324 Forward Line Problems Part 1 (1/2)
Two days later, there was finally a piece of good news from the English Football Association. Tang En and the Forest Team heaved a sigh of relief. Brazilian player Pepe was granted his work permit; he could sign with Forest and represent the team in various competitions. From this point on, Pepe truly became a member of Forest Team.
This was certainly fantastic news to Tang En. Like he was a piece of meat that had yet to land in his mouth, it was difficult not to be anxious about Pepe's transfer. Now that the final obstruction to Pepe's transfer to Forest was eliminated, the only thing left was for Forest to wire the transfer fee over to FC Porto's bank account. With that, Pepe would officially become a member of Forest Team. In truth, he had already joined the Forest Team for their training in Nottingham. The vacation period for Forest's players had come to its end, and everyone reassembled to prepare for the new season. They were also paying special attention to the upcoming qualifying match in late August on their home grounds for the Champions League. Their opponent was Villarreal CF, whom they had lost to during the UEFA Europa League Group Stage.
After resolving Pepe's work permit issue, Nottingham Forest again tried inquiring about the possibility for Martins' transfer from Inter Milan. The inquiry ended the same way as Tang En expected it to. Inter Milan very resolutely turned down Forest's asking price. On Martins' side, he also accepted an interview from 'La Gazzetta dello Sport' and expressed his loyalty to the team. He claimed to only belong to Inter Milan, regardless of the interest of any club. He had been trained there as a youth, made his mark there, and stepped into the European tournaments from there. It was the place where he had become a true, professional footballer. He did not think it would be possible for him to leave such a great club.
Seeing that interview, Tang En did not wish to make further remarks. He informed the club to cancel their offer for Martins, as well as other plans for the transfer. He had originally thought that he might be able to loan Martins even if a transfer were not possible. Since it was now evident that Martins wanted to express himself as a loyal subject of Inter Milan, Forest would give him that chance. Tang En just hoped that things would not develop the same way they had in his recollection: over the next year, Martins would continue to be loyal to a heartless Inter Milan.
Though it was already impossible for Martins to join Forest, Tang En still continued his pursuit of a speed-type forward.
Allan suggested that Tang En consider England's golden boy, Michael Owen, who had been rather unhappy in Real Madrid. From a timing perspective, it was doubtless a great opportunity to bring in Owen during the summer this year. From a commercial perspective, Owen had incredible value. However, Tang En told Allan to dismiss the idea of having Owen join them unless the Forest Club owned a professional medical institution at the same level as the Milan Lab. Otherwise, spending over ten million on a glass man… Tang En did not want to become a laughing stock.
With Martin's deal falling through, Tang En's substitution of choice was Darren Bent, the number one shooter from Ipswich, an English Premier League team in the previous season who had gotten relegated. Whether it was his price, ability, or potential, Darren Bent satisfied all of Tang En's requirements. However, among the many clubs interested in him, Bent leaned heavily towards Charlton. Charlton's manager, Curbishley, was the first person to see potential in him, constantly expressing his interest in recruiting Bent. To provide a main position on the team after his entry, Curbishley even let go of two of the team's forwards, Jeffers and Lisbie.
Furthermore, on their team were two former teammates of Darren Bent from his time with Ipswich. When choosing which club to go to, he even called them for their opinions; they certainly would have pushed him towards joining their own team.
As a result, Darren Bent turned down Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur, Sunderland, Aston Villa and several other clubs to join Charlton.
Currently, Forest was in an awkward position. On one hand, Forest had attained the qualification to participate in the season's Champions League, becoming a source of much allure to numerous football players. On the other, Forest was still no powerhouse; in the eyes of many football stars, Forest would not be their first choice. In this way, the situation became one in which players sought after by Tang En were not willing to come, while those who were keen were not within his considerations.
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But that was not all. While Forest was worrying over which forward to acquire, they were also faced with the problem of head hunters going after their players.
Following Forest's meteoric rise in the English Premier League last season, several players on the team were viewed as stars by various managers; George Wood especially was. If not for Forest's new contract with him, there would probably be enough European clubs coming for him to storm through the gates of Forest. Based on his outstanding performance last season, he was chosen as the Professional Footballers' Association's Young Player of the Year.
Several other young players on Forest also performed brilliantly. Chimbonda, in his position as right back, played through all the matches of the season. Although the lad was not as eye-catching as Wood or Eastwood, his steady performance was something indispensable to Forest. While fans might not notice him, professional managers and scouts did. In the summer, Manchester United put in an inquiry to Forest about Chimbonda's price. Of course, Tang En did not hesitate to stamp a ”not-for-sale” tag onto Chimbonda.
Despite Chimbonda's excellent performance, he was not considered Forest's most successful transfer of the season. After the season ended, his French comrade, Franck Ribéry, was widely regarded by the media to be the best transfer in England for the 04-05 season. Comments by the media were as follows: