The Greatest Manager of All time

Once the players from both teams walked onto the pitch, Lynn's expression became extremely serious.

Robert Page also watched the field with a cold, indifferent gaze.

Inside Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, the roar shook the sky.

The noise created by both sets of supporters gradually grew louder and louder, until it became deafening and refused to fade.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are here at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, where we will be watching the final of the 2000–2001 Football League Trophy!

"This year's finalists are Swansea from the Third Division and Port Vale from the Second Division.

"This is Swansea's second appearance in the Football League Trophy final, while Port Vale are reaching this stage for the first time in their history.

"Both teams have performed well in their respective leagues. Swansea are top of the Third Division and have already secured promotion this season. Port Vale are in the upper half of the Second Division table and still have hopes of challenging for a promotion play-off place, though that will depend on how they perform in the final few matches.

"Enough talk. Let's look at today's starting lineups.

"Swansea start in a 4-4-2.

"Goalkeeper: Glendower.

"Defenders: Gabbidon, Brunel, Friedrich, Tobias Rau.

"Midfielders: James Cook, Pedretti, Cromwell, Grosso.

"Forwards: Ibrahimović, Villa.

"Port Vale also start in a 4-4-2.

"Goalkeeper: Mark Goodlad.

"Defenders: Ian Brightwell, Andres Lipa, Michael Walsh, Ryan Brown.

"Midfielders: Ian Armstrong, Michael Cummins, Neil Brisco, Adrian Littlejohn.

"Forwards: Steve Brooker, Stephen McPhee.

"The two captains are currently going through the coin toss. The match will begin very soon. Please stay with us."

Lynn studied Port Vale's lineup.

There were quite a few players in their squad with decent backgrounds.

Goalkeeper Goodlad had come through Nottingham Forest's academy. Full-back Brightwell was a veteran who had spent many years at Manchester City and was now thirty-three years old. In midfield, Brisco had come from Manchester City's academy, Cummins had come from Middlesbrough's academy, and Armstrong had only transferred from Liverpool last summer.

This was how lower-division teams survived.

They either brought in experienced veterans or collected players who had been discarded by the youth systems of bigger clubs. Combining the two could still produce a team with solid fighting strength.

However, Lynn had studied Port Vale's matches this season.

Their most obvious weakness was that their attacking firepower was poor!

Their starting strike partnership of Brooker and McPhee had fewer goals combined than Swansea's Charisteas alone. And Charisteas spent most of his time rotating in and out of the side or coming off the bench!

If one looked only at attacking strength, Port Vale and Swansea were not merely on different levels.

They were worlds apart!

Swansea kicked off first.

Ibrahimović and Villa stood inside the center circle. In the stands, Swansea fans waved Swan Sea flags, creating a spectacular scene.

The two looked at each other. After the referee blew the whistle, Villa knocked the ball to Ibrahimović.

Ibrahimović passed it back to Cromwell behind him. Port Vale's two forwards immediately rushed up to press, one closing Cromwell down while the other cut off the connection between Cromwell and James Cook.

Port Vale's tactical discipline was fairly good.

In wide defense, their left-back Ryan Brown was only eighteen, and they were afraid he would not be able to withstand Swansea's attack. So when Port Vale defended, they had a clear focus: force Swansea's attacks to the other side as much as possible.

On that side, their right-back Ian Brightwell was a veteran who had played on the top stage for many years. He had plenty of defensive experience.

Sure enough, Cromwell passed the ball to Grosso on the left.

The Italian controlled it on the flank. Seeing Ian Armstrong come toward him to press, he casually passed the ball back to Tobias Rau.

At that moment, Tobias Rau carried the ball forward. He was observing Armstrong's defensive choice — whether Armstrong would follow Grosso or step up to block him.

Before Grosso even started moving, Armstrong had already arrived behind him, preparing to block Tobias Rau from the front.

Seeing this, Tobias Rau directly passed the ball back to Grosso again.

