The Rise of Millwal

Chapter 13: You are all future superstars!

The expressions on the players' faces were remarkable!

Shock, suspicion, worry, daze, confusion...

It seemed that a shadow had descended upon the hearts of all the players.

What was there to celebrate in a club that had a century of honor blank? What joy could there possibly be?

Aldrich's gaze swept across the players before him, and a charming smile broke out on his handsome face.

He shrugged and laughed, "Actually, when I first took over this club, I probably looked just like you all do now. I wanted to question my family, why didn't they buy the damn Manchester United? Why not the European kings of England, Liverpool? Why wasn't I standing on the grass of Highbury? Why? Yes, why? Maybe you all think the same, that you should have joined Juventus, Real Madrid, AC Milan, or Roma and Lazio. Just ten minutes of relaxing in the bath, and I figured it out."

At this point, Aldrich paused, and even Beckham and Phil Neville, who had been indifferent, were now staring wide-eyed, focused intently on him.

All 26 players were eager to know what Aldrich had come to understand.

Aldrich's smile faded, and he said seriously, "If I were the coach of Manchester United, Liverpool, or Arsenal, I think that even if I won the Premier League or Champions League next season, so what? People would still talk about the legendary Busby, reminisce about Shankly's Reds, and who among the contemporaries would dare to claim the contributions of Chapman? When I become a championship coach, I cannot boast or gloat, or else someone would surely pat my shoulder and sneer: 'Aldrich, what have you accomplished? In the past, Manchester United rebuilt their dynasty after the Munich disaster; in those years, Paisley led Liverpool to nearly ten trophies in nine years and climbed to the pinnacle of Europe three times. Even Arsenal, under Graham these years, is worthy of commendation, but you, Aldrich, what do you have to be proud of? Haha, if we are among the giants, it is so tragic; we can never surpass our predecessors, our miracles and glories are diluted by the past. So, I want to congratulate you on being part of a century-old club without a crown; this is the most suitable place for us to create miracles and our own legend together!"

Looking at Aldrich, who raised his head with fighting spirit, the players exchanged glances, as if a burning flame had ignited in each of their eyes.

Who wouldn't want their own legend?

Aldrich continued with conviction, "Coming to Millwall was the right choice for you. If I were as talented as you, I wouldn't beg to join a giant; what's the use of going there? To grovel and play nice? To sit on a cold bench? To struggle alone when my teammates' spirits have already waned during garbage time? Then, at the end of the season, to look like a clown in the corner watching the key players lift the championship trophy? What does it mean to have such a championship? A charity championship, a borrowed championship? I don't want any of that! I want to earn the trophies myself, and then proudly flaunt my medals!"

At this point, the 26 players resonated with him, many nodding their heads unconsciously!

Aldrich suddenly smiled, his demeanor turning relaxed as he paced in front of the players, saying casually, "The outside world mocks me for spending over ten million pounds to buy a circus, haha, I don't mind, not at all, because soon, your performances on the field will tell the world that you are the best players, no, stars, superstars! Forget about Maradona, Platini, Matth?us, Zico, Van Basten; for the next ten years, twenty years, in European and world football, you will be the main characters! You will be the household names, the heroes of the green field, even surrounded by beautiful women, maybe more than one. Later on, you will become legends that people will talk about with relish. Of course, I might not always be right, but I think among you more than twenty, at least a dozen should succeed; after all, talent is rare, and those who are eliminated can only look back with regret decades later in front of the mirror. But don't blame anyone else; who made those failures squander their gifted talents? Ninety-nine percent of effort can be achieved by many, but too many hardworking individuals lack the one percent of talent that you have. So, if you fail to leave a glorious mark on the pitch due to idleness, that's really a pity. Oh, no, there's nothing to be sorry about; those who give up and lack ambition are worth less than dog poop."

This speech astonished more than twenty players.

They could not have imagined Aldrich would hold them in such high regard. Perhaps players like Nedved and Larsson in their twenties wouldn't be swayed by Aldrich's grand words, but the other seventeen or eighteen-year-old players, still clutching dreams, were naturally excited and eager to start training right away, kicking their way to the World Cup final...

"From now on, you can call me boss, Gareth."

When Aldrich called out to Southgate, he immediately responded loudly, "Boss, what's up?"

Aldrich tossed the captain's armband to him. Southgate was momentarily stunned, only to hear Aldrich say, "Gareth is the team captain, Henrik."

Larsson asked, puzzled, "Boss?"

Aldrich pointed at him and said, "Henrik is the vice-captain. And Pavel, you are the third captain."

Nedved appeared somewhat surprised but nodded earnestly.

Aldrich's expression suddenly became serious as he said somberly, "My requirements for the team are very simple: first, discipline, second, unity. There are no privileged players within the team—none now, nor ever. No matter what difficulties you encounter on or off the field, you can come to me. One thing you need to remember is that any issues within the team can only be resolved internally. Playing football is your career; it requires not only your technical ability but also your professionalism and attitude. Understand?"

All the players responded in unison, "Understood!"

Aldrich turned to the coaches behind him and waved, then introduced them to the players, saying, "Let me introduce the coaching staff. This is Jansen Bernard, my assistant coach. These four are Babou, Craig, Tollop, and Leo, first-team coaches. You'll get to know the other coaches in different training sessions later. Don't underestimate them just because they look young; I can assure you, they come from Ajax and have been coaching there for four years or even longer. They will train you to become top stars in the world; don't doubt that."

Upon hearing that these young coaches all came from Ajax, the 26 players felt a sense of reverence. No matter how one looked at it, Ajax's training standard was top-notch in Europe.

Once the introductions were over, Aldrich gave the order, and the team began training, starting with a collective slow jog around the field as a warm-up, while he stood aside watching the players' performance.

Taking the lead were the three captains; the other players dared not slack off, and all 26 ran around the field in an orderly manner.

The young Ballack felt as if he was walking on air and whispered to Schneider, who was slightly shorter beside him, "Hey, I'm afraid I'll never forget today."

Schneider made a face and replied, "I didn't even know I had the talent to become a top star."

He was already 21 years old and had previously played for a German second division team.

For them, this first formal encounter with Aldrich on the training ground would become an unforgettable memory.

Aldrich naturally inspired them but also knew a reality that would inevitably come to pass.

England could not keep these players!

Even though in the 70s, after Spurs won the UEFA Cup, Europe entered an era of English dominance, with Liverpool, Nottingham Forest, and Aston Villa collectively reaching the pinnacle of Europe seven times, not to mention other cup victories, the tragedy of the Heysel disaster five years later dealt a heavy blow to English football. After the ban was lifted in 1991, Liverpool returned to the Champions League but couldn't even survive the qualifying rounds. Moreover, the Taylor Report compelled English football clubs to cut investment in the transfer market to renovate stadiums, greatly diminishing their competitiveness.

In the years when English clubs were missing out on the three major European cups, Serie A rose to prominence, gradually becoming the undisputed top league in Europe. This was the same era in which the cohort of players under Aldrich was growing, and for many ambitious players among them, Serie A was the ultimate league they dreamed of, rather than the lackluster English league. Even the allure of the Premier League was insufficient.

Take Nedved, for example; if it weren't for his lack of an EU passport and Italy's restrictions on non-EU player transfers, he probably wouldn't have considered joining Aldrich's team. Even in the time Aldrich once experienced, Nedved took the risk of using a fake passport to enter Serie A, which was regarded as the highest stage gathered with masters during their time.

Standing on the sidelines, Aldrich was teased by Jansen, "I didn't know your words could be so persuasive."

Aldrich replied without flinching, "I'm speaking the truth, a great truth!"

After Jansen smiled, he suddenly became serious and said, "Next season won't be easy; the Premier League has announced that the super league will only have one spot next season. This means there will be four teams relegating from the Premier League, while there are only two promotion spots from League One, making the competition fiercer than before."

Recalling this, Aldrich felt a bit unlucky—it could be said he was out of luck.

Since the Premier League was established in 1992, there had been plans to reduce the number of teams from 22 to 18, but of all times, it would be implemented next season, which Aldrich happened to catch the tail end of.

This made next season's League One competition extremely fierce. When Aldrich roughly analyzed the upcoming competition yesterday, he found quite a few formidable opponents.

The three teams relegated from the Premier League last season: Sheffield United, Oldham, and Swindon.

Among them, Swindon's embarrassing record of conceding over a hundred goals last season would likely hinder their competitiveness in League One, while the other two should not be underestimated.

Additionally, there were several teams in League One with promotion aspirations: Middlesbrough, Reading, Bolton, Wolverhampton, Derby, Watford, and so on.

And with only two promotion spots next season, breaking through the competition wouldn't be easy.