Godfather Of Champions

The Mestalla Stadium was known as “The World’s Best Football Stadium”, but this title should be in the “Crimson Court” head.

The former world’s best stadium’s dressing room had a great soundproofing effect. Even if there were roaring noises outside,no sound could be heard from inside once the doors were shut.

However, the dressing room was not quiet at all. The highlights of England’s 4-2 victory over Portugal on the big-screen LCD TV and the passionate voice of BBC TV ace, John Motson, were echoing through the spacious dressing room.

In the pre-match dressing room, music might have been played with Motson’s voice in the background today. The players changed into their jerseys and glanced up to the television screen from time to time.

This was arranged by Twain on purpose. Even though the match with Germany was a game that did not require much mobilization, he still wanted to be safe.

After Twain noticed that everyone has changed into their jerseys, he lowered down the volume for the television. Everyone knew that the Head Coach had something to say.

“Since our match with Germany is a match that doesn’t require much mobilization, I will not say much.” Twain coughed and cleared his throat. “I’m not worried about your fighting spirit, but I am afraid of your overzealous enthusiasm.”

The players all looked at each other, wondering why the Head Coach had to say that.

“Enthusiasm is great, but you can’t win at football just with enthusiasm. We have to keep calm and our minds clear in order to play well. Do you want me to give you an example? In the FA Cup finals between the 90th and 91st, Tottenham Hotspur and Nottingham Forest, Gazza (Gascoigne) was clearly overly excited. Though he did not hurt his opponents, he injured himself instead. I hope that I would not see this kind of situation when the game starts. Keeping calm at all times will help us to win.”

“There has been a lot of pressure out there and logically, I am supposed to be calming you down and say, ‘Don’t worry, it’s like a normal friendly game.’ However, this does not work today. We are up against Germany, and we all know what kind of opponent it is. If I really say, ‘Let’s face Germany like a friendly match!’ All of you are going to think that this Head Coach cannot be trusted and does not understand the situation at all. Therefore, what I would like to say to you all is …”

Twain took a deep breath and was not in a hurry to complete his sentence as he wanted to give the players time to brew their emotions.

“Yes! Even if we lose to Germany, we still have a chance to advance to the knockout stage, but is that what you all want? Losing to Germany, as the third team to barely qualified, would be the world’s joke! Think about the performance of the first game, and then look at the present, the gap is so big, can you all accept it?” Twain points to the television screen behind him. ” Anyways, I cannot accept it.”

“The fact is, defeating Germany and stepping on their bodies for the quarter-finals is the best result. Guys, I have said enough, what you all should do, you guys should know by now right?”

With that, Twain clapped his hands and opened the dressing room door.

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“Is it good for both sides to draw? If the result of another match is decided, then Germany and England will be in the second and third place. The third place will probably finish third in the top four, relying on this to advance to the knockout stages. If so, England will be in third place. However, this is not guaranteed, thus I do not think the two teams will choose to draw. Whether it is Tony Twain or Matthias Sammer, their goal is clear – it is victory. Only by defeating the opponent, you will ensure that you will be able to leave the group stage and place destiny in your own hands. This is also the dignity of being a strong team.”

Before the match began, the television station in charge of broadcasting the match was inviting professionals to analyze the situation of the two teams, using this way to inform the audience how important this match is.

“We have just received the playing rosters of both teams. Both coaches are cautious and did not announce their starting line-up until the last minute. Now, let’s take a look… There are rumors in England before the game that George Wood would make an early comeback in a life-and-death battle with Germany to help the team win. However, from the list we got, Wood is still on the bench. He is replaced by Michael Johnson. I am sure Coach Twain would not fail to understand the importance of this match, hence for a match like this that he still does not let Wood play, it might look like Wood’s foot injury being not recovered was a matter that was totally unquestionable… It is really a sad tragedy for England, as if Wood is healthy, they believe it will definitely not be a problem for them to get out of the group stage, but today they are going to fight Germany for a qualifying place…”

