393 Keane, The Man Part 2 (2/2)

While he closed his eyes to enjoy a moment of relaxation after training, a voice made him reflexively tense up.

”Hey, kid.”

It was Roy Keane's voice.

”What are you tense about?”

Wood relaxed his body and continued to stand under the shower. He did nothing except let the gush of water flow down from his head.

”You should know who I am. We even exchanged jerseys before.”

”Roy Keane.” Wood finally spoke.

Keane gave a bark of laughter. ”It seems you haven't forgotten me. Do you still remember what I said to you when we exchanged jerseys? 'We're going to compete often; don't let me down, kid.' It's a shame that we're not going to have many opportunities to do that. I'm going to Glasgow tomorrow. Do you know where that is? It's the capital of Scotland. I'm going there to sign with a team... When we met, I never thought I'd leave Manchester United one day.” Keane changed his position in the pool and put his head on the side of the pool. He put his arms up on the edge and looked up at the ceiling.

”Even though we may not have many chances to compete with each other, I'll keep my eye on you. You want to know why I care about you, kid?”

Wood moved a little to turn and look at the figure in the pool. ”Um...”

”Because you have similarities with the younger me. Well, just some. Your talent is nowhere close to mine. Hey, I heard that Real Madrid was interested in you a while ago. Why did you reject them? It's a much bigger football club than Nottingham Forest. While your team was still fighting to qualify for the Champions League, they considered about not winning the championship a failure. If you go there, you'll soon become an internationally-renowned star. Honor, glory, and money would be yours. Why didn't you go?”

”I don't want to go.”

”Huh. Glory and money hold little attraction for you? Why did I transfer from the Forest team to Manchester United? Why did I insist on the condition that 'if the Forest team relegates, I will leave the team,' when I renewed my contract with Nottingham Forest? Because I knew that Nottingham Forest was only a small team that couldn't hold me back. I had higher goals and bigger ambitions. I wanted to win a lot of things. Have you thought about that? What are you playing for, kid?”

Two people had asked George Wood that question, what are you playing for? In the past two weeks. The first was his manager, Tony Twain.

In the past, Wood had wanted to play because professional players were paid a lot. He could support himself and his mother, and his mother could receive treatment for her illness. Later, the Forest club paid for them to move out of the slums and get surgery for his mother. He had already achieved his goal for playing. So, what was he still playing for?

Wood contemplated for a long while before he bowed his head and said, ”I don't know.”

Keane did not mean to discomfit Wood on the issue. He changed the topic and said, ”By the way, I heard you're the team's vice-captain now. How does it feel to wear the captain's armband?”

”Very… It's very complicated.”

”Do you ever feel proud of it?” Keane asked.

Wood nodded.

”And then do you feel stressed?”

Wood continued to nod.

At that moment, Keane laughed. ” And here I thought you were a hard-hearted monster. Kid, what do you think the captain does?”

Wood recalled the words that Twain and Albertini had said to him. ”Help his teammates disentangle from trouble and lead the team to victory.”

”That's it?”

”That's it.”

”It's not that simple, kid. When I played on the Nottingham Forest team, I met a very, very good team captain whom I still thank today. Stuart Pearce. Have you heard that name before?”

Wood nodded. He was aware that he was the Forest team's best team captain.

”I was a young and inexperienced kid then, and he opened my eyes. He showed me what a professional player was, what an outstanding professional player was, and… He showed how a captain should act. Consequently, when I wore the Manchester United's captain's armband at twenty-six, I seemed like I could do the job well and with ease.”

”Let me tell you… A captain is first and foremost a man. Do you know what it means to be a man, kid?”

Wood did not know how to answer Keane's question. A man… Isn't it just biological? He lowered his head.