Chapter 56

As the beginning of early May approached, Millwall welcomed their final League One match of the season at home against Swindon Town.

Over the past two months, Millwall had performed brilliantly, achieving eight wins, four draws, and one loss in 13 league matches, securing the League One title six rounds ahead of schedule. Their points total reached a record-breaking 104, and if they won the final match, it would be refreshed to 107.

The top scorer in League One was no longer in doubt, as Larsen scored an astonishing 38 goals in 39 League One matches, averaging nearly one goal per game. The second-place scorer, Trezeguet, also achieved an impressive 28 goals. The assist king was Schneider, with 21 assists, also setting a new League One record.

This was not only a season of rebirth for Millwall but also an extraordinary one.

Swindon Town, Millwall's final opponent, also had an extraordinary season. After being relegated from the Premier League to League One last season, Swindon was ranked 21st in the league, just 2 points ahead of 22nd-placed Sunderland. To secure their survival, Swindon not only had to defeat Millwall, who had an unbeaten home record of 19 wins and 3 draws in 22 matches, but also needed West Bromwich Albion to defeat Sunderland. Even a draw by West Brom would be meaningless for Swindon, as they had a significant goal difference of 15 goals behind Sunderland.

With the league title already secured, Aldridge, like in the past two months, planned to field as many substitutes as possible for the final match to give them more experience.

Aldridge, who had been enjoying a successful period both on and off the pitch, had also found love. Since meeting the sporty Melanie, he would date her after work and talk to her on the phone every night before bed, showing a deep affection.

However, with the girl group filming their debut single in London, their meetings became less frequent. Aldridge was not bothered by this, as the end of the season was approaching, and the busy summer transfer window awaited him.

The Premier League had already completed its penultimate round, with leaders Blackburn Rovers and second-placed Manchester United both winning their home matches by a single goal. On the league table, Manchester United trailed Blackburn by 2 points. The final match would be held mid-month, with Manchester United away at West Ham United and Blackburn at Liverpool. The situation was not too dire for Manchester United, as they had a significant goal difference advantage over Blackburn. If Blackburn failed to win at Anfield, even a draw would allow Manchester United to clinch the title with a win away from home.

The title race down to the final match, the Premier League's championship suspense was eagerly anticipated by the public.

At this time, the media's attention was naturally drawn to the Premier League title, especially with Kenny Dalglish's return to Anfield and the possibility of Liverpool winning their first league title in five years. Unscrupulous media even predicted that Liverpool would show old affection and help Dalglish defeat arch-rival Alex Ferguson.

Meanwhile, Manchester United faced criticism and speculation from the media. After Cantona's suspension, Manchester United repeatedly missed opportunities to overtake Blackburn in crucial matches. While their away loss to Liverpool was understandable, their inability to defeat Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur, and even mediocre Chelsea at home, without even scoring, focused attention on their forward line.

Despite Manchester United's leading goal tally in the Premier League, it was largely due to their 11 goals against already-relegated Ipswich Town, including a 2-3 away loss and a record-breaking 9-0 home win, which only netted them 3 points.

When asked repeatedly about how to address the lack of goals, especially in crucial matches, Ferguson mentioned a familiar name to the media: Henrik Larsson.

The old fox praised Larsson, suggesting that he should join Manchester United, where his technical skills would fit perfectly into the team's tactical system, allowing him to achieve great success.

After Aldridge attended the League One final match press conference as usual, over 30 journalists raised their hands, and as soon as he sat down, someone directly asked, "Mr. Hall, Manchester United is very interested in Larsson. Will Millwall sell Larsson in the summer?"

The press conference room instantly fell silent, with dozens of eyes fixed on Aldridge. The journalists, pens in hand, were ready to record every word he said.

Despite it being the final League One match, no one seemed to care.

Almost all the journalists cursed in their hearts: "F**k! The League One season is already over! The only suspense is whether Swindon or Sunderland will be relegated and who will win the promotion play-offs!"

What they were more interested in was whether Larsson would join Manchester United!

Larsson, a super forward who could score nearly 40 goals in a single League One season, might still be a big star in the future, even if there was a significant gap between League One and the Premier League. If he joined Manchester United, he could score over 15 goals in a season.

The key question was: Would Millwall sell?

Could they keep him?

Would the young manager lose his composure due to the poaching?

News, all news!

In the silent press conference room, Aldridge calmly scanned the audience, noticing that the journalists were like diligent students, ready to record his words, their eyes glowing green.

Aldridge paused for a moment and said slowly, "Ferguson says he loves Larsson? Really?"

"Really loves!"

The journalists shouted in unison.

Damn it, just say whether you'll sell or not!

Aldridge blinked and said in a deep, resonant voice, "Love is a sweet pain, and true love is never a smooth path."

With that, Aldridge calmly stood up and left the room.

The over 30 journalists were stunned, as if struck by lightning.

Two phrases simultaneously circled in their minds.

The first: "What the f**k!"

The second: "What the hell?"

Damn it, what's going on?!

In the silent press conference room, all the journalists were dumbfounded.

Thomson from The Sun, definitely a humanities student, was the first to react, shouting, "Shakespeare!"

Everyone turned to look at Thomson, their eyes like knives, as if asking, "What do you mean?!"

"Mr. Hall just quoted a famous line by Shakespeare."

The press conference room erupted!

The journalists whispered to each other, trying to understand the meaning.

Some journalists, who had grasped the meaning, frowned, unable to decipher the depth of Aldridge's words.

Was it a test of love between Millwall and Larsson, or would Manchester United, the third party, find it difficult to take Larsson away?

Some journalists were so puzzled that they almost pulled their hair out, but this was just a vague guess, open to interpretation. To know the answer, one would have to split Aldridge's head open.

Aldridge left the press conference room, suppressing a laugh. He had mastered the art of dealing with the media.

He must never let the media lead him. In the past, interviews and press conferences were a question-and-answer format, which made him passive and at the mercy of the media. Now, he needed to take the initiative.

As for the players,

In the first week of May, the club had already renewed contracts with all the first-team players, giving them salary increases ranging from £3,000 to £10,000 based on their performance last season!

This was a significant raise, with an additional signing fee of £20,000 to £50,000.

Aldridge had invested heavily, but the club's income for the season had been largely calculated.

The club's jersey sales had skyrocketed, earning nearly £500,000. Home match attendance was almost full, generating over £200,000 per game, totaling nearly £5 million for the season. Additionally, although the broadcasting fees were not high, combined with match bonuses, they amounted to over £400,000.

After deducting costs, Aldridge found that out of the £30 million he had invested last year, with £13 million spent on transfers in the summer, the club still had nearly £20 million left. This was unexpected, so he quickly finalized the players' contracts, and the significant salary increases did not bother him. Extending the players' contracts for another year would bring immeasurable long-term benefits.

With new sponsorship fees and the next season's Premier League broadcasting revenue expected to arrive in the summer, Aldridge could even allocate £5 million for the summer transfer window.

For the summer, Aldridge was equally ambitious, as he needed to lay a more solid foundation for the future.