141 Wood’s Debut Part 2 (2/2)
Looking at the honest German, Eastwood said no more. He believed that Huth had told the truth.
Morgan, who had been completely forgotten, perked up again. ”That's right! That Spanish guy is amazing! But do you all know, there is someone who's able to mark him so well that he can't perform at all!”
He had very successfully recaptured his teammates' attention.
Tang En knew who Morgan was talking about. He looked at Wood; his expression was calm. He even looked slightly stupefied. He was neither filled with anticipation, nor did he feel at all shy. It was as though the person that Morgan was about to mention was not him.
Hence, Morgan continued to vividly describe an FA Youth Cup match played on a muddy field. ”…. Although we were leading, Arsenal, under the lead of that Spanish lad, launched wave after wave of offenses against our goalpost. I even saved a ball at the goalpost line. But we all knew full well that the situation could not carry on this way. Chief also knew this!” At this, everyone turned their head towards Tang En, who was standing by the door.
Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Tang En only smiled and continued the story. ”That's right, I switched George in.” He made everyone turn their attention towards Wood instead.
Morgan continued, ”I was on the field, so I don't know what Chief had said to Wood. But I clearly remember seeing him point to that Spanish lad and say something. Afterwards, Wood ran onto the field and stood in front of him. Afterwards, that talented Spanish player could no longer pose any threat to us for the rest of the match!”
After the story was over, everyone else was still looking at Wood. However, the look in their eyes was completely different this time. This included Gunnarsson as well, who had been encouraging Wood a few moments ago. Even Eastwood, who had had no interest in him a moment ago, became fascinated by this quiet teammate of his.
Nobody uttered a single word; the changing room fell into a state of utter silence.
Tang En clapped his hands and reminded everyone to snap out of their thoughts. ”Alright, alright, Lads. You guys did very well in the first half. Keep playing that way in the second half! There's not much time left, so get ready to go back onto the field!”
With mixed feelings, the players stood up once again, opened the door, and headed towards the field. Wood was behind the group, and was stopped by Tang En.
”George, do you have any thoughts on that story?” At times, Tang En really wanted to see what material the lad's heart was made of. He simply did not act like an eighteen year-old.
Wood shook his head and replied, ”Nothing.”
”You're not excited? Or happy?”
Wood kept shaking his head. ”No. That day, you told me to mark number 25 with my full might, so I did. Is there anything wrong with that?”
Tang En shot Wood a look, before laughing and shaking his head. ”You did well, very well. George, your mother is watching you in the VIP suite. Did you know that the club's owner is there as well? If you perform really well and win his favor, he will let me give you a new contract. A contract to join the adult team.”
Hearing Tang En say this, a glimmer of light flashed across Wood's eyes.
”I could earn a lot of money, right?” Wood asked.
Tang En nodded his head. ”The better you perform in the second half, the higher your weekly salary will be on that contract.”
Wood looked at Tang En and asked, ”What do you want me to do for the second half?”
With his goal achieved, Tang En shrugged his shoulders. ”Exactly what you did in the first half. You're a defensive midfielder, so the region in front of the penalty area and the region after the halfway line is your territory. Don't let your opponents get past your territory and threaten our goalpost without a fight. Any opponent that wants to cross your territory… get rid of them.” Tang En made a slashing gesture before adding, ”Just be careful not to get any more cards.”