Chapter 25

Last season, Derby County lost the promotion playoff final to Leicester City, a team with less intense rivalry, missing the opportunity to advance to the Premier League. This was a significant blow to Derby County, a team without any star players. The shadow of this defeat lingered into the start of this season, with the team drawing one and losing one in their first two league matches against teams that were not particularly strong. Meanwhile, the teams at the top of the table showed excellent form, seemingly waking Derby County up.

As the match was about to begin, Audrich walked out of the dressing room and, passing through the players' tunnel, he particularly noticed the expressions of the Derby County players. He found them spirited and full of fighting spirit, indicating that they had been motivated internally and were determined to win this match.

This was great!

Audrich was not afraid of encountering a team with fighting spirit. The more spirited the team, the more it could help his team grow rapidly. At the same time, tactically, it allowed his defensive counter-attacks to have room to maneuver.

On the contrary, what Audrich feared most was encountering a relatively conservative team, which would limit his team's offensive options.

As he walked out of the players' tunnel, the noisy sounds of the Den Stadium drifted into his ears. Amidst the cacophony, Audrich calmly walked to the home team's coaching bench.

"Audrich! Audrich!"

The stands outside the tunnel were close, and Audrich unexpectedly heard someone calling his name. He stopped and looked in the direction of the voice.

He saw a young male fan on the nearest stand, waving a poster and shouting his name. When he saw Audrich looking over, he shouted even louder, "Audrich, hey! I'm Brady, do you remember me? Come over and sign this for me, you rascal!"

Audrich laughed, and not far away, a young man about his age with a clear face, whose freckles were hard to see unless you looked closely, waved at him with a matter-of-fact expression.

Next to Brady were a few other young men whom Audrich recognized as his childhood friends.

Although Audrich spent most of his time studying in various parts of Europe, he still returned to London for a period each year, mainly to attend the English football coaching courses. During other times, he would meet up with these friends.

Audrich walked to the edge of the stand, and Brady handed him the poster and a pen.

The poster was Millwall's promotional poster for the season, with Audrich, looking dashing, at the center, and other first-team players standing coolly behind him, with the green pitch as the background.

Audrich signed his name on the grass at the feet of his "self" in the poster and handed it back, smiling lightly, "How have you been?"

Brady took the poster, looked down at it, and grinned, "I'm studying at East London University, it's okay."

The other friends, seeing Brady get the signature, also asked Audrich to sign, some on their jerseys, others on their caps.

"Let's go for a drink after the match, meet at the usual place."

Audrich signed while casually saying this, but he noticed more and more fans asking for his signature. Many fans were following suit, and at this rate, Audrich would be busy signing until it was dark.

Brady grinned, showing his white teeth, and asked in a mock threatening tone, "Audrich, can we win today? Bloody Derby County are a pain in the ass!"

Audrich handed the pen back to Brady, did not answer his question, and made an apologetic gesture to the fans still asking for signatures. He shrugged at Brady and turned to walk to the home team's coaching bench.

"Damn it! Audrich, if you lose the match, watch out, we'll beat you up! Especially your pretty face!"

Audrich turned around, smiled, and gave Brady the middle finger.

The surrounding fans were surprised by Audrich's gesture, but the group of young men around Brady burst into laughter and shouted, "Audrich, if you lose, we'll beat you to death! Hahaha."

The surrounding fans realized that Audrich knew these young men, and the middle finger was just a joke between peers.

The laughter grew louder.

Millwall's fans were working-class, not gentlemen, and their behavior was far from gentlemanly. Being rude and crude was the norm.

Audrich, who would give the middle finger to his friends, was like a rebellious big boy, which not only did not make the fans dislike him but even made the older fans smile, as if they saw their own younger selves.

If Audrich always acted like a refined upper-class person, it would create a sense of distance and unfamiliarity. Even if he led the team to success, it would be hard for them to accept him, as there would always be a gap between two different worlds. Instead, Audrich, with his working-class background, was more easily accepted and embraced by them.

Since the match had not started, the broadcast cameras did not capture Audrich's middle finger, or it would have been widely publicized.

Audrich stood in front of the coaching bench as usual, hands in his pockets, calmly waiting for the match to begin.

The fans in the stands were already showing signs of confrontation before the match started.

"5-1, 5-1, 5-1..."

The Derby County fans in the corner of the stand could only repeatedly shout the score from three months ago to taunt Millwall.

The Millwall fans, in turn, jeered, "Cowards who lost to Leicester City at Wembley!"

So what if you beat us?

You're still in the League One, damn it!

And now we're at the top of the table, while you're in the relegation zone!

There was not much enmity between the two teams, just a straightforward revenge match.

It was like fighting a stranger.

