805 Aaron Is a Fool

Nottingham Forest's tactics for the match were actually very simple. They would create a tense atmosphere for Barcelona to play in by passing the ball about quickly and snatching it from their players ferociously. Those actions would stir up feelings of agitation within the Barcelona players and cause them to perform poorly. The venue in which they were playing would also assist them greatly in creating an environment that was difficult for the Barcelona players to play in, as well.

Barcelona was well-known as a team that was not good with headers in both its defense and offense. This prompted Tony Twain to research aerial tactics, so as to capitalize on this particular weakness of Barcelona's.

Nottingham Forest gradually seized the initiative on the pitch after Barcelona tossed aside the advantage they had at the start of the match.

Barcelona had always placed a strong emphasis on getting its forwards to seizing the ball at the top of the pitch. They had scored many goals as a result of their players snatching the ball back from the opposition in the opposing half.

It was a tactic that had worked well in La Liga, but it was ineffective against Nottingham Forest in this match.

The Catalan press once again mocked British football for being crude. They said, "The defenders playing in the Premier League only know to raise their legs and kick the football into the other half of the field. They possess such poor technique!"

Now, they could all see how that supposedly 'poor technique' was tormenting Barcelona…

A forward can only to snatch the ball away at the front of the pitch on the premise that the opposing defenders would not kick it away easily, and prefer to control it at their feet first, and then to send it to the other half through a series of passes.

This was something that the defenders in La Liga did often. As a league, La Liga regarded individual technique so highly that even the players on the bottom teams possessed the skills and techniques needed to break through Real Madrid's and Barcelona's defenses.

Getting your forwards to snatch the ball from defenders who preferred to control it at their feet could compel those defenders to make an error, which would then help the team to seize the ball and to go on the counterattack straight away.

This stratagem had proven useful in enabling Barcelona to gain the upper hand over their opponents in La Liga. However, it was a tactic that was very physically demanding. The season had been going on for quite a while now, and this was the period of time where the players' stamina started to plummet. Many of the Barcelona players who were on the pitch right now were pushing themselves to run.

If Barcelona were able to score a goal quickly using this tactic of theirs, then the match would most likely be decided right there and then. They would be able to control the flow of the game from that point onwards, and Nottingham Forest would be led along by the nose.

Given how Barcelona was much stronger than Nottingham Forest as a whole, it should not have been difficult for them to score another goal.

However, Bojan Krkić and Messi realized, after going forward, that Nottingham Forest's defenders were giving them no chance to get close and snatch the ball away. The moment they saw the Barcelona players approach them, they would kick the ball into the other half of the pitch.

Their actions frustrated the Barcelona players. They were only able to take the ball from the defenders when they ran up toward Forest's penalty box, but, since the Nottingham Forest players kicked the ball away before they could snatch it from them, their efforts ended up being in vain, and they ran for nothing.

Since running back and forth would deplete the players' stamina, it was hard to guarantee that the Barcelona players would be able to last through the entire match.

If their physical conditions were to deteriorate as the match went on, they were sure to start to lose focus, and their movements might become erratic. It would then be as easy as walking for them to get injured on the pitch…

Nottingham Forest was good with long balls. Their defenders were usually able to find their target—Aaron Mitchell, who was positioned in the other half of the pitch—when they kicked the ball to the front. It was then up to Mitchell to do the rest.

Mitchell struggled against Gerard Piqué at the start. He might have been 2.02m tall, but he had a bamboo-like figure and was not physically strong, just like how Peter Crouch was in his early days.

He had ended up losing his first few battles with Piqué, and he was not able to perform any headers—even though he was good at them, and also had the advantage in height.

The commentators kept praising Piqué and Barcelona during this period of time, despite the fact that Barcelona's attacks were not as good as before. "…Barcelona definitely triumphs over Nottingham Forest in their overall abilities as a team. This is an indisputable fact… It is only a matter of time before they score. It all depends on whether they are able to readjust their mentality when facing Nottingham Forest…"

How should Barcelona readjust their mentality when facing Nottingham Forest? everyone thought. Do they have to get rid of the way they look down on their opponents?

Twain shook his head as he watched Mitchell's performance from the stands. "Mitchell, you fool!"

Bill, who sat next to him, immediately asked, "Do we need to shout this sentence?"

"No need, Bill…" Twain replied, feeling exasperated. He realized that, while he might have a mouthpiece now, it would still be much easier for him to say what he wanted if he were on the side of the pitch.

It was also much more natural for him to do that…

He suddenly thought, But, no—wait a moment—maybe this will work!

Twain turned to Bill. Bill watched him, excitement written all over his face.

"Bill, John, I want you to shout like you always do when you are cheering for a particular player. First, you shout his name a few times, then you shout, 'Technique. Awareness. Positioning.' Can you do that?"

Fat John did not agree to Twain's request at once. He leaned toward Bill, and they rehearsed what they were going to shout.

"Mitchell! Mit—chell! Technique! Awareness! Positioning… No, that doesn't feel right!"

"It sounds very awkward when we shout those words…" Bill furrowed his brows as well.