“On the England side, the goalkeeper is still No.1 Joe Hart. The defenders are Joe Mattock, John Terry, Steven Taylor and Micah Richards from left to right. The midfielders, standing parallel to each other, from left to right, are Chris Cohen, Michael Johnson, Steven Gerrard, and Walcott. The two forwards are Wayne Rooney and Aaron Mitchell. There are 2 changes to the line-up in the first two games, which is when Richard replaces Glen Johnson as the starting right-back. In fact, Richard is more of a center-back in Manchester City however, he can be a guest at right-back. Twain positioned him to be at the right-back, obviously, he fancies his excellent defensive skills. Another change is Chris Cohen’s replacement for Downing. Downing is fast and sharp in attacking but his defensive skills are not as flattering. On the other hand, Chris Cohen’s biggest trait is ‘equilibrium’, his offensive and defensive skills are both average, with no obvious shortcomings. He also has excellent physical strength, good passing technique and at the same time, he consciously retreats to defend for the team. Furthermore, Chris Cohen and Joe Mattock are from Nottingham Forest Club, where they developed their rapport with each other will definitely help England at crucial moments.”

“Look at the German side… The goalkeeper is No.1 Rene Alder. The defenders are Marcell Jansen, Heiko Westmann, Per Mertesacker and Phillip Lahm, from left to right. The four midfielders are positioned like a diamond shape. Simon Rolfes at the back, Toni Kroos, a genius from Bayern Munich, at the front and Bastian Schweinsteiger on the left and Sami Khedira on the right. The two forwards are Lukas Podolski and Mario Gomez.”

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As the starting lists of both teams were announced on television, players from both teams were lining up in the ramps of the new Mestalla stadium to enter.

The players at the New Mestalla stadium were separated in the middle of the tunnel, and there were two exits for the two teams. This design naturally avoided minor clashes between the two teams that have had long old feuds.

With the lines of the football field being the boundary of the players, the fans on the stands are divided into two sides. Germany’s exit was close to the stands of the German fans while England’s exit was close to the stands where the England fans were. Such an arrangement would give both teams the loudest cheers when they enter the field, and they would not have to worry about any foreign objects being thrown at them.

“Guys, it’s time for us to play!” John Terry, wearing the captain’s armband, turned his head and shouted to his teammates behind him. Meanwhile, on the other side, Schweinsteiger was shouting the same thing.

Amid the deafening shouts, players from England and Germany rushed out and stepped up to the field.

“They’re out!” Everyone in the stands, on the television broadcast stand and in front of the television shouted.

England wore their red jerseys, while Germany wore their traditional white tops and black shorts. Players from the two teams held their heads high as they walked to the field and the high-profile British-German war was about to begin.

The atmosphere on the pitch was a bit of a frenzy, with both England and Germans cheering for the teams in the way they were good at, shouting the names of the players. The temperature in the pitch had risen a few degrees as compared to the outside of the stadium.

The match was scheduled to take place at 5 pm local time. The sweltering midday heat had not dissipated, but it was nothing to them in front of their enthusiastic fans.

Twain stood in front of the coach’s seat with his hands in his pocket. Today, he did not wear a suit, he only wore a shirt with a tie. However, before the game began, the back and underarm of his shirt were soaked in sweat.

People sweat when they were excited, nervous or afraid. The atmosphere of the stadium caused Twain’s heart to beat faster and sweat profusely — he was excited.

The frenetic atmosphere did not stop until the national anthems of both countries were played. Both England and Germany could hear occasional boos as their national anthems were played. Both countries have had a long history of feuds in football, and even on occasions where they should have shown respect for their opponents, it had inevitably become a stage for mutual provocation.

After the necessary procedures, the players from both sides stood on the field, waiting for the kick-off.

The afternoon sun was shining, causing the green grass to turn white. The German team’s white jersey almost integrated into the background which was painful, making people dare not look straight for too long.

Twain suddenly cursed. The Germans had taken advantage of the sunlight and England was at a disadvantage even before the match began. If he had known earlier, he would have insisted on choosing the white jersey and let the German team wear the red one…

Although the new Mestalla stadium is cleverly designed, the two sides of the game did not have backlighting and backlight settings. However, the snow-white jerseys reflected the bright sunlight, making their figure look dazzling which is something the stadium’s lighting could not change.

