854 After Getting the crown

On May 12, Nottingham was full of jubilation. There had been numerous reports in the local media about Nottingham Forest's success in defending the league title. Countless media outlets had gathered in the central English city to interview the newly crowned Premier League champions.

On May 13, the Football Association (FA) officials presented a replica of the trophy to Nottingham Forest. The local media was critical of the FA's contempt for Nottingham Forest. As a result, on the next day, the FA replaced the replica with the actual trophy. This change was swift and left them speechless.

After winning the championship, Twain gave the team a day off. He still reminded the players before the break that there were two important games left, so they could not go all-out.

The players were on holiday, so Twain also gave himself a day off. He spent time with his wife. He did not go anywhere. He chose to rest at home instead. Shania especially enjoyed the time with him. In the last moments of the last match, she had been scared to death.

She had watched her husband get nervous for a moment, then excited, and finally devastated for a while. Even as a bystander, her heart could not handle the strain, much less Twain's, which had previously undergone surgery.

Fortunately, his nuclear-powered heart was strong. There was no problem. Otherwise, Shania would rather Twain's team achieve nothing at all the whole season than have her man suffer.

Even the next day, Shania had a lot to worry about.

Twain knew that, so he had to make amends to Shania. He asked, "Where do you want to go? What do you want to buy?"

Shania came over and grabbed onto him. Blowing toward the tip of his nose, she playfully said, "I don't want to go anywhere, just let me hug you."

Twain straightened his face. "I'm not your Totoro doll!"

Shania ignored him and hugged her husband like a doll. "Let me hug you. I want to hear your heartbeat. I'm scared that this is all just a dream," she murmured.

Twain did not struggle any longer. He placed his chin gently against Shania's forehead.

"That's a strong heartbeat." Shania looked up and smiled at Twain. "I'm relieved!"

Twain did not roll his eyes. Instead, he gently rubbed Shania's hair. There was much he wanted to say, but no words left his lips, which only twitched a little.

※※※

As Shania and Twain were hanging around at home, Bale was knocking on Shannon's door with a gift.

She seemed to still be angry with Bale. She only opened the door wide enough to see him but not let him in. Bale, with gifts and flowers in hand, had waited almost the entire day before he finally convinced her to open the door and her heart.

"I don't think you love me at all." Although Bale had entered her room, her words were still unyielding.

He smiled and stuffed the flowers and gifts into Shannon's hand. He hugged her from behind and replied, "Who told God to forsake me to be a professional soccer player? Sometimes you need to give in a little. You can't be jealous. You should know about our coach. His superstar wife did not like him coming into contact with football because she's worried about his heart."

Speaking of Twain and Shania, the girls would give in. When Twain married Shania, who was 20 years younger than him, he had attracted the jealousy of many men. On the girl's side, it was the envy of many people. Shannon was no exception. Although she was not a fan, as a Nottingham citizen, she knew Tony Twain's story.

She snuggled up into Bale's arms. She was looking forward to her boyfriend providing an unforgettable romantic experience.

"Then… Other than football, you are not allowed to love any other girl." She had started to act coquettishly.

Bale gently kissed her earlobe. "OK, I swear."

Shannon laughed with satisfaction. She followed Bale onto the bed without hesitation.

※※※

"The weather is nice, George."

Sophia sheltered her eyes with her hands as she squinted up at the sky. She was being supported by her son for a walk outside to bask in the sun. Her pale face was coated with a warm color of sunlight as she regained some spirit.

Wood hummed in agreement.

"It's nice to win the league. Aren't you happy?"

"Hm, I am."

"It's good that Mr. Twain doesn't have to make a fool of himself. In the last few minutes, I was really worried that he would suddenly fall on the sidelines. It was lucky that nothing unfortunate happened," Sophia softly said as she bowed her head.

The two of them walked until they were tired. They soon sat down on a bench to rest.

Sophia turned and looked at her son. He was looking at the people walking in the distance.

