694 Chilly

After the match with Manchester City, the media lost interest in hyping up the resentment between Bendtner and Nottingham Forest. Upon losing the bet, Bendtner treated all his teammates to a round of drinks. He was smiling again, almost as if he had forgotten the ordeal he'd experienced at City Ground Stadium. Although he'd lost the match and his bet, his relationship with his new teammates had become more harmonious.

Nottingham Forest fans also stopped discussing the player who'd defected, but Bendtner would be greeted with jeers if he returned to that stadium for another match as a Manchester City player. His performance had made a lasting impression on Nottingham Forest fans.

Nottingham Forest players also no longer talked about the past matches, even though that particular match created many topics that could be talked about with great relish. George Wood's goal was evaluated to be the best in that round and was repeatedly played in the highlight reel. Žigić was also favored by the media because he had only recently transferred into the Premier League for a month, but had already scored for Nottingham Forest in his second match. Plus, this goal became the final winning goal.

After the end of that league match, Twain brought the team to Kyiv, Ukraine to participate in their second match in the Champions League. It was October, and the weather in Kyiv was cool and perfect for outdoor activities.

Although they were playing in the Champions League, Twain decided to use rotations on account of FC Kyiv Dynamo's true capabilities and the current state of the team. Switching up the roster they'd used in the Manchester City match and relying on the second-grade roster, Nottingham Forest was victorious over FC Kyiv Dynamo with a 2:1 victory as the away team. This gave them a streak of two consecutive wins streak and a good start for their group matches.

Continuing their expedition created problems with the physical fitness of the team. Their physical reserves, which had never been exceptional, had been hovering below the safety line since the international matches.

Upon returning to England, Nottingham Forest tied against Middlesbrough with a score of 0:0.

After seven matches, Nottingham Forest ranked 4th in the league with 14 points. They were even behind the newly promoted Hull City. Hull City, since their five-goal loss to Nottingham Forest in the second match, had achieved three consecutive wins, bagging four wins and one draw in their five most recent matches. They had accumulated the same number of points on the league table as Nottingham Forest, placing third and thereby becoming the biggest black horse since the opening of the new league season.

Even Twain would lament the inconstancy of life. Hull City, who they had utterly destroyed in the second match, now placed above them in third place. He was not concerned that Hull City could become a real threat to their team, however. It was normal for recently promoted teams to be ranked highly at the start of the season as they relied mostly on momentum and the public's general unawareness of them. The trial of endurance was what truly tested the mettle of these teams. Wigan Athletic F.C. was once also called a black horse, but now? The coach who looked up to him was still leading a team that was working hard in the Champions League to return to the Premier League.

Soccer's top leagues were essentially just a rich man's game. Without a stable financial backing, a team would only be a temporarily brilliant display. At the end of the day, they would still be heartlessly eliminated. No matter how strong a team was, stronger teams would split them up if they did not have money, reducing them to a "player market." This was what happened to Italy's Parma and England's Leeds United.

Though Twain knew Hull City posed no threat to him, he also knew that the league was a long battle in which the most effort was placed at the end, not the beginning. As for the current state of the team, Twain was still not very satisfied.

What happened during the summer threw a wrench in their plans for transfers and they did not achieve many of their goals, which resulted in the players being overwhelmed with problems. It had only been two months since the league had begun and they were already in such a state. Winter, the more ruthless season, had not even started. Twain could not predict what other unfortunate events would happen to the team. He needed to take precautions.

He decided to find Evan to discuss the financial issues they would face when attracting players during the winter transfer period. Thinking of Evan made Twain realize that he rarely saw the man around. Evan used to frequent Nottingham but meeting him in Wilford had become a rare occurrence in the past month. Allan Adams was another person Twain rarely saw. They were probably busy with some things, though it was a relief they were in Nottingham these days. Twain decided not to put it off any longer. He immediately left to find Evan.

※※※

In Evan's office, Twain saw Allan again. Both of them were business partners and friends so this was not a surprising sight. He greeted Allan and got straight to the point.

