The Young Lion

Aldridge took Bert and Earl back home, probably at their new home. The two little guys had been making a fuss all night. Aldrich himself seemed exhausted, but Ivan worked harder than him, and almost stayed up all night. , For this, Aldrich felt a little guilty.

If he had to go to work during the day, he would drive his two sons to Arthur, and he would pick them up after get off work.

It's a much better situation than he is finding time to travel to and from Liverpool every week.

And during this period of time, he was really busy and dizzy. In addition to the work of the club, he went home at night to study the national team data, past game videos, etc., and took care of his two sons. It was one thing for him to be willing to do so. Being exhausted is another matter.

On the day before the team set off to Moscow, Aldridge was almost late.

Putting on a suit and rushing out of the house in a race against time, the British paparazzi caught a very selling photo.

Be it Fleet Street or other European media, Aldrich is disgusted now.

When he was working at the club, he tried his best to downplay his role as the national team coach, but whenever the press conference came, the reporters’ questions were all about the England national team. He doesn't set the rules and deal with it coldly, but he avoids answering any questions about the England national team.

Millwall ushered in the first round of the European Champions Cup group stage of the new season, a guest in Moscow.

Being a guest in Moscow at this time point is much easier than going there to play games in November and December.

However, when the 90-minute game ended, the Muscovites were cheering and celebrating.

They achieved an epic victory worthy of a book!

Spartak Moscow 2:1 Millwall.

The first day of the Champions League race of the new season. The defending champion burst into cold!

It's normal for Millwall to win. The tie was a small accident. Can lose? Who dares to think so before the game?

One of the manifestations of the outstanding record in the European War is that Millwall has only lost to Bayern Munich in the European War in the past four years.

Spartak Moscow came close to going down in Millwall club European history.

Three consecutive draws in the league, losing the first game in the European group stage,

Winter in Millwall seems to come earlier than expected.

This game allowed Aldridge to identify the problem he found in the Tottenham game: what is missing from the team!

After the game, there was a dead silence in the locker room. The Millwall players silently took off their jerseys, took a shower, and changed into clean clothes. Then sit on a chair and wait for other teammates, ready to leave here.

The sound insulation of the locker room is poor. The carnival sound from the home team's locker room was extremely harsh, even if it wasn't intentional by Sparta Moscow, but it sounded like a mockery to the Millwall players.

Aldridge took all the responsibilities at the post-match press conference and tried his best to excuse his disciples.

There are many international players in the team, and the impact of the virus has not dissipated.

Disadvantages of being a guest.

The team's prospects for qualifying are no problem.

And he personally took responsibility for the defeat, admitting that it was an improper use of tactics. He underestimated the opponent, did not expect Sparta Moscow to be so tough at home...

After the press conference. Aldridge came to the locker room, closed the door gently, and watched the scene where no one wanted to speak, walked to the empty seat and sat down, silent for a while.

He seems to be accompanying the players to taste the taste of this moment.

The players suddenly turned their attention to him, but still no one spoke.

Aldridge didn't throw a tantrum, which he wouldn't hesitate to vent if it would solve the problem.

But he knew that was not the way to solve the problem.

There is a problem with the team. This problem is a concern of the coaching staff before the season, but it is difficult to avoid it through words.

What is needed more now is communication.

I'm in a bad mood after losing the game, right?

Aldridge spoke with a sigh.

Some players nodded.

Okay, let me do a review first, as you can see, I am also the manager of the England national team. Reduce. Next, I will say something that makes you feel uncomfortable, but I am not blaming anyone. At this time, we need to be united. If, you think that my resignation as the England national team coach can improve the team. situation, then as long as you tell me, I will hand in my resignation to the FA as soon as I return to London.

As soon as Aldridge finished speaking, Schneider immediately said: Boss, today's game was lost, but it has nothing to do with you being the coach of the England national team. We can all see the underestimation of the club. To be honest, I am happy and proud of the boss. Don’t worry, boss. It’s not the end of the world. We will adjust our state and try to win all the games.

Schneider's qualifications in the locker room gave him a great say, and his words were recognized by his teammates.

For players like them, they have been battle-tested and battle-tested, and there is nothing to worry about losing. There will be games in the future, and the situation is not on the edge of a cliff.

Aldridge smiled with a bleak expression, and said: Yeah, it's not the end of the world, but I don't think there is a problem with your competitive state. As I said before, I will say something to make you feel uncomfortable. If you are comfortable, it may cause you to resist me and even complain about me, but I must say that your fighting will has recently declined strongly!