He looked like a lot was weighing on his mind.

Sophia did not want to disturb him, so she leaned against the back of the bench to enjoy the sun. She felt like she owed her son a lot. At this time, his teammates were probably busy seeing their girlfriends, going out shopping, or going to nightclubs, bars, or other entertainment venues. Only George needed to accompany his mother since she was useless as a human being.

She thought, Perhaps it would be better for George if I died?

It was a pity that she could not bear to leave George behind. She loved George and thought she was the one who loved George the most in the world. She did not want to leave George alone. Unless there was another woman in this world who loved George more than she did, she would always stay with him.

Wood was startled as he realized that someone was leaning on his shoulder. He discovered it was his mother.

She was like a little girl snuggling up to him. Her eyes were closed, and her mouth was slightly uplifted, conveying happiness. The morning's rays spilled onto her face, creating a colorful glow.

Wood was a little stunned. His mother had not had such a radiant expression for a long time. She was not well, so she had been in a bad state of mind. Maybe it was because of the sun?

He froze his body. He did not dare to move in fear of disturbing his mother.

Maybe she was having a nice dream?

※※※

Kenny Burns was standing alone in Nottingham City's center square in front of the bronze statue of Brian Clough. Many bouquets had been placed at the base of the statue. It was a lot more lively now compared to before because Nottingham Forest had successfully won the championships. The City stadium needed to be demolished, which reminded everyone about the past.

Just as he was standing here, several other fans came to lay flowers. Without exception, they were white-haired old men.

What they did not recognize about the old man who stood next to them was that he was one of the architects of Nottingham Forest's first glory days, having won FWA Footballer Of The Year Award Now, Burns looked no different from an ordinary old English man. One simply could not see the glory of the past that once belonged to him.

After the previous day's game, he and his former companions had come to the center square and taken a picture together. That had been a well-arranged activity by the media. He returned because he suddenly had something to say to his coach.

"Three league titles, Coach. There might be a third European title and a third trophy of the season... He's not bad, right, Coach? He's maybe better than you, even..." Burns looked up at the sky. It was crystal blue. There was no chance of a bolt of lightning slicing into his forehead.

After discovering his reflexive movements, Burns laughed. "Ha!"

He remembered his coach leaving them in September 2004 because of stomach cancer. He died at the age of 69 at Derby City General Hospital. The 69-year-old Ferguson was still leading the team to the Premier League and winning the Champions League. It was the second European Championship of his coaching career.

Now, a decade was about to pass by in the blink of an eye.

Ten years ago, Nottingham Forest sent away the No. 1 nobleman in the club's history as they welcomed the second. The coincidence in the numbers signified a cycle with a hint of fate in it.

Ten years ago, Burns didn't think he would be alive to see Nottingham Forest re-emerge as if it were a dream. A rookie coach knocked out of the game by a player on the sidelines had suddenly become Europe's hottest champion.

After standing for a little longer, Burns said goodbye to his coach and turned to walk away.

Behind him was Clough, dressed in a cardigan. His hands were clasped together, and his head was raised. It was the same scene when he decided to retire and bid farewell to tens of thousands of fans at the city's stadium, which was now permanently captured by metal.

Beneath the bronze statue, there were still fans coming forward with flowers who missed those moments. Some people, like Burns, stood in front of Clough's bronze statue and talked about the years of the past and present glory. It was just like talking to an old friend.

※※※

While waiting at London's Heathrow Airport, Mr. Bendtner, who was returning to Denmark, was wearing sunglasses but still being recognized. The "man of the round" was unable to keep a low profile.

As he dragged his luggage to the gate, he was stopped by several people halfway through.

"Hey, Nikki!"

Since they were calling out Bendtner's nickname, he could not help but stop walking.

"Ha, it's Nikki! It's really you!"