"Evan, you've seen what the team is like now. The reserves are not sufficient, resulting in many matches where I could not arrange a well-rounded and complete roster. I feel that we should at least transfer in three players during the winter period, especially for the offensive half."

Upon finishing, Evan looked at Allan for a moment, then gave a bitter smile while spreading his hands.

"Tony, I'm afraid I can't meet your requests this time."

Twain felt strange. "Why?"

Evan's smile was not any less bitter. "We're out of money."

"Out of money? I don't understand, isn't the club still in a good financial state?"

Allan stood up from the sofa. "Simply put, the current costs of running the club are still affordable, but coming up with additional money to buy new players is a little difficult. Have you seen the news, Tony?"

"I only watch the sports side…"

Allan sighed. "There's a financial crisis."

Twain was a little confused. He could not differentiate between the "financial crisis" and "economic crisis." They were the same to him. He'd only had two opportunities to learn about these terms: once during high school where he'd learned from the history books about the 30-year global economic crisis in the past century, and the 1998 financial crisis in Southeast Asia. Being an ordinary person living in China, however, even the most recent case in 1997 had minimally effected his life, so it was unlikely for him to have a concrete idea of what a financial crisis was. What exactly was a financial crisis, and what impact did it have on his life? Now, he had the chance to properly learn about it.

"A sub-credit crisis broke out in the United States, so it's only time before this crisis affects the whole world. Evan's business in the States took many blows. This sub-credit crisis began with the United States' property market bubble, and Evan's company in the United States was property investment…" Allan trailed off and Evan picked up where he stopped.

"Simply put, Tony, my company in the United States went bankrupt."

"But isn't your business in the United States always separated from the duties of the club?" Twain asked. He still did not understand why Evan's company in the United States had any relations with the club.

"It is technically, but in reality, my business in the United States could still financially support the club. This summer we were doing heavy investments in China, but we overestimated ourselves and the investments were insufficient. Now the business in the United States collapsed and our investment chains are broken," said Evan as he sat on the chair looking dejected.

Twain felt like he more or less understood the situation. Although the businesses in the various lands were separated, they were always linked. The business in the United States could fund the club's activities, and the club's gain could be used for its investment project in China.

From the United States to England, then onto China, this structure of organization for a soccer club, which was not considered wealthy and lacked financial backing, was spread too big. Now, if any part of the link broke, the rest of it would be affected. Of course, if there were issues with their investments in China, the other two areas would not be impacted as much.

"If you want a large-scale business, your money cannot stay in a single place, which is why the money is constantly circulating. Now that there is an issue in the United States, this chain will break…" Allan's words confirmed Twain's conjecture. "We've been in the States this month to handle some affairs."

"How bad is the situation?" Twain asked carefully.

Evan smiled a little, but it did not reach his eyes. "It's not too bad now, but I think it will be bad once the crisis spreads across the world. Globalization has made it easier for one country's problems to become everyone's. The sub-credit crisis already began in the United States last year, but at that time I was still optimistic that the economy would not collapse and that the self-regulating function of the market would resolve the crisis. At that time, many people were as optimistic as me, but we all underestimated the crisis. It was only a crisis last year, but it snowballed into Europe and Japan's financial markets, becoming a windstorm…"

"Will the club go bankrupt?" Twain did not understand the professional terms that Allan used, he was only concerned about one thing.

"I don't know," said Allan as he shook his head.

"That is indeed very terrible," Twain mumbled.

Seeing how the atmosphere had turned a little dull, Evan clapped his hands and grinned. "Alright, the situation isn't that terrible yet, is it? I've already shut down all my business in the United States, now this club is the only business I own. I will not let this club go bankrupt no matter what."

Twain looked at Evan Doughty who was beaming, and Allan Adams who was usually confident, but now seemingly at his wit's end.

"How can I help?"

Evan laughed. "Just lead the team well, Tony. Don't worry about the financial side of things. It's not something you can worry about, anyway. Didn't I say? No matter how terrible things are, I will hold onto this club because this is my last hurrah."

