The Greatest Manager of All time

The moment UEFA's punishment against Swansea was announced, it shook the whole of Wales.

When Swansea held their press conference, the number of media reporters who came to attend was unprecedented, cramming the club's already modest press room until there was barely any space left.

Naturally, some people were gloating. Some were clapping in satisfaction. Others were furious on Swansea's behalf.

Mo Yuan sat on the stage in the press room. Facing the packed hall of reporters, he said in a deep voice, "This press conference will not accept any questions.

"Earlier, UEFA announced the result of its investigation into the dispute between Swansea and Sporting CP regarding a player's free transfer. Swansea will not appeal this case any further, but there are several points we must clarify.

"When Swansea signed Cristiano Ronaldo from Sporting CP, we fully respected the wishes of the player himself and his family. Both sides signed the agreement freely and voluntarily. Sporting CP also received reasonable compensation for youth development.

"UEFA's ruling, made without publishing the evidence gathered during its investigation, cannot satisfy Swansea. We strongly protest UEFA's decision!

"Swansea is only a lower-league club in England. Once UEFA punishes us, we have nowhere to seek justice. But just like this dispute between clubs, UEFA has chosen, in many matters, to keep the process hidden and announce only the final verdict. Such an approach lacks fairness, transparency, and persuasion.

"We do not know how many similar cases, or other kinds of cases, have been handled in the same way—without public evidence, without a clear process, and with a club directly stamped as 'guilty.'

"We sincerely regret UEFA's way of handling this matter, and we hope UEFA will change this disappointing method of operation in the future. Otherwise, next time, perhaps we still will not appeal, but we will make sure the whole world knows the truth!"

Once Mo Yuan finished speaking, he immediately stood up and left.

Almost every reporter below raised their hands, desperate to ask questions.

These reporters were veterans. They could all hear the hidden warning in Mo Yuan's words.

The truth?

What truth?

The longer one spent inside the football industry, the more one understood just how much filth and darkness lay buried beneath the surface. Dig three feet into the ground and you still would not reach the bottom!

Was Swansea going to tear its relationship with UEFA apart?

Or rather, had Swansea been forced into a position where it had no choice but to do so?

They had already been banned by UEFA from signing players, and this directly damaged Swansea's interests.

Could a promoted team get promoted again without strengthening its squad?

No.

Could they even avoid relegation?

In the traditional mainstream view, if a newly promoted team did not reinforce during the transfer window, it would be extremely difficult for them to stay up!

Swansea's supporters were also stunned by the news.

Everyone had been looking forward to Swansea bringing in a few capable players over the summer to improve the squad.

The media had been closely following Swansea's attempt to sign Hitzlsperger, and in recent days, that transfer had already been close to completion!

Then, like a bolt from the blue, it was over.

The transfer was dead.

And what about Ibrahimović?

Would he still leave?

If he left now, it would be a heavy blow to Swansea!

Later that same day, Manchester City made an official statement: they were giving up on signing Ibrahimović!

Their manager, Kevin Keegan, attacked Lynn without mercy.

Matt Hughes, football columnist for The Times and a Manchester City insider, published an interview with Kevin Keegan in his column.

In the interview, Keegan said, "Although UEFA's transfer ban has forced Swansea to keep Ibrahimović in order to maintain their strength, from the very beginning, we never felt Swansea showed any respect toward this deal.

"They publicly claimed Ibrahimović would leave, yet privately they delayed and refused to enter sincere negotiations with us.

"All I can say is that the player is the sacrifice and the victim here.

"I spoke with Swansea manager Lynn over the phone. To put it simply, he is a repulsive person. In the eyes of outsiders, he may look glamorous and impressive, but on the inside, he is filthy and hideous.

"He may achieve temporary success, but he will not keep succeeding forever. His inner character means that when he fails, everyone will applaud and cheer.

"I am waiting for that day to come. I will also applaud his failure, because without him, English football will be a better place."

...

July 10th arrived.

It was the day Swansea's players returned for training.

When Lynn drove to the club's training base that morning, he saw a huge crowd of supporters standing outside the fence. They held banners and shouted Swansea's name.

The words on the banners varied wildly.

"Fuck UEFA and their ancestors!"

"The Swans keep moving forward!"

"Zlatan: You disappointed us! You're not a man!"

"So what if the whole world hates us?"

"Swans, we'll always stand together!"

As Lynn drove into the training base, the supporters' shouts grew even louder.

He followed his usual routine and went to change clothes. When he arrived beside the training pitch, he saw his coaching staff gathered together and chatting, all of them looking worried.

When they saw Lynn arrive, they greeted him one after another.

"Boss."

Lynn smiled and teased them. "What? Do you lot also think we're in trouble next season?"

Everyone shook their heads at once.

Hughes looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated. Morecambe said quietly to Lynn, "I heard Zlatan hasn't returned to the team."

Lynn frowned slightly when he heard that. Then his expression sank, and he said, "Ignore him for now. We'll do our own jobs. Get ready to start training."

Lynn walked onto the training pitch with the coaches. He looked around at the training ground, which had been renovated during the offseason. Step by step, he walked across it and found the grass very comfortable underfoot.

Hughes brought over a bag of footballs. One of them rolled to Lynn's feet, and he flicked it up, juggling it twice.

He could still handle the most basic football skills.

Then he kicked it toward Biwan.

Unfortunately, it went wide.

Just then, from the direction of the building where the players' dressing room was located, a group of people came charging out like a storm.

The coaches immediately turned their heads.

They stopped what they were doing, slightly surprised.

"Boss! You old guys! Missed you like hell!"

Cromwell, already changed into his training kit, led the group in the middle, shouting at the top of his lungs as he ran.

Lynn watched the group of lively players sprinting toward the training ground.

He saw Cromwell, Villa, Cook, Tobias Rau, Friedrich, Charisteas, Grosso, Evra, Glendower, Gabbidon, Balitsch, Poulsen...

Aside from Ibrahimović, every first-team player had returned on time, and they were all charging toward the pitch with explosive energy.

Outside the training base, the fans who witnessed the players rushing onto the pitch immediately burst into cheers. Their voices shook the sky and lingered for a long time!

At that moment, Lynn felt as if he could float.

He smiled.

Hughes smiled.

Biwan smiled.

Morecambe smiled.

Every coach was smiling!

It was as if all the worries and shadows had vanished into thin air.

That was right.

In the end, they still had this group of troublesome but pride-worthy lads!

When the players reached the training pitch, Cromwell asked excitedly, "Boss, where did you go during the break? I went skydiving! It felt amazing! Next time, I'll take you with me!"

The excitement in Lynn's heart, which had been soaring just a second earlier, was instantly drenched with a bucket of cold water.

No.

It was not cold water.

He was frightened stiff.

He roared at Cromwell, "Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? If something happened to you, what the hell would we do?"

Cromwell laughed loudly. "It's fine! I just like exciting things, but I'm not stupid. I'd definitely make sure I was safe! Don't worry, Boss. Next time I take you, you'll understand. It's absolutely safe! What a shame I didn't go surfing this summer."

Lynn was speechless toward this captain of his who loved chasing thrills.

He silently made up his mind that the next time he signed a contract with Cromwell, he absolutely had to ban him from taking part in high-risk activities!

Uh...

He just did not know whether Cromwell would refuse to sign if that clause was included!

Before training began, the players and coaches chatted warmly for a while.

James Cook had spent the summer learning how to drive and was expected to get his license by the end of the year. Getting a driver's license in Britain was still quite strict.

Villa had returned to Spain and enjoyed two happy months with his childhood sweetheart. Apparently, marriage had already been placed on the table and was being planned.

Pedretti and Grosso had traveled around the Mediterranean together. Tobias Rau returned to Germany and bought himself a house, even decorating it personally, injuring his hands in several places during the work.

Brunel took his family back to London. His grandfather's generation had been immigrants who settled in London, and it was only later that his parents found work in Swansea.

Friedrich had raised an adorable Border Collie and brought it back to Swansea.

After they chatted for a while, the players lined up properly. Lynn was about to give his speech for the new season's preseason training.

At that moment, James Cook looked around and asked in confusion, "Zlatan still hasn't come back?"

The moment he said that, the others also looked around.

Indeed, Ibrahimović was nowhere to be seen.

They all knew that before July, Ibrahimović had almost been considered certain to leave the club. But at the end of June, Swansea was punished by UEFA with a transfer ban, and his transfer had been called off by the club.

In other words, Ibrahimović would stay.

But now, he was nowhere to be found.

Everyone was puzzled.

Some people's lips curved slightly, and they tried their best to hide the pleasure in their hearts.

Robert Baden-Powell, for example.

Of course, Baden-Powell was a backup forward. If one of the first-choice players was gone, his position in the pecking order would move up, and he would get more chances.

The truth was, UEFA's punishment against Swansea had actually made the club more united internally, while also stabilizing the players' mindsets.

Since Swansea could not sign players, it also meant everyone no longer had to guess whether the club would bring in stronger players to replace them.

Now it was simple. No new player would arrive, so they could settle down and focus on playing.

Lynn cleared his throat and said, "Before we start training, I have something to announce.

"From today onward, Friedrich will become the team's vice-captain. Ibrahimović will no longer serve as vice-captain. The third captain will be David Villa!"

The players immediately straightened up.

Everyone knew that once Lynn made a decision, it would not be changed.

Lynn did not need to explain. Everyone only needed to read the stories in the newspapers to understand the reason.

Ibrahimović had been determined to leave.

That meant he had already lost the right to serve as Swansea's vice-captain!

Once the news was announced, the mood among the Swansea players grew heavier.

Ibrahimović's ability was recognized and even admired by everyone. Looking at it now, his future at the club was still uncertain.

After a brief silence, Lynn continued, "All right. Next, we'll begin preparing for the new season.

"You all look more or less the same as when you left, but today's tests will make you understand just how much your physical condition and ability have dropped after going through the offseason without systematic training.

"From now on, get your heads straight and train properly. In August, we go to war again!"

The Swansea players raised their heads and shouted in unison, "Understood!"

Preseason training began.

The coaches and players threw themselves into training seriously, while the supporters outside the training base united behind them and cheered them on.

Lynn had not been speaking carelessly.

Before the afternoon session ended, McConner, head of the training and recovery center, delivered the test reports to Lynn.

The situation was just as Lynn had expected.

The players' maximum oxygen uptake had not changed much, but their field test results and athletic function test scores had dropped by an average of around 20 percent! Their oxidase activity had also decreased by nearly 45 percent!

At the same time, McConner also brought over a training intensity recommendation report.

Aerobic training and basic muscle strength training became the highest-priority items, while anaerobic training and muscle speed training were temporarily placed behind them.

Based on the players' physical condition, field test results, and the scientific recommendations from the medical recovery center, the coaching staff quickly began formulating the preseason training plan. They also added special individual training according to each player's specific condition.

Swansea's new season preparations began in an orderly manner.

When Lynn left the club that evening, he was surrounded by reporters outside.

Walter Raleigh, William Randall, Kate Carter, Leo Sharp, Hoddle Grant, Liam Hans, Roy Wood...

When these familiar faces appeared in front of him, Lynn could not simply brush them aside no matter what.

With a smile, he said, "All right, old rules. Three questions. Raleigh."

Walter Raleigh asked with a serious expression, "Zlatan Ibrahimović still has not returned to the team. Does the club have other plans for his future? Will he be sold, loaned out, or has he already been frozen out?"

Lynn gave a "wow" and smiled. "Starting with a question like that right away? Walter, looks like we can't be friends anymore."

Everyone laughed when they heard that.

But Raleigh remained serious. He said, "The question I'm asking is also what tens of thousands of Swansea supporters care about. They want to know too."

"I can only say that the club kept Ibrahimović for sporting reasons. Ibrahimović failing to return to the team on time is a violation of team rules. Later, the club will try to understand the specific situation from him."

Walter Raleigh nodded.

Roy Wood immediately followed up. "Swansea has been banned from signing players this summer. What is the goal for the new season?"

Lynn shrugged. "Avoiding relegation, of course!"

Lynn felt that he needed to save up some good karma.

The final question came from William Randall. The middle-aged man, who had just returned from his summer travels, supported Lynn a hundred percent, but news still needed a bit of shock value.

"If you heard Kevin Keegan's previous remarks, we'd like to hear your response."

Lynn said calmly, "I hope Kevin Keegan can hold onto his job as Manchester City manager until the day we meet.

"He knows what I said to him.

"I'm looking forward to that day.

"Kevin, keep your seat warm and protect your job properly. Wait for me to come and knock it over."

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