Several people gathered. Bendtner instinctively wanted to refuse the interview. He quickly discovered that these people were are not journalists because they did not carry the interview bag. The cameras in their hands were too amateur. Additionally, their faces were pleasantly surprised. That type of surprise was not what one saw when it came to live news. It was the kind of joy that came directly from the heart.

He found it strange. Did he have fans in London too?

Not wanting to disappoint the fans, he smiled as he waited to meet the people's signature and photo requests.

As a result, the four men had no intention of taking a picture with him or asking for autographs. They just gave Bendtner a thumbs up. "Well done on those two goals! We watched the show, and they were wonderful!"

"Yeah, well done, Nikki... Cough, it's been too long. I'm really not used to it…"

"To tell you the truth, I had no hope for you guys. I'm glad I was wrong in the end!"

Several enthusiastic fans loudly praised Bendtner as they patted him on the shoulder and arms and left.

Bendtner turned to look at their backs. They were walking on their heels as if they were flying. He suddenly realized that they were Nottingham Forest fans.

After thinking about that relationship, he silently grinned.

Last time, whenever he returned to the city stadium, what greeted him were the loud boos and rants of Nottingham Forest fans. Like Judas, he was written in a Biblical story for future generations to scold him hundreds of millions of times. He had no opportunity or power to appeal for himself.

Now, the situation was completely reversed. He got a heartfelt compliment from Nottingham Forest fans. They even shouted nicknames only used in the past and gave him friendly pats.

Nottingham Forest winning the title was because of him. It was a plot in the drama. He did not want to help Nottingham Forest win the championship, but he also did not want to be looked down upon.

Standing in place and lamenting his fate, Bendtner dragged his suitcase and continued to search for his waiting area. The previous day's exciting game was almost left behind by him. The joy of the Nottingham Forest man was too far for him.

The red memories were already getting blurry. He had his own future, which was unrelated to Nottingham Forest.

※※※

After the game, Wenger locked himself in his study as soon as he got home. He did not even want to get close to his wife. It was a special way for him to express and vent his anger. He did not want to eat or sleep. He just wanted to lock himself up. No one knew what he was going to do. When he came out from this isolation, his mood was mostly back to normal. Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

This time, he came out from the study by dawn and gave his wife an apologetic smile.

His eyes were blood-shot, presumably from staying up all night. His wife was busy preparing dinner for him. As he sat alone on the sofa, he closed his eyes to rest.

After a night and a day, the scene of failure was still clear. Once he closed his eyes, he could remember it clearly. He had a higher chance of winning, but he lost the championship. What went wrong? Bendtner was not marked down. He specifically called attention to him, but he only needed to take two chances to score. That could not be explained by common sense. Tactically, he did not make a mistake. It was reasonable to say that he should not have gotten that ending, but this was football. It was unpredictable.

Fortunately, his heart was a little bit tougher than Twain's, and there was nothing wrong with that stimulation. In fact, those who looked more civilized often had a bigger reaction than those with a worse temper once under huge pressure.

He closed his eyes, trying to banish the scene in his mind. He gradually felt fatigue wash over him.

When his wife came to him with dinner, she found that her husband had fallen asleep and was slightly snoring.

She put down the dinner, pulled up a blanket, and gently covered her husband.

※※※

Shania was particularly passionate. She was moaning exceptionally happily as she closed her eyes while hugging tightly onto her lover. All 10 of her fingers left scratch marks onto Twain's back. It was as if she was afraid that once she let go, her lover would disappear. Only while holding him tightly in her embrace, feeling his warmth and heartbeats, listening to his breathing, and enjoying his every thrust, could she have a sense of security.

For Bendtner and Arsène Wenger, the intense season was over. No matter if it was effortless or devastating, they could only accept the outcome.

For Twain, who was still battling without rest in bed, it was only a start to his most exciting summer. His heart would need to continue to go through relentless tests. (To be continued. If you want to know how the story continues, please log into www.qidian.com. There are more chapters on it. Support the author, support his legal publications!)