Grosso saw a large stretch of empty space ahead and decisively dribbled forward himself to push the attack on.

It looked as if Swansea intended to launch a dangerous attack immediately after kick-off.

Once Grosso carried the ball into a threatening area, Cummins and Brisco both dropped back in front of the penalty area. One of them moved out to help defend the flank, planning to trap Grosso together.

At this moment, Cromwell arrived diagonally behind Grosso.

Grosso looked at the veteran Brightwell in front of him. Although the opponent looked stronger, Grosso had more confidence in his own speed.

After passing the ball diagonally back to Cromwell, Grosso immediately sprinted around the outside toward the byline. Cromwell rushed forward and released the ball first time, slipping it diagonally toward the byline on the flank.

The pass would definitely pierce the space beside the defender. The key was whether Grosso could break through Brightwell's defensive zone!

As Grosso made his forward run and accelerated, a cruel smile curled at the corner of Brightwell's mouth.

Port Vale's defensive plan today was to force Swansea's attacks toward his side.

Then he would use absolute physical confrontation to end their attacks.

Although Grosso was quick, Brightwell immediately turned and rushed toward the touchline. Just as Grosso tried to accelerate past him, Brightwell seized the chance and powered straight into him, knocking Grosso over the sideline!

Grosso had not expected the opponent to commit such a blatant foul!

Most fouls were at least somewhat hidden. But he had never faced this kind of defense from someone like Brightwell, where it looked like a race on the surface but was really a physical collision.

Not only was he knocked over the touchline, his steps also became tangled. While trying to keep his balance, he twisted his ankle!

Grosso rolled to the ground outside the touchline, clutching his ankle, half his face pressed against the grass. For a moment, he almost thought his ankle had snapped!

The Swansea fans in the stadium were stunned.

So was Lynn. He stood on the touchline with his eyes wide, looking shocked.

Not far away, Robert Page merely raised his eyebrows slightly, rubbed his nose, lowered his head, and a faint snicker appeared on his face.

The referee's whistle sounded!

"Foul! The match has only just begun, and Port Vale right-back Ian Brightwell has already ended Swansea's attack with a foul! Oh, poor Grosso is down outside the pitch. Can he continue? He has already been lying on the ground for more than fifteen seconds, and it looks very bad. Even after the referee blew the whistle, he still hasn't got up. Brightwell is explaining himself to the referee, but he cannot change the referee's decision. Yellow card! Brightwell has been booked right at the start."

Swansea's team doctor ran onto the pitch and hurried to the far side.

Lynn turned back and shouted for Evra on the bench, telling him to warm up. Then he glanced at Robert Page. Page gave him an innocent, faintly apologetic expression.

It was absolutely fake.

Lynn clenched his fists through gritted teeth.

Why were Port Vale able to sit in the upper reaches of the Second Division despite not having strong attacking firepower?

Because they relied on their powerful ability to hurt opponents!

They often frightened opponents until their legs went soft, then used one goal to beat them.

Of course, it did not work every time, but this kind of match tactic and strategy was not rare in England.

The most famous example was the Crazy Gang, Wimbledon.

England's rough style had not disappeared. For example, using a brutal foul right at the start of a match to intimidate the opponent was something seen in more than half of all games.

To English players, this was completely ordinary.

They were used to doing it.

Hurt the opponent.

Make the opponent fear them from the heart!

Lynn turned and walked toward the fourth official, saying, "Port Vale's player has clearly committed a malicious foul. This is the Football League Trophy final. If the referee cannot control the match effectively, then if chaos or conflict breaks out, it won't be good for anyone."

The fourth official glanced at Lynn with disgust and asked back, "Why is it always your team causing problems? If you're not making trouble here, you're stirring something up somewhere else. And now you have this many complaints?"

Lynn knew English football was hostile toward him.

Suddenly, he laughed.