Three months ago, Derby County beat Millwall to a pulp, and today, Millwall wanted to return the favor. Once the match was over, it would be quickly forgotten, fundamentally different from the long-standing, generational rivalry between derby enemies.

The shouting war between the fans in the stands had already begun, and the match started with the referee's whistle.

From the start, Derby County launched a strong attack, taking the initiative.

They took a long shot from outside the penalty area within the first thirty seconds, which, although off target, was a form of intimidation.

In contrast, Millwall was very composed, seemingly unable to adapt to the aggressive pressing in the opposition's front line. Thuram, in a hurried clearance, kicked the ball back to the opposition, forcing Makelele to commit a foul to stop Derby County's attack.

By the third minute, Derby County's high-pressure pressing had Millwall gasping for breath.

The fans in the stands were very anxious.

What's going on?

Why does it feel like we're going to lose?!

Audrich, standing by the pitch, remained calm, his hands still in his pockets.

In fact, he was not worried but rather pleased.

The high-pressure pressing by Derby County was something Audrich had mentioned in the pre-match meeting, and the players would have remembered it. However, the pace of the first two league matches was relatively slow, and even when Shrewsbury Town bombarded them, it was mostly with high balls. Compared to the well-formed Derby County, who almost made it to the Premier League last season, Shrewsbury Town and Sunderland were a step behind.

The Millwall players just needed to adapt. Once they stabilized mentally and adjusted themselves, everything would fall into place.

In the high-intensity, direct-play League One, set-pieces were an important scoring tactic. When Derby County won a set-piece in the attacking third, most of their players rushed forward.

The ball was lofted into the penalty area, and in the midst of a group of players jumping for the header, Stam pushed away the Derby County player next to him, jumped, and headed the ball out of the penalty area, deliberately directing it to the left flank of the backfield.

The ball bounced on the grass, and before the Derby County players could rush to claim it, Pires gently flicked it forward with his right foot. The ball arced beautifully over the heads of the Derby County players, and Pires sprinted forward, with a large open space ahead of him.

At this moment, Audrich's right hand came out of his pocket, and he waved it fiercely toward the Derby County goal, shouting, "Charge! Don't be slow!"

Actually, he didn't need to say it. After the first two matches and the constant reminders in training, the Millwall front four already knew what to do.

Pires sprinted forward with the ball.

Larsson and Trezeguet spread out and sprinted forward in layers.

Schnieder also sprinted up the right flank.

The fans in the stands roared, and the scene before them was exhilarating.

A second ago, Derby County's set-piece was threatening Millwall's goal, and in the blink of an eye, four Millwall players were sprinting forward like track athletes on their respective lanes.

The two trailing Derby County players closely followed Larsson and Trezeguet, and Pires, with the ball, had a Derby County player sprinting back to catch up from his side.

As Pires approached the halfway line, he launched a long pass. The ball soared, crossing the entire half-field, heading toward the right flank.

Schnieder, unmarked, was in the perfect position to receive the ball.

However, such a long pass while sprinting was a significant test of a player's technical ability.

It would be a shame to waste such a good opportunity.

The Millwall fans prayed that Schnieder would control the long pass.

Audrich, standing by the pitch, felt his heart pounding.

This scene was the perfect embodiment of his counter-attack tactics.

Players sprinting forward in a counter-attack, the ball carrier not holding onto the ball, quickly advancing through the gaps into the opposition's half, not only preventing the opponents from setting up a defense but also making it impossible for them to catch up!

He had confidence in Schnieder!

If Pires' pass was inaccurate, there would be nothing to say, but the ball's trajectory was perfect. Schnieder, one of the top technical players of his generation in Germany, could not easily control the ball while sprinting, but if he performed well, it would not disappoint.

Sure enough, Schnieder, sprinting down the right flank, used the inside of his right foot to cushion the ball, perfectly controlling it. The situation where the ball would bounce two meters away did not happen to him.

Just the technique and fluidity of the control were a pleasure to watch.

After controlling the ball, Schnieder did not dribble forward. His speed was not his strength, and dribbling forward would give Derby County more time to defend. Instead, he passed a half-high ball diagonally to the left front, toward the left side of Derby County's penalty area.

The ball arced through the air again.

The two Millwall forwards and the two opposing defenders were all running toward Derby County's goal. Schnieder's pass was in front of them. The Derby County defender at the front point lunged with all his might but failed to block the ball with his toe as it passed by.

Trezeguet was jolted by the defender's tackle and missed the front point, but he continued to run forward.

Larsson, already in position on the left, faced the ball in front of him. He gently flicked it with his left foot. The Derby County defender chasing him was incredulous and even prepared to pull Larsson down outside the penalty area, but he did not expect that in the high-speed movement, Larsson, who had a chance to break through, passed the scoring opportunity to his teammate!

The ball was played back to the center, and Trezeguet, now unmarked, received the ball, adjusted slightly, and