high, so Pirlo decided to pass.

Maldini appeared in the Forest team’s penalty area. When AC Milan encountered Liverpool in the last final, the first goal in the opening game was Maldini’s shot, which was also a set piece.

This was Maldini’s eighth appearance in the Champions League finals and he wanted to make the experience more legendary with one more goal.

Both tall players, Maldini and Nesta were in the crowd in the Forest team’s box, waiting for the chance for a header.

The Forest Team’s center forward, van Nistelrooy also came back to the box to defend and it looked like it was a full-on defense. But while everyone’s focus was elsewhere, Ribéry lay quietly in wait near the center line.

Twain turned his head to smile at Dunn sitting beside him and said nothing. Dunn understood what he meant and said nothing as well.

Led by Albertini, he, Ashley Young, and van der Vaart formed a human wall of three players to block the ball. Everyone else went back to the box to defend, especially George Wood who closely followed Kaka.

Kaka had often encountered such treatment, so he did not take it seriously and led Wood in circles within the box. He was not the end point of the attack. The head area was the key point.

After Pirlo placed the football, he stepped back and found that the Forest team’s human wall was too close, so he waved for the referee.

Fandel saw it, too. He ran over to warn Albertini, asking them to move the wall back by a couple of steps.

Albertini took his time to follow the order, but when Fandel turned and walked away, he and his two teammates slowly shuffled back in tiny steps — this is due to experience… I’m not going to listen properly and give you enough distance. The best thing is to get your free kick to end here with me!

As he had said before the game, when the game began, he would forget that he was once an AC Milan player. He would consider every detail and angle only for the Forest team.

Pirlo had also seen a lot of lip paid to the referee’s demands. Anyway, he did not plan to shoot directly. If the free kick was moved forward, then so be it. He would kick the ball a little higher and it would be fine. It was not worth wasting time arguing over.

The referee signaled with a whistle that Pirlo could start the free kick.

Pirlo was going to twist the football around to bypass the human wall, but he clearly underestimated Albertini’s game acumen. The moment he kicked, Albertini led Ashley Young and van der Vaart in a collective sprint before they jumped and waited for the football to fly out. The ten yard distance had been shortened to eight yards. Pirlo’s shot was still on the upswing and did not reach its highest point. It could not avoid the sudden forward thrust of the human wall, and the football hit van der Vaart’s head before it shot straight up. Originally the football was going to fly into the box, but it had become a straight up and down shot.

Pirlo held up his arm in protest to the referee about the action of the opponent’s human wall.

It was a sticky situation for the referee. Unless the slow motion was replayed on the camera, it was really hard to say whether the wall moved before Pirlo kicked or after he had already kicked… The referee chose to remain silent, as he thought it was after Pirlo had kicked the football…

Pirlo saw that his protest was ineffective, so he wanted to rush up to grab the ball and launch an attack.

This time he was blocked by Albertini. The drop point no longer belonged to him.

Albertini suppressed Pirlo and turned his head to observe the situation. Then he looked up at the football falling down. He could tell from the feel of his body that Pirlo would not let it go. He was trying his best to squeeze in to snatch the drop point. Albertini would not give him such a chance, so he opened his arms to cover his position.

When he was still AC Milan, Pirlo had been seen as his successor because the two of them had a similar role in the midfield and characteristics in their playing were similar. During usual training, Albertini was always happy to pass on his skills to the other man. He was also proud and gratified to be able to groom another midfield commander for the team.

He never thought that his student would become a fierce enemy on the field and that there would be such a violent clash.

He also did not expect to teach another person, who could master the pace of the game, how to be a midfield commander…

When the ball fell, both Albertini and Pirlo jumped at the same time.

Pirlo already knew he was not destined to get the ball, but he could still interfere with Albertini getting the ball and not let him comfortably control the ball before launching another counterattack. Any fool could see that it was the chance for the Forest team to fight back. The team captain, Maldini, Nesta, and his teammates were coming back to defend. He was going to buy them time.

As a former teammate, he certainly knew the strengths of the man in front of him. If he was in a good shape, he definitely could not give him the opportunity to easily possess the football and let him control the football, which meant he would take control of the pace of the game.

Albertini felt the collision from behind and tried to maintain his balance. Otherwise he would lose the landing ball… It was a bit difficult for his current physical condition, so he could only make up for it with his skill.

Pirlo was trying to force Albertini get the football with a header in mid-air. That way, his teammates would have a chance to intercept the ball, and the players heading back to defend would also have time.

However, Albertini chose to use his chest to stop the ball. He still managed to stop the football with his chest under Pirlo’s close marking. His skills and experience played an important role.

But his body was not as good as before. Under Pirlo’s constant impact, he felt that he had to give his best just to protect the ball, not to mention to possess the ball and then to pass it…

He needed someone to help share the burden.

Just as he was about to give way, he saw George Wood.

Without hesitation, he passed the football on to his second student.

Pirlo suddenly felt that the pressure in front of him was gone. Albertini had turned to run away, and the football was not at his feet! So where was the football?

Number 13!

George Wood dribbled the ball and charged up. Pirlo did not even have time to think and just reacted on instinct — and pounced on Wood.

When Wood saw Pirlo rush up, he sent the football out. His target was Albertini, who managed to shake off the defense.

The Forest team had to attack fast. Dribbling and adjusting the ball were not allowed, because it would give the opponent the time needed to return to defend.

After a clean pass, the football was back at Albertini’s feet. Only then was Pirlo free to think about the problem in his head — he realized something was afoot.

No one’s marking Albertini!

“Guard him!” He cried to the back. When he saw Gattuso rush towards the target, he was relieved.

The Forest team has George Wood, we have Gattuso!

Albertini was familiar with everyone in AC Milan, whether it was Pirlo or Gattuso. When he saw Gattuso rush up, he suddenly swung his leg for a long pass!

The football passed over Gattuso’s head and flew toward the flank.

Franck Ribéry, who had been lying in wait, received the football.

It was as if it had been planned long ago. The Forest team only took a short time to turn the defense into an offense with the completion of three passes. It perfectly displayed Twain’s pursuit of highly effective football. The AC Milan defenders had just run past the center circle — neither Maldini or Nesta was a defender with fast speed.

Ribéry received the ball but did not entangle with the opposing full-back, Oddo, on the flank or wait for his teammates to plug in to assist. He immediately sped up to break through the moment he stopped the ball and shook off Oddo.

“What a sharp breakthrough from Franck Ribéry!” There was no need to make a fuss in the announcement that Ribéry had managed to break through Oddo. The Frenchman had long ago proved that he was a world-class player with his last few seasons, as well as his performance at the World Cup.

Breaking through Oddo? Wasn’t that a normal thing to do?

Ribéry did not break through along the flank. After he accelerated, he cut across to the middle. This made it more challenging for Oddo to catch up. If he had broken through on the flank, he could squeeze Ribéry out of bounds, and the space that Ribéry could use would narrow. Now that he was in the middle, it was not up to Oddo to stop Ribéry.

As it was a hasty retreat to defend, there were not many AC Milan players in defensive positions. Hence, there was plenty of running space, and it was wide open in front of Ribéry.

Nesta and Maldini had already returned to in front of the penalty box. They saw that Ribéry was a lone player and were not afraid that the other side would be in the offside. One of them stayed a little behind to defend and the other pressed forward to tackle. It was the most appropriate way to form enough depth in the strategic defense to deal with the striker who relied on speed to break through.

As he entered the thirty-meter zone, an alarm sounded over AC Milan’s defensive zone.

Maldini was delayed at the back, and Nesta pressed ahead.

How could Ribéry not tell what they had in mind? Nottingham Forest itself was an outsider in the Premier League, where the manager took pleasure in studying a wide variety of defensive tactics. So, how could they not understand defense as players?

Ribéry did not give Nesta the time to press up. He suddenly swung his leg to shoot at twenty-five meters away from the goal!

He did not prepare the shot before. The momentum from the high-speed dribble became his running power, and the football flew past Nesta like a bullet.

Whoosh!

The football bypassed Nesta and Maldini, who were building strategic depth in the back. It drew a clearly recognizable arc in the air, then skirted around the fingertips of the Brazilian goalkeeper, Dida, to hit the inside of the inner post, and then…

Everyone saw as the football bounced back into the net.

“Bang!” The Olympic Stadium of Athens was like a volcano filled with TNT dynamites as it exploded in an instant.

“Eight minutes into the game! Just eight minutes! And Nottingham Forest has taken the lead! Who would have thought AC Milan’s defensive line was so fragile? A long shot of twenty-six meters away from the goal actually penetrated Dida’s hands… Oh my God! Nottingham Forest has shown their confidence in winning with their actions! Franck Ribéry is a hero in the minds of Nottingham Forest fans!”

When he saw the football enter the goal, Ancelotti turned to punch the plastic back of his coach’s seat. At the same time, Tony Twain did the same thing on the other side.

The former was because of his fury and frustration over the goal concede, while the latter was because of his excitement and exhilaration.

“1:0! The game has only been eight minutes and we’re ahead!” The commentator from England had become a Nottingham Forest fan. “The great Franck Ribéry is the second Zidane!”

“0:1, just eight minutes and AC Milan is already trailing. Such bad luck… Although Ribéry’s long shot was terrific, I would like to say that Demetrio’s passing was the highlight of this attack!” The Italian commentator sounded annoyed, but still praised the performance of Albertini, who had come from their country. Perhaps this would make him feel a little better?

Maldini did not have the time to be annoyed at conceding the goal. He had experienced many situations like it. He just stared at Demetrio Albertini, who celebrated with the Forest players.

He was equally familiar with Demetrio’s pass to Ribéry. During their time together at AC Milan, he had seen many of such passes every season. Some of them became goals in the end and some of them, unfortunately, did not. Among the men who had received his passes were Basten, Marcelo, Bierhoff, Shevchenko, Roberto Baggio, and so on. Now it was Ribéry.

The player who had once only passed this kind of ball to those wearing the AC Milan and Italy national team jerseys, now passed to what had become an enemy of AC Milan.

— I’m serious about wanting to beat AC Milan and go all out to defeat you to help the Forest team become the champion. That’s the farewell game I want. Do you understand, Paulo?

Of course, I get it, Demetrio…

All right, I’ll give you the farewell game you want!

Paulo Maldini picked up the fallen captain’s armband and turned to walk back toward the goal. He had to prepare for the kick-off in the center circle.