"Sorry. I was wrong. This is English football. English football wants to keep walking down its filthy road, so do whatever you like. I shouldn't have bothered worrying about it. You're only a minor figure among referees anyway. Why waste my breath on you?

"I can only blame my team for being in the Third Division right now instead of the Premier League. Otherwise, you'd be desperate to lick my shoes while advising me to calm down and let it go. Heh. Bastard."

After saying that, Lynn turned and walked away.

The fourth official had anger inside him but nowhere to vent it.

Still, he relayed Lynn's words to the referee on the pitch.

The referee, wearing a cold expression, ran over to Lynn and asked in a low voice, "Did you just insult the officiating team?"

Lynn pretended to be confused.

"No. What are you trying to do? I merely expressed my dissatisfaction. I believe that foul deserved a harsher punishment."

"That is my matter, not something you should be commenting on. I must warn you: control yourself and don't do anything foolish. Otherwise, I have the authority to send you off!"

The referee looked extremely authoritative.

Lynn patted his arm and said lightly, "I don't accept your accusation. This is the Football League Trophy final, not the FA Cup final. You don't have recording devices on you. You have no evidence. If you send me off now, whether Swansea win or lose, you'll be in trouble, because the media supporting Swansea will claim the Swan Sea suffered unfair treatment.

"I shouldn't do anything foolish? Then you had better not do anything foolish either. Don't let the match get out of control!"

The referee stared deeply at Lynn, then said nothing more and turned back toward the pitch.

Although this was only a Football League Trophy final with limited attention, perhaps not many people wanted Swansea to win.

Why?

Because many people did not want Lynn, a Chinese coach, to win.

And because in a certain sense, Swansea represented Wales.

Those two reasons were enough.

Grosso returned to the front of the bench with the help of the team doctor, having walked around the edge of the pitch.

Lynn stepped forward. Enduring the pain, Grosso said to him, "Boss, I'm sorry. I really can't continue."

"I know, Fabio. Get treatment first. Don't be too upset."

After saying this, Lynn called over Evra, who had finished warming up. He gave him detailed instructions about his tasks after coming on and also told him to pass messages to the players on the pitch.

Evra nodded seriously and accepted the orders.

One minute later, after Port Vale midfielder Michael Cummins fired a shot wide and out for a goal kick, Evra came on as a substitute.

"Swansea have been forced to use a substitution right at the start today. Grosso is injured and has gone off, while Evra comes on. Let's see whether Evra takes Grosso's position, because in his previous appearances, Evra has always played at left-back. Oh, it looks like Tobias Rau has pushed forward to play wide midfield, while Evra is still playing in his familiar left-back role."

At the same time as the substitution, Evra also passed Lynn's tactical instructions to the players on the pitch.

Robert Page did not expect his team to destroy Swansea through attack.

Swansea's scoring numbers in the Third Division were terrifying. After forty rounds, they had scored 109 goals!

Almost three goals per match.

Their defense was also quite good, ranked second in the Third Division, behind only Brighton, who had conceded the fewest.

Robert Page's plan was to first suppress Swansea's attacks through rough physical battles and fouls. That would ensure his own defense would not be exposed to Swansea's crazy firepower.

Then they could look for chances by creating chaos.

The opening foul had been arranged by Robert Page in advance.

He was looking forward to seeing Swansea's attack become messy, halted, hesitant, and retreating!

But he was disappointed!

Over the next ten minutes, his frown grew deeper and deeper.

Not only did Swansea refuse to shrink back, their attacks became even fiercer — and they all came down the left!

When Cromwell controlled play in midfield, he frequently moved the ball to the left. When attacking, Evra pushed past the halfway line to become a support point. Tobias Rau directly confronted Ian Brightwell, and Villa moved over to create space and provide cover on the front line!

In the eighth minute, Tobias Rau and Villa played a one-two down the flank before crossing. The ball flew straight out for a throw-in on the other side. The cross had far too much power.