Looking at the expressions of the England players now… They are all squinting, frowning and looking sideways at their opponents. They cannot seem to stare at them for too long and glanced away from them or else their eyes would tear up.

Only then did Twain realized he was not mean enough because he did not realize the use of sunlight. He did not expect the Germans, who were honest, to play a trick like this. Was it intentional or pure coincidence?

He now missed his pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses, and he could not keep an eye on the German players for too long. Lowering his head to avoid the glaring sun, he cursed under his breath. He could definitely get someone to retrieve his sunglasses for him and become the first football coach to wear sunglasses to direct the game on the side-lines, adding another splash to his personality book. However, that would not help the team. On the contrary, he would make the players feel abandoned.

Hence, Twain had to endure the dazzling jerseys and he chose to stand with the players.

Even the referee had to put his hand on his forehead as he looked at the players on both sides. He then blew the whistle for the start of the match, after proofreading the match with the fourth official on the field.

“The game begins! England kick-off!”

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The dazzling sun and the white grass, as well as the German’s jersey, caused lots of trouble for the England team. As soon as the Germans moved, the dazzling whites followed the eyes of the England players, as if someone was holding a mirror and playing a game of reflecting the sun in front of them.

Do not underestimate such details. When the line of sight was disturbed, the players would naturally become restless and their attention and their ability to concentrate would be affected. Just look at Michael Johnson’s direct pass of the ball out of the side-line without a defender and you could see how much trouble this small detail caused England.

Although such an impact was not decisive, it was important to know that England was going against Germany and not just any other person. Any mistake could cause serious consequences in the face of such an opponent.

At first, Twain arranged for the team to attack first, trying to use the continuous attack to boost the team’s morale. However, the England team gave up the ball easily and retreated. Few minutes later, the German team returned to defence after full press(?) England team was not willing to give up and they were trying hard to find an opportunity to attack. Once the ball is in their possession, four or five players from the England team rushed to the opponent’s half with all their might and in high spirits.

But Twain frowned.

The feud between the English and German team had made the members of the England team unable to stand any grievances due to downwind. Winning was a good thing but when blood surged and all reasoning was lost, good things would become bad things.

In this situation, the German team has obviously used the natural conditions as an advantage to gain the upper hand, so the England team should remain calm and shrink the defence line. Usually, that was what the England team would do but today’s opponent was special, so England team’s players only thought about attacking.

Twain knew that this could not go on. He had to bring the players back on track.

He walked to the sidelines and shouted towards the players closer to him, “Shrink the defence line, we need to counterattack! Stop going on full press! Pay attention to the space behind you! ”

Those few players would naturally relay his instructions to the whole team, so it will now depend on the England team players if they are able to calm down.

After Twain shouted, England team’s defense stabilized significantly. They no longer blindly pressed forward and use their advantageous number to achieve victory.

The match returned to Twain and England’s team habitual defensive counterattack.

Twain did not mind that the game was played less beautifully but the fans definitely could not stand the England team playing so cowardly and as a “p*ssy”. The Germany team fans thought that their team had the upper hand, as they kept singing in the stands and cheering for their team, demoralizing the England team at the same time.

However, Sammer was not as excited as the fans. Once he saw Twain shouted and England team started to recover, he felt that things were not so good. He instructed people to specially collect information on the English and Portuguese teams. England had already gotten very comfortable with the plan of defensive counterattack under Twain’s guidance, so if the team continues to attack England team on full press…

He recalled that match where England team won against Portuguese team with 4:2, the German team today seemed to be the same as Portuguese team yesterday.

Thus, he walked to the sidelines and blew the whistle.

German fans must be very hopeful to see their team painstakingly destroy the England team. Even if they could not score, it would still be satisfying to see the German team attack on full press, leaving England with no retreat.

However, Sammer did not do as what the masses expected.

After attempting to besiege the England team for ten minutes, the Germany team pulled back and started to circle round and about the midfield with England team.

Such changes were naturally considered in terms of the team safety but the fans who were watching were extremely dissatisfied.

Just like that, the match that was supposedly groundbreaking, became dull as both coaches were more concerned about the results.

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