460 An Invitation from Ferguson (2/2)
Twain turned and left.
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Carrington. The Manchester United training ground in Manchester.
”What?” Manager Alex Ferguson looked at the fax in his hand and found it a bit inconceivable. ”Nottingham Forest wants to buy the Dutchman? Is there something wrong with Twain's brain?”
Sitting opposite him, his assistant, Queiroz, shrugged.
”Doesn't he know what Manchester United's tradition is? We're not like those idiots in Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool who give our players away to our competitors.”
Ferguson was right. Manchester United rarely sold their players to their main competitors in the league in the transfer market. To give a simple example, there had been no deals in players between them and Liverpool in forty-two years. Both teams were bigwigs in English football.
”Are you saying that Nottingham Forest is our main competitor, Sir?”
”You tell me.” Ferguson looked at Queiroz. ”Who squashed us last season?”
Queiroz disagreed. ”Unquestionably, they ranked ahead of us last season. But, Sir, I don't think the Forest team is capable of posing a long-term threat to us. They've behaved more like upstarts these past two seasons. They're just lucky, that's all. Just look at last season. They put in all their effort only to fall apart at the end. It's obvious. They don't possess real power. Our main competitors are still Arsenal and Chelsea.”
After he listened to his assistant's analysis, Ferguson stared at him for a moment and then said, ”Do you know why you didn't make it after you went to Real Madrid, Queiroz?”
”Huh?”
”I've got nothing further to add. Just reject Nottingham Forest's offer.”
Ferguson waved his hand and closed the matter.
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”F**king hell!” Twain swore. He had just received a response from the Manchester United Football Club. They had rejected the Forest team's ten million-pound offer for Van Nistelrooy. ”They turned us down!”
”That's expected.” Kerslake sat with his legs crossed on the couch in the office and said, ”Everyone knows what Ferguson's like. He would never sell his players to a major competitor, even if the player himself has to.”
Dunn, a new member of the coaching staff, nodded in agreement.
Twain fretfully paced back and forth in the office. ”Is there no other way?”
”What else can be done? I've disapproved of you buying van Nistelrooy from the beginning, Tony.” Kerslake shrugged and spread his hands. ”There hasn't been a deal for a player between Manchester United and Liverpool in forty-two years.”
”But we're not Liverpool.” Twain stopped pacing. ”Liverpool and Manchester United are the most influential powerhouses in England and it is normal for them to hate each other. Everyone wants to dominate England. And us? We're just a small fry.” He extended his pinkie.
He made another turn, returned to his desk, and said, ”Help me get in touch with van Nistelrooy's agent. I need to talk to him and see what he himself thinks. And then… I have to meet with Ferguson.”
When they heard him say that, Dunn and Kerslake nearly got up from their seats. They stared at Twain with widened eyes.
”Are you out of your mind, Tony?” Kerslake cried out.
”Don't make a fuss.” Twain glared at him. ”It's not as if I haven't met him before, and we have a friendly relationship. What's wrong with meeting as friends? I'm just inviting him for drinks.”
”I don't think Ferguson will accept your invitation.”
”Don't think of him like he's an eccentric earl in an ancient magic castle. If Wenger had invited him to get drinks, he might not have accepted it. But everyone else is fine. You help me get in touch with Van Nistelrooy's agent. As for Ferguson, I'll deal with him myself.”
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After he had settled the matters, Twain called Pierce Brosnan over. He had promised to accept a short interview from him. When they touched on the recent events around Anelka, Twain claimed he did not know. As for Anelka's brothers and Benítez appearing in the same restaurant, it could just be a coincidence. If that Spanish restaurant really had delicious food and wonderful technique, then it was normal to attract customers and that it was understandable to meet Benítez there by chance.
In short, he did not criticize Anelka for secretly contacting Liverpool. Instead, he insisted that he trusted his player.
”We all know of Anelka's past. But he's currently doing well at Nottingham Forest. He has a rapport with his teammates, and we even broke into the Champions League final together. I don't think he can have any issues. We can still work together for a long time.”
Twain had just announced his trust in Anelka; on the other end, the Liverpool manager, Rafael Benítez, had also come out to deny the rumors. He claimed he absolutely did not bypass the Nottingham Forest Football Club and privately reach out to the player's agents. It was as Twain had stated. It was a coincidence that they had shown up at that restaurant at the same time. He also stated that Liverpool was not interested in Anelka. He would not ask his team to bring in Anelka.
Apparently, Benítez had been a lot more cautious since the precedent had been set with the example of Chelsea privately contacting Ashley Cole, which in turn caused Arsenal to kick up a fuss and bring it to FIFA's attention.
That kind of speech was a common occurrence in football. The public did not seem to care about credibility. They only valued results. Just like how Florentino, the president of the Real Madrid club, had insisted at that time that Real Madrid was not interested in Beckham. And what had happened in the end?
Therefore, no one would believe words like ”we're not going to sell” or ”we're not going to buy.” Those words were not said for the benefit of the general public or fans.
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Contacting van Nistelrooy's agent and inviting Ferguson did not happen at the same time. Twain first contacted van Nistelrooy's agent and asked him about his inclination towards leaving Manchester United for the Forest team. The agent said this proposition deserved serious consideration.
After all, the Forest team was the Champions League runner-up. Its stature and influence were completely different from a season ago.
However, the agent did not immediately give an answer to Twain. Instead, he told him that Ruud was currently on vacation and could not be disturbed. He would speak to him in detail when he returned and inform Twain once he had the answer.
Twain expressed his understanding and respect for the decision.
Although he did not receive an exact answer, the other party at least did not directly rebuff him. That meant that there was still room for discussion.
Once he had taken care of matters with the agent, Twain made a phone call to Ferguson.
Ferguson was a little surprised to receive a call from Twain. But he laughed when he heard Twain's pretext.
”You have quite a bit of free time on your hands, Mr. Twain.”
”We're rivals on the football field. Surely we can still be friends outside of the field, right?” replied Twain.
”Of course; I'm not as narrow-minded as some.” Ferguson was vaguely sarcastic about Wenger.
Twain had no intention of being involved in the feud between the two veteran managers.
”But I don't like beer or whiskey.”
”Of course, you like red wine.” Twain had done a bit of homework to get to know Ferguson so that he could suit his fancy and make the conversation go smoother later.
”So, Mr. Twain, have you prepared any good red wine?”
Twain was a little caught off guard by Ferguson's sudden question. He was going to prepare after he had set things up with Ferguson. Otherwise, he would have wasted his money if he had paid for something and Ferguson had rejected his invitation in the end.
Hearing Twain falter over the phone, Ferguson laughed complacently and said, ”Mr. Twain, I'm going to a horse race the day after tomorrow. Why don't you join me?”
Twain paused for a moment and said, ”Didn't I say it's my treat?”
”Of course, it's your treat. I'm asking you to a horse race and you can cover all the expenses.”
”That's a good idea.”