What else could Twain say? He had initially come here to ask for funds, but he could not make that request now. He bid them goodbye and went back to the team alone.

He sighed at the inconsistency of the world. Allan Adams and Evan Doughty had been smug upon arriving back from Asia last summer. On the plane, they'd described the future of Nottingham Forest to him as one full of excitement. After only two months, things had unexpectedly changed completely. The company in the United States had gone bankrupt, cash flow had become unstable, and the plans went from becoming a reality to becoming completely impossible to carry out with the current state of affairs.

But what could he do? How could a club profit? Profit came mostly in the form of television money and sponsors, along with ticket and merchandise sales, and all of these stemmed from one thing: results. If the team's results were not good, their television airtime would be reduced, sponsors would no longer be interested, ticket and merchandise sales would be reduced, and cash prizes from competitions would be lost. Twain felt the burden on his shoulders grow heavier and was no longer able to relax.

Even if Nottingham Forest went bankrupt, he could just jump ship. Depending on the results he achieved while leading the team, he could land a high-paying job as a head coach in any club in the world. Even now, some teams were waving checkbooks in hopes of convincing him to join them. He did not have to worry about starving. It was not like his early days when a lack of success would cost him his job, causing him to starve to death. That would never happen to him.

He did not need the guilt and emotional stress from worrying over Nottingham Forest's potential bankruptcy, but he could not let down this team which he'd raised personally, nor the fans who looked up to and trusted him. Being a traditional Chinese man, he valued sentiment. Allan and Evan also treated him well, so he could not betray them. He should try to help them to the best of his abilities. Evan had said Nottingham Forest was his last hurrah, so Twain was also willing to regard the team as his.

Twain did not know how to run a club, and he was not a business genius. Looking at large numbers gave him a headache, and even when he was buying things from the market he would pay the wrong amount. What he did know was how to lead a soccer team in competitions, and winning those would mean the club earned cash prizes. Twain could only get the club through these tough times by earning money the only way he knew how.

※※※

Tony Twain, someone who only cared about soccer, had just learned about the financial crisis today. In reality, this global-wide financial crisis had already persisted for almost a year. Property markets took a heavy hit, stocks of various countries took a huge dip, credit companies went into bankruptcy and currency lost its value. It was akin to a windstorm, forming in 2007, spreading over the world and peaking in the second half of 2008.

The global market, during the first half of 2008 was still holding on to the hope that the subprime mortgage crisis' worst period was over. Upon reaching the second half of the year, however, the situation took a turn for the worse.

In August, France announced its profit warning. Following that, an estimate of 8.2 billion euros was lost because under the extent of 127 billion euros called the "Rhineland Fund," they'd participated in the United States' sub-credit investment business.

The United States' 10th largest mortgage institution — American Home Mortgage Investment Corporation, officially applied for bankruptcy protection on the 6th of August following the bankruptcy of Century Financial Corporation, another big-scale mortgage institution in America.

On the 8th of August, the 5th biggest American investment company, The Bear Stearns Companies, Inc., announced the fall of two funds, as a result of the sub-credit windstorm.

On the 9th of August, France's biggest bank, BNP Paribas, announced the freezing of its three funds, similarly because of investing in the subprime bond with the United States and resulting in huge losses. The European market was in shambles.

On August 13th, Ruisui Group, the parent company of Japan's second-largest bank, announced that its losses from the United States' sub-credits were 6 billion yen. In the past, no one expected such a devastating economic crash as a result of global cooperation. Unfortunately, the cruel reality was now displayed in front of everyone. The financial crisis was not just a nightmare, it had become a reality.

These incidents were still quite distant from Tony Twain's life, but as September transitioned into October, an event had begun to alter the work-life he'd originally had. The American investment bank Lehman Brothers, which invested in Nottingham Forest's new stadium through loans, applied for bankruptcy protection.

That October, in England, Twain felt a chill.