The expressions of the players on the whole team became serious, and the atmosphere became dignified.

The head coach can criticize the player's state, which the player cannot quibble or deny.

But the head coach accused the players of lacking the will to fight. In layman's terms, they don't fight like men on the court!

This, who can bear it? !

Aldridge sighed: For you guys, it's been six years, five years at Millwall. Four years. Two years... honors. Get soft hands, live in a big house, drive a famous car, dress high-end. Clothes, you are stars everywhere you go, and they are the focus. It seems that you have become expensive. You have become different from ordinary players. We win, win, keep winning, Juventus, Milan, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, Bayern Munich and other top European teams are all defeated by us. Who else can stop us? Yes. Who else can stop us? But why did we lose to Spartak Moscow? Why? What about losing to a team in the second-tier European league?

Many players suddenly lowered their heads. Feel ashamed, even humiliated.

Is it because Ronaldinho, Nedved, Materazzi are absent?

Or is it because the environment in Eastern Europe makes us uncomfortable?

Or is the artificial turf on this pitch making it awkward for us to play?

Or, you guys, naively think that the opponent should lose to us?

Or, you are afraid of getting hurt, and you feel that it is not worth it to get hurt by colliding with a group of unknown players like your opponent. Or, you take it for granted that this is only the first group match, and there are still 5 games anyway. Qualify, lose a game, it doesn't matter.

Aldridge looked around the locker room, no player dared to look at him.

Some words really hit their minds, or their subconscious minds.

Even though Millwall has experience as a guest in Eastern Europe in the past few years, there is no guarantee that the team can fully adapt to the climate and environment here when they come to Eastern Europe to play.

It can only be said that experience has given them sufficient mental preparation.

There are also obvious differences between artificial turf and natural turf. When a player falls on artificial turf, not to mention flaws, the scratches alone are extremely painful.

The Champions League group stage is now so relaxed, and Millwall is in a relatively weak group, which instead gives the players a lot of ideas to retreat.

What's a loss?

The trend of the game is that Millwall scored a goal in the 32nd minute, was equalized in the 60th minute, and was killed in the 91st minute!

In the 30 minutes since the equalizer, Aldridge identified the team's problems from the sidelines.

The will to fight has declined!

Why do top teams always kill their opponents at the last moment? Why do the quasi-strong teams always concede the ball in the final stage in the dialogue between the strong and the strong?

Sometimes it is not the difference in the basic strength of the team, but the difference in willpower.

When the players reach the watershed stage in physical fitness after 70 minutes, whoever has the stronger desire to win and who has the stronger willpower can decide the final result of the game!

Millwall's situation is the exact opposite of most teams with soft mental attributes.

It's because this team is too strong!

It is so strong that it has begun to ignore teams below a certain level.

Play against first-class opponents, play key games, and see no problems.

But meeting teams like Sparta Moscow and Tottenham made them uninterested, like an arrogance of high self-confidence that disdains to compete with opponents.

He probably thought that if he kicked casually, he would win the opponent, and the victory would be a matter of course. In case of injury, the price seemed too high, and the players began to avoid it deliberately.

Indeed, Millwall won many games in 60 minutes and 70 minutes last season.

But that was when they quickly resolved the fight with 100% combat power.

It doesn't mean that they can take it for granted to win within 90 minutes with 60% combat power.

After the score was equalized in this game, Aldridge adjusted his tactics and actively attacked, but the players on the field did not show a stronger aggressiveness. The decline in confrontation and impact is the best manifestation.

Aldridge said softly: Perhaps, I have a disagreement with you, and I don't question your ambition to continue to achieve glory, but I think that if things continue like this, the glory of Millwall in recent years will come to an end. That's it. But maybe you don't agree, you think we can maintain our status as the king of European football in the current state. These years, thank you for accompanying me and this club that used to have nothing. You are the heroes of the team, this cannot be erased, I am grateful, and I can’t bear to criticize you too much. Regarding today’s differences, I will take a step back and follow your ideas. When we succeed, we will be together. When we fail, we will be together. I'll be with you too, when the season is over, we'll see how it goes, if I'm wrong, I apologize, if I'm right, let's forget about the season and start over, now, let's go home.

As soon as Aldrich finished speaking, he stood up and walked slowly towards the door. Southgate shouted from behind: Boss!

In that scene, it seemed that Aldrich was going to abandon them and leave.

Aldrich turned around with a smile, shook his head to stop the stunned Southgate from saying anything, and said softly: As I said, success or failure, we will all be together. The big deal is to start all over again. (unfinished to be continued..)