302 As Expected Part 2

Chapter 302: As Expected Part 2

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The thoughts of such unrealistic matters were much too far-off from now. With Wood unable to participate, Tang En decided to give up focusing on defense in the away match. He partnered Albertini with Arteta in the center of the midfield as starters.

Since they had already had lost two goals to their opponent in the home match, there was no point in trying to maintain their current single goal lead in the away match. They might as well just go on the attack and try to score more than two goals in the away match. That way, they could nullify the goals that Sporting CP had scored in their away match.

For that reason, Forest trained to go on the attack throughout the week. With Arteta as the attacking core, he took command of their offense. Tang En also felt that he could take this opportunity to realize the ideas he had had in his heart, allowing Arteta to utilize the chance to gradually solidify his position as the playmaker of the team.

From Arteta's recent performance during substitutions, Tang En could be certain that the Arteta he knew was no different from the previous one. His abilities and talent were present, which would be sufficient for him to fulfill his potential as a playmaker.

Before this, Tang En had been worried that his appearance here would cause a change in the abilities of the players. But looking at it now, it seemed that most of them still remained at the standard they should be at.

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After undergoing three days of training at Nottingham, Forest flew to the capital of Portugal, Lisbon. Over there, they carried out two days of training to familiarize themselves, getting used to the grounds, holding the press conference, and so on.

From their first step off the plane and onto the grounds of Lisbon, Tang En could feel the enmity pouring out from all over Sporting CP's home grounds. After all, they had taken out their main defensive midfielder in the previous match and had even mercilessly ridiculed Peseiro in the press conference afterward.

As such, they now had to bear an enormous amount of pressure in the beginnings of their away match journey.

In the two days before the match, Forest's training was constantly disrupted by Sporting CP's fans gathered at the sidelines. It resulted in Kerslake having no option but to request that their Portuguese counterparts close off their training grounds.

The situation got even worse when it came to the day of the actual match.

Estádio José Alvalade was devoid of any empty seats. From the point of entry of Forest's players, grating sounds of jeering constantly rang out. In truth, most of them were aimed at Twain.

But the Tony of today was not the same man as the football manager who had insufficient ability or was starting out mid-career. It was not his first experience getting jeered at by an entire stadium of fans. The only difference was the number of people. Nothing else. He had already learned to ignore it. His entire focus now was on the match itself.

Right from the beginning of the match, the tactics used by the teams in the match were glaringly obvious.

Due to the two away goals in Sporting CP's pocket, along with being only behind by a single goal, they played patiently. On their home grounds, they chose the strategy of defensive counterattacking, something that surprised even the commentator.

On the other hand, Nottingham Forest also unexpectedly formed an attacking formation.

It was as if the two teams had switched their roles of away and home team.

From the first second of the match, Forest team used the fact that they kicked-off to launch a ferocious attack at the heart of Sporting CP.

With the loss of Rochemback, the defensive responsibilities of Sporting CP seemingly fell to the entire team; everyone had to participate in defense. Their priority was to prevent any loss of goals on their home ground and to only take the chance to counterattack when there was one.

George Wood's red card was a domino effect. Peseiro was clear about that. Currently, Forest did not have the guts to merely defend their single goal advantage in the away match. If that was the case, they would be finished as long as Sporting CP scored a goal. So, in this match, Forest would certainly be trying to score as many goals as possible.

Peseiro wanted precisely to capture this mentality of the opponent. First, they would defend stably. After dragging it out long enough for Forest to become impatient, they would initiate a sudden attack. They just need one goal to beat down Forest.

The offense Tony Twain trained a week for, and the defense José Peseiro trained a week for; it was a head-on clash this time.

At the end of the first half, despite having put all their effort into it, Forest remained unable to break through the gates of the home team. Instead, Sporting CP, on their home grounds amid their cheering fans, were gaining momentum with each successive defense. Their frequent sneak attacks sent Forest's defensive line into a mess of jitters, and Edwin van der Sar into a tailspin.

After the halftime break, Forest continued going on the offense in the second half. However, they had also gradually moved to focus more on their defense. Tang En intended on using their offense to curb the attacks of the opponent, replicating the effect of defense itself.

Their points remained at a stalemate. The tidal wave of attacks from Forest forced Sporting CP to put more of their attention into defending. Time ticked down. Just as everyone assumed Forest team would take a spot among the final eight in this way, Sporting CP scored a goal four minutes before entering injury stoppage time.

It was not due to a defensive counterattack from Sporting CP. Instead, it came from a corner kick.

In a moment of sloppiness in the final minutes of Forest's defense, Matthew Upson failed to follow his mark. A fleeting moment of carelessness led to an irreparable result.

Sporting CP led against Nottingham by 1:0!

If that score persisted until the end of the match, Sporting CP, who had a higher number of away goals, would eliminate Nottingham Forest.

Forest was obviously unwilling for that to happen. In the last moments, Tang En used up all three of his substitution quota. He substituted center back Upson for a forward, Bendtner.

Including the three minutes of injury stoppage time, there were only seven minutes left in the match. In those seven minutes, Forest only had a single fullback left on the field: Hierro. Both Leighton Baines and Chimbonda had received Tang En's instructions to go full out on offense and ignore defending.

The formation of the Forest team abruptly became an astonishing 1333 - one fullback and two rear defenders moving forward to join Albertini in a row as part of the midfield.

Tang En's way of battling to the death was to entirely disregard their defense. Even so, Forest team did not manage to get the result they yearned for in Estádio José Alvalade.

When the German referee sounded the final whistle to signal the end of the match, the cheers that erupted from within the grounds of Estádio José Alvalade shook the skies with its ferocity. The players of Sporting CP hugged one another in celebration of their hard-earned victory.

On the other end, Nottingham Forest's players were collapsed on the ground breathing heavily, reluctantly watching the joy of their opponents.

Conversely, Tang En was neither dissatisfied nor dejected. At the point when Eastwood was sent to the hospital for his severe injury and George Wood was fouled out with a red card because he took revenge, this result had already been foreseen by Tang En.

Watching the celebratory scene of their opponent's victory and listening to the wave of cheers, each louder than the last, drifting in from the spectators' stands, Tang En turned to face David Kerslake beside him. He said, "I think… you're right, David. I made a big mistake. A very, very big mistake. and now I've failed."