Three minutes later, Tobias Rau passed the ball sideways in front of Brightwell to Cromwell, who had run over to support. Cromwell then played a forward-and-back wall pass with Villa, dodged Brisco's defense, reached the left side just outside the penalty area, and fired a long-range shot first time. Unfortunately, the angle was too central, and goalkeeper Goodlad caught it easily.

Port Vale's attacks did not have much novelty.

When they attacked, Swansea's midfield and defense were tightly arranged. Armstrong on the right failed to create any threat from the flank. One poor first touch and one blocked dribble proved something: Liverpool had been absolutely right to give up on him. It was perfectly normal that Liverpool did not need him.

On the other hand, Adrian Littlejohn on the left, relying on his rich experience, could still send in one or two passes. Unfortunately, under Gabbidon's interference, he still could not create any excellent chances for the front line.

Glendower faced no real test in the first fifteen minutes.

When the 18th minute arrived, Cummins combined with forward Brooker in the attacking half to create a long-range shooting chance outside the penalty area.

His movement was sharp enough to shake off Pedretti. Seeing Friedrich blocking the way ahead, he did not try to dribble past him and instead shot from distance.

The ball skimmed quickly along the grass toward the bottom-right corner of the goal. It looked like his shot had found a very tricky angle. Just as the ball was about to roll into Swansea's net, Glendower dived across and blocked it back into the penalty area with his palm!

The Swansea fans inside the Millennium Stadium erupted in cheers, applauding Glendower's wonderful save.

Friedrich was the first to reach the ball and passed it sideways to full-back Evra.

Evra saw that Armstrong had not come to press and had instead quickly retreated, so he carried the ball forward himself.

As Swansea's defensive shape transformed into an attacking shape and the players spread out with their movement, Evra sent a diagonal pass into Cromwell in midfield.

Before touching the ball, Cromwell had already noticed Cummins beside him. Although Cummins could not intercept immediately, if Cromwell stopped the ball, he would definitely become tangled with him and might very likely lose possession.

Cummins was indeed thinking the same thing. He had just stuck close to Cromwell and was preparing to make a challenge.

But unexpectedly, at the instant Cromwell touched the ball, he knocked it back to Pedretti, then quickly turned and ran forward. Pedretti passed it sideways to Evra, and Evra sent a direct pass to Cromwell as he moved forward.

It looked somewhat complicated, but in reality, everything was completed in a very short time. Swansea had finished the crucial transition from defense to attack and had already pushed their attack beyond the halfway line!

Cromwell dribbled quickly forward.

Defensive midfielder Neil Brisco dropped back to a position where he could form a joint defense with the back line, waiting for Cromwell's attack. He expected Cromwell to charge straight at him.

But Cromwell did not.

Cromwell continued deliberately carrying the ball toward the left as he dribbled. Brisco calmly shifted his position sideways.

When he reached a spot thirty-five yards from goal, Cromwell passed.

The ball was sent diagonally behind Brisco.

Brisco immediately turned his head and looked back. He saw Villa moving onto the path of the rolling ball, and he rushed over at once to block and defend.

At the same time, centre-back Andres Lipa also moved close to mark Villa.

Villa engaged in physical contact with the thirty-year-old veteran Lipa. Although he was at a disadvantage physically, he worked hard not to lose his position.

Lipa was not in a hurry either. He was waiting for Villa to touch the ball. Once Villa touched it, his body coordination would change and expose a flaw. It would not be too late for Lipa to tackle then.

But something unexpected happened!

While holding his position under pressure, Villa let the rolling ball pass beside his foot.

He did not touch it!

Lipa's eyes widened. He looked in the direction the ball was rolling and saw Tobias Rau near the byline, having shaken off Brightwell and curved his run into the penalty area!

At that moment, Robert Page's face changed dramatically on the touchline.

Lynn's eyes, meanwhile, blazed with a wild, violent light!

---------

Read 50 chapters ahead and support me on patreon.

patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator