The Young Lion

After the game, the players in the locker room did not wash and change their clothes. Even the injured Pires and Trezeguet were sitting in front of the closet. They bowed their heads in a dejected atmosphere, and the atmosphere was uncontrollably breathless.

Everyone knows that this game failed to win, they have said goodbye to the league champion.

Five points behind Newcastle United, but there are only two rounds left in the league. Even if they win Newcastle United in the next game, it doesn't seem to make much sense, just to extend the death penalty to the last round.

The players were very frustrated, and when Aldridge walked into the locker room, none of them responded.

Aldridge's expression was also very painful. He walked around the locker room and then stood in the center, saying with a heavy tone: "I'm sorry, I have failed your trust. The ambition to crave the league championship stunned my mind, I It should be your fault to keep you in a more restful state, but also to make you face the game more sensibly. It is my fault. The constant victory has made me self-sufficient. No opponent can easily win it. I should realize At this point, your performance this season is worthy of the league championship, but I have no way to put the trophy into your hands."

Aldridge's words were heartbroken and his self-blame was overwhelming.

As soon as the words fell, all the players in the locker room looked up at him with a shocked expression.

After falling off the championship train, the players were fully awake.

They stared at Aldridge, with a complex light flashing in their eyes.

Guilt, apology, sadness...

It was natural to think of the rotation strategy that Aldridge had implemented from the beginning of the season, but at the end of March, the team had no rotation.

Is the coach not rotating or the players don't want to be rotated?

They know better than anyone else.

When Newcastle United began to decline in the second half of the league, the gap in the standings was continuously narrowed, and the players naturally ignited the ambition of the champion.

They want to win the championship. Naturally, they need to use the strongest lineup in every game. Even when many players have rested on the training ground in the past month, they will actively ask Aldridge to request continuous battles.

Aldrich agreed to them.

However, they overestimated their body and had to take care of the cup and go all out in the league. In the intensive April, they finally showed their fatigue after the limit in the eighth game.

In this game, they can clearly feel that they want to fight, but they don't need much effort. The running sprint obviously feels difficult. Before the first half, many players have been breathless.

At this moment, they seemed to have flashed countless clips in front of them. Aldridge occasionally showed worries on the side of the training ground, and his ears sounded. At each game preparations, Aldridge emphasized dryly and calmly, stably...

Who actually failed whom?

The handsome young man who has always looked at the fire put all his responsibilities on his head.

He is like a father who spoils the child. When the child is not obedient to indulge, the father does not choose to sternly blame, but uses the tolerance of the child to let the child go crazy, when the child hits the wall and the head is broken, the father Still did not blame him, but began to bandage the wound for the child.

Aldrich can choose to roar hysterically to them, but that will only arouse the child's rebellious heart, and will only cause an irreparable rift between the two.

Tears shone in Schneider's eyes, stood up and walked in front of Aldridge and said softly, "Boss, I'm sorry."

It was their waywardness that lost the championship, not Aldridge's arrogance.

Is he conceited?

Maybe it was, but he never showed it. He took a serious attitude towards each game and never changed the standard because of the strength of his opponent.

Aldridge raised a smile and said, "Bernd, don't apologize to me..."

"Boy, I'm sorry."

"Sorry."

...

The players took the initiative to stand around Aldridge and bowed their heads one by one to admit their mistakes.

Even though some people are not very culturally literate, they still understand the basics of being cool and warm.

If Aldridge really yelled at you every day to rush for Lao Tzu and snatched the championship back, they will naturally be dissatisfied with the fact that they are almost declared to have won the championship.

After all, someone has to take responsibility.

However, that was not Aldridge's style. He often boosted morale after determining the tone of the game, rather than delusion that the players would kill the Quartet with blood.

But in the last month, it was the team's players that were "crazy", and Aldridge's "lucidity" seemed fragile.

For example, last year Aldridge could be furious against Beckham, definitely not because of Beckham's "outsider" status, or because other teammates are implementing the coach's tactical arrangements, and Beckham's disobedience, not only angered Audridge , Also committed public anger.

But recently, the players collectively "rebelled", Aldridge scolded that no one will serve, they are winning, this reason is enough to refute.

Today's game, if they listened to Aldridge's pre-match arrangements from the beginning, not to mention a steady win, but it will never be a result of equalizing the score by a penalty before the end of the game.

After falling into the abyss from the clouds, the players will seriously examine themselves, and at the same time feel warm and grateful for Aldridge's tolerance.

Aldridge smiled and patted the players’ shoulders one after the other, saying, “Don’t blame yourself, don’t blame you. I’m experiencing this for the first time. I lack some experience, but I’ll learn a lesson. We will be stronger in the future, shall we not? All you have to do now is to forget the game, go back and take a rest, do not read the newspaper tomorrow, go shopping with your family, go to a movie with your girlfriend, or enjoy a meal in the restaurant, I can recommend several good restaurants to you. Well, I still have interviews to deal with. You all raise your head. Remember, you are tenacious fighters, you will not be defeated, you will raise your head high, and business will continue as usual! "

Aldridge turned and walked out of the locker room after he finished speaking.

The players were all up, showering, eating, eating, teammates sitting together and chatting, Schneider went to play a soothing pop song, and the locker room quickly recovered.

You don't have to be stubborn about the game, but after this month's crazy winning streak came to an abrupt end today, they all understood the fact that obedience to the coach's command is the most important.

At the same time, Aldridge was interviewed in the mixed zone and was bombarded by BBC reporters.

"Is Millwall’s league over after today’s accidental loss of two points at home? I mean you will definitely get a ticket to the European arena. In the last two games, even if you beat Newcastle United, 2 points behind them."

Aldridge calmly said: "If the result of this game is unexpected, then it is disrespect for Leeds United. Although they are fighting to relegate at this time, their strength is very strong. Four years ago They are still league champions, but they haven’t played well this season. Millwall has won six of the last seven games. I think the team has played very well. The league is not over, whether we can win the championship or not, today It’s not the end, otherwise, can the middle ranking team take a holiday?"

"How to comment on Millwall's play today?"

"The players are very tired, but they persisted, especially in the face of adversity and finally equalized the score. This is a valuable quality on the court, and their tenacious fighting spirit is playing a role."

"Why don't you give players a break?"

Aldridge was silent for a moment, and then said: "When you might win the league title, you will of course want to put all the strongest players on the field, but I made a mistake, I should let the players rest, I think This is the lesson I should sum up. In any case, there are two more rounds in the league, and there is another FA Cup final waiting for us. Next, we will not make mistakes again."

...

Publicly admitting your mistakes is dangerous for the head coach, because it will cause the outside world to fall into disrepair, as well as internal doubts.

But Aldridge puts the responsibility on his own, not to get sympathy from the players, but to protect the players from being accused by the outside world. If Aldridge is silent at this time, or the responsibility is placed on the players, Tell the truth: the players themselves must stick to the game!

Then there will be catastrophic consequences.

Players will become the target, and at the same time will expose his control of the team out of control, when the internal and external problems will make the team collapse.

In the evening, Aldridge came home, took off his suit and loosened his tie, and sat on the sofa alone, staring at the ceiling with unconscious eyes.

Benitez went to watch Arsenal's game today and it is estimated that he will come back very late.

Aldridge doesn’t know how long Pei Bal will stay here. He doesn’t have time to think about why the opponent is not in Spain to understand which team he will take over next season.

When he was alone, the doorbell rang.

Aldridge walked tiredly to open the door, and found that the visitor was Najib. He carried two dozen beers on his left and right.

When he came to the living room and sat down, Najib took the initiative to open the beer and handed it to Aldridge.

"Is it hard to get through this time? Is it wrong in my heart? Be gleeful outside and defend the players who have made mistakes, watch the hope of the champion slip away from the fingers, Aldridge, in fact, you are The most painful person, but you have to appease the players."

Drinking a cigarette and a cigarette, Aldridge smiled slightly bitterly.

"It sounds hypocritical when it comes out. How can everything be satisfactory in the world?"

What happened in a season is complicated and difficult to summarize in a simple way.

Aldridge wants a championship, but he needs a balance point. If he doesn’t get enough results this season, he can’t keep the players. In order to impact the cup championship, the league did not make every effort, but this is also to let more young players grow up quickly. Otherwise, even if the main team won the league title, but next season? It's still a blue and yellow situation. Once the main lineup has changed, it doesn't mean that the players transfer, just injuries, it will make the record decline quickly.

The coach’s vision cannot be short-sighted for a season, but when Aldridge realized that Millwall hoped to win the league title at the end of March, he naturally also started planning. Rotation is necessary because of the dense schedule and player mentality. Stability is also necessary in order to function properly, but when the latter takes the initiative, Aldridge finds that his plan has no possibility of implementation.

It's already lucky to be able to hit the penultimate round before the champion's hopes are broken.

Millwall's sprint limit is already the end of the crossbow at Stamford Bridge.

Aldridge's concession is because his plan may not be able to steadily harvest the league champion. In order not to distract himself from the players, he can only choose to compromise.

Is it painful?

So what?

To whom do you complain?

What's the point?

Aldridge picked up the beer and touched the bottle in Najib's hand, and smiled: "I don't talk about football today, drink a bar."

The two were drinking one bottle after another, but they did not have the posture of borrowing wine to relieve their sorrow. They chatted about the anecdotes of the past, laughed at each other’s once childish and ridiculous behavior, and talked about the anomalies that happened around them. Puskas' condition...times and times...