Fat John contemplated for a moment before he suddenly snapped his fingers. "Why should we shout them? We should sing them out!"

Bill clapped his hands together in response. "That's right! We're good at singing!"

"Singing?" Twain was a little surprised. "You'd need to come up with the lyrics and the melody on the spot. Can you two do it?"

John smiled. "You don't need to worry about the lyrics. As for the melody, we'll just use one from a popular song. I've never heard of anyone who is able to come up with a melody on the spot…"

The two had a hushed discussion amongst themselves before passing on the lyrics and the melody of the song to the other fans seated around them. Thereafter, the fans worked themselves up, and a clear voice rang out from the North Stand:

"We have a giant on our team, his name is Aaron Mitchell! He's 2 meters tall and good at headers, jumping, and good on the ball! Yet he doesn't make use of any of that! He prefers to confront his opponent head-on! Lalalala! Aaron, Aaron is a fool! Tony, Tony has lost his cool! Lost his cool!"

The fans made use of a melody from a popular song that Twain was familiar with. Lots of people were able to sing along because the song was catchy and had a very simple melody.

Even Tony Twain could not resist waving his arms in the air and singing 'Tony, Tony has lost his cool' alongside the other fans.

He burst out laughing when he finished singing. This is so interesting! This is an emotion that I won't get to enjoy when I'm sitting on the bench with a long face.

Their voices were a little jarring. The lyrics were quite weird, as well…

Still, it caught the attention of everyone in the stadium. People who stood by the side of the pitch also raised their heads to try and locate the source of the voice.

Eventually, everyone focused their gazes on the crowd of people in the North Stand who had their hands in the air.

"… He prefers to confront his opponent head-on! Lalalala! Aaron, Aaron is a fool! Tony, Tony has lost his cool!"

Dunn, who had initially furrowed his brows as he sat at the tactical area, suddenly smiled. He was the first to make sense of what was happening. He knew Tony Twain must be up to no good, and that the song was his wicked idea.

This was his way of communicating with the players after UEFA banned him from coming into contact with the other managers in the tactical area, as well as the players on the pitch.

UEFA had to be thinking that all was well after they sealed Twain's mouth. They surely did not expect him to make use of the 27,000 mouths in the stadium to help him relay his messages.

The voices grew louder and louder as more and more fans joined in the chorus.

It suddenly dawned on Mitchell that the fans were singing about him. He froze and listened carefully to the lyrics.

His face turned red soon after.

He knew that the boss was seated at the North Stand, and he understood what the song was really about.

The boss was upset with his performance.

In the past, if the boss was upset about something, he would yell and flail his arms about by the side of the pitch. However, he was seated at the stands now, and he could only convey his emotions through this method.

Mitchell was not stupid. He knew what he had to do from here on out…

Most of the Barcelona fans, players, and staff did not pay any heed to the voices that had emerged out of nowhere, because they knew that it was very common for British football fans to sing songs at their stadiums, and that they include all kinds of messages into their lyrics.

Piqué was the only one amongst them to realize that something was amiss with the song, since he had played in England for numerous years and was also able to understand and converse in English.

He began to keep a closer watch on Mitchell. He knew that he would most likely fail if he again tried to snatch the ball from his opponent by relying on his physical advantage.

※※※

Nottingham Forest played a long ball to the front once again. This time, Mitchell did not jump up to fight for a header with Piqué, nor did he try to engage in a physical battle with him over the ball.

Instead, he ran backward towards the ball and waited till it had fallen close to the ground before using his chest to bump it downwards. He then stopped the ball with his right foot.

Piqué went up to him and pushed him from the back. Mitchell made use of the momentum from the push and continued to run backward. It looked as though he was running further away from Barcelona's penalty box, but the ball was still at his feet, and he had not lost it.

Mitchell had no intentions of protecting the ball at his feet after he got it under control. Piqué continued to chase after him to try and snatch the ball away, and he continued to retreat back toward his own half.

When he had retreated all the way back to the center circle, he suddenly passed the ball away. He then turned around and made a run forward!

By that point, Piqué had been led out of Barcelona's penalty box by Mitchell!

The spot that Piqué had originally guarded was vacant. Carles Puyol had no choice but to move toward it to fill up the void.

Mitchell did not hesitate to make use of his advantage in height against Puyol this time. He jumped up into the air and headed the ball over to Puyol's original position.

The player who received his ball was Lennon, who had suddenly cut into the penalty box from the flank.

Yaya Touré was hot on his heels.

Lennon did not dribble the ball forward. He made a turn the very moment he received the ball and passed it over to Forest's left fullback, Joe Mattock!

"Nottingham Forest is very fast on its counterattack! Their left fullback has joined the offense in the flash of an eye. However, let's look at this from another perspective—if Barcelona manages to intercept the ball, they will be able to make use of Nottingham Forest's left flank, because it is currently empty!"

Intercept the ball?

Joe Mattock did not give Philipp Lahm the chance to do that. He passed the ball into the middle of the pitch.

Bentley, who had originally been in the right fullback position, had appeared in the center forward's position, right in front of goal.

He jumped up high, but failed to get to the ball. However, his actions attracted the attention of Víctor Valdés.

The player who followed up on the ball was Aaron Mitchell!

Mitchell had been on the losing end of his numerous battles with Piqué so far, and this had led the other Barcelona players who had not faced off with him before to assume that he was a player who was tall but was bad with headers. Thus, Puyol did not go forward to mark him.

Piqué was the only one who had kept close to Mitchell throughout. He was not familiar with Mitchell, but he knew that the boss must have had his reasons for choosing to use him in such an important match.

Mitchell dashed towards the ball when he was just a short distance away from where it would land. He then jumped up and threw his body toward it.

Piqué did not dare to be negligent. He followed suit, jumped into the air, and stretched out his hands to try and interfere with Mitchell.

Most people are of the opinion that, the taller a person gets, the higher they can jump. However, Mitchell surpassed their expectations. He had jumped higher than any other player in front of the goal. Even Piqué, who stood at 1.91m tall, could not jump as high as him.

At that very moment, Mitchell was like Mount Everest within the City Ground Stadium!

Piqué could only knock his body against Mitchell's and hope that he was able to throw him off balance.

He succeeded. Mitchell was hit by Piqué when he tried to get to the ball, and he lost his balance as a result. The ball that he tried to head into the net slammed against the sidebar and deflected on top of it…

Mitchell subsequently fell to the ground, having lost his balance.

Twain burst out, "That's a f*cking penalty!"

Bill did not need to ask if he had to relay Twain's words this time around, because all the Nottingham Forest fans had bellowed in unison, "Penalty! Foul!"

The referee and the assistant referee shared the same opinion: no goal kick.

Bentley flung out his hands to protest against the referee's decision. The referee shook his finger at him, then pointed at his eyes to indicate that he had a good view of the entire incident. He had determined that Piqué had not committed a foul.

Mitchell climbed to his feet. He was very upset with the fact that he had not scored a goal and that the referee had not given him a penalty kick. He kicked the goalpost in anger before shaking his head and running away.

He might not have reacted fiercely to the referee's decision, but there was one person at the stands who did.

"That's my son! That's my son!" Mitchell's father, who was a workman, shouted at the top of his voice, pointing at the player. "You son of a b*tch! Piqué obviously knocked into my son just now! Why haven't you awarded a penalty against him? I hope your child ends up without an anus [1], you evil referee!"

When Mitchell's father had first found out that Mitchell was going to start in the match, his mouth had hung open so wide that it could fit a light bulb. He had finally understood why his son had been acting so abnormally for the past few days.

However, his happiness was short-lived. He began to worry that his son would not perform well in the match and would end up affecting the entire team as a result. If that were to happen, he would become the laughingstock of the neighborhood after the match ended.

In the beginning, his son's performance showed signs of heading in the direction that his father feared he would.

When the fans began to sing the song directed at Mitchell, he sang it with much more gusto and force than anyone else—especially the part of the song that went, "Aaron, Aaron is a fool." It was just like he was scolding his own son for failing to live up to his expectations.

Mitchell's poor performance even prompted him to make a promise in his heart.

If his son were to perform well in this match, then he would buy a car for him the very next day.

Aaron Mitchell had always complained about how his teammates drove their own cars to the training grounds, and how he was the only one who took the bus. He had always wanted a car of his own.

It was natural for Mitchell's father to shout the loudest after seeing his son perform better on the pitch and subsequently be unfairly treated.

Look at how he rolled up his sleeves! He looked like someone who desperately wanted to rush toward the referee and 'settle the score' with him like men.

※※※

Twain took the lead and started to boo the referee's decision after seeing how he did not award a penalty kick to Mitchell. Soon after, deafening boos rang out from the stands as well.

The fans did not care if the referee was right or not. All they cared about was that things had not gone their way, and that was why they booed.

Booing was nothing more than a way for the fans to vent their frustrations. It did not change the situation on the pitch in the slightest. The match went on as per normal.

Nottingham Forest did not score a goal, and they were not awarded a penalty kick either, but the players saw a positive outcome of the incident.

Barcelona's defense was still weak, and they could only rely on Piqué to help them deal with aerial balls. However, everyone had seen how Piqué had lost out to Mitchell when battling for the ball in the air.

The knowledge that Barcelona was not some indomitable giant gave the Nottingham Forest players a huge confidence boost. It meant that they could keep attacking Barcelona's goal post fearlessly and pile the pressure on their defense from here on out.

Everyone was thinking, Nottingham Forest will definitely be able to score a goal!

Barcelona tried their best to control the game, but things did not go their way due to Nottingham Forest's tactic of snatching the ball away from them, not to mention the terrible venue that they were playing in.

The Catalan press looked down on the long passes being used by Nottingham Forest in this match, but it was those long passes that enabled the team to bare their fangs at Barcelona.

It was as if frightening booms rang out every single time the ball pounded against Barcelona's defense. It would not be long before their rampart started to crumble.

Guardiola had a grim look on his face, and his lips had gone white from him biting them.