93 Let Me Play Part 1 (1/2)

Chapter 93: Let Me Play Part 1

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Tang En stood on the sidelines of the first field of the youth training ground and watched Andrew lead his men in watering the field. Then he looked up at the sky. Even though it was cloudy, it had not rained.

”Damn it! Weather forecasts can't be trusted anywhere!” Tang En muttered a curse under his breath. ”Is this little to moderate rain?”

Tang En looked at his watch, and it was still nearly an hour before the game began. He signaled to Andrew that they did not have to do the watering anymore.

”You want us to stop watering? Are you sure, Mr. Twain?” Andrew asked loudly as he stood in the middle of the field, holding a running hose in his hands and wearing a raincoat and wellington boots.

”I'm sure! Very sure! If you keep watering, we're going to change to playing water polo with Arsenal!”

Andrew heard Twain's answer and waved his hand. The staff gathered up their equipment and left the field. Tang En took a few steps on the field, and it was slippery as if it had just rained. He was satisfied with Andrew's work.

Before the mid-nineties, the Arsenal playing style, especially in Graham's era, was rough and tough and strictly adhered to the cut and dry ”1:0 code”. The football ball was just flying back and forth in the air most of the time, which was not very interesting to watch. But since the arrival of the Frenchman, Arsène Wenger, their style of play has had a massive transformation. The Frenchman brought the art of football and stressed on making football entertaining to watch. He paid particular attention to short passes and ground coordination and encouraged his players to show off their personal skills. Today's Arsenal played the most beautiful football in England and was praised around the world.

However, the team that liked to play this way had higher requirements of the venue. The slippery and muddy football field, which was uneven and filled with holes, was not a suitable arena for Arsenal's performance.

Big John and Skinny Bill had arrived. There were a lot of people there. If they had been in City Ground, they would have almost filled a whole section of the stands. They stood in two rows outside the wire mesh fence, occupying half the length of the field. Although not everyone was wearing the Forest team's red jerseys like John, they all had the red scarves, and someone even made a banner overnight and hung it on the wire mesh. Tony Twain's caricature was drawn on it. Although it did not look quite like him, it highlighted his distinctive feature—his messy hair, which he had never taken care of. A caption was written next to his caricature:

Hey, Tony! Give us another victory!

As the wind blew, the caricature fluttered, and it looked like Tony Twain shouting on the field.

Looking at these enthusiastic fans, Tang En smilingly shook his head and then walked over to chat with them through the wire fence. These people were regulars at the Forest Bar, and Tang En clearly knew they were his most loyal supporters. Just as every player has a group of fans and fan club, Tang En, though not a player, had his own fans.

Ah, it felt good to be liked and recognized.

They chatted together for more than 20 minutes. The youth team players came to the field in succession, and then Kerslake led them to the locker room to change and come out to warm up. John and the others began to cheer for this group of kids. Although the youth team often had loyal fans coming to watch, today's number was so many that the players were surprised and excited.

Just as these kids were getting ready to do their warm-ups on the field, their opponents arrived.

With the blare of a horn, a red and white bus turned in from the asphalt road next to the field. The body of the bus was decorated with the Arsenal club logo and name. The bus passed the field and headed for the parking lot. Tang En glanced at it, took his leave of John and the others, and turned back to the home team's technical area, which was actually a few folding chairs for the coaches and wooden benches for the players to sit on.

Very soon, the Arsenal youth team players came in through the main entrance. Tang En saw several familiar faces in the crowd—Francesc Fàbregas, Gaël Clichy, Michal Papadopulos, Philippe Senderos…

The owners of these names would have roles to play in the international football arena in the future. Now the oldest player was an 18-year-old and the youngest was only 15 years old. After the players, the coaches entered the field.

Liam Brady, the head of the Arsenal youth team, came toward Tony Twain and extended his hand to his opponent. He was a famous Arsenal player, who had once played for Arsenal from 1975 to 1980. He was the core of the team's midfield, the brain on the field, and now the youth director of the Gunners. But Tang En did not know this man. What startled him was the tall man, standing not far behind Brady, with silvery grey hair and a big protruding nose that made him looked like a serious version of Mr. Bean—the Gunners manager, the French Professor, Arsène Wenger.