Ferguson's home in Cheshire.
George Lee and Ferguson were playing chess in Ferguson's study.
"Eat, your horse is gone, old man."
"Wait a minute, when was your elephant there?" Ferguson didn't expect that his horse would be eaten by George Li's elephant.
"It's always there, you just didn't see it." After George Li finished moving the chess pieces, he grabbed a French fries and stuffed it into his mouth.
Ferguson was about to pick up his queen piece, but after thinking for a long time, he put it down.
When he saw George Li eating French fries, he couldn't help but frown.
"Can you please stop eating this thing? After you finish eating, you still have to touch my chess with your oily hands."
Who knew that not only did George Li not stop, he even smacked his hand.
After seeing Ferguson finish moving his king piece, he directly used the hand he had just finished sucking to push his own rook forward two spaces.
"Boy, don't go too far."
Ferguson pushed the chess piece on the board and pretended to be angry.
George Li chuckled lightly. He knew that Ferguson would definitely lose this game, so he found this reason to deliberately mess up the chessboard.
“Are you coming again?” George Li grabbed another fried fish and took a bite.
"Dong dong dong"
"Enter."
Ferguson's wife, Cathy, came in carrying a plate.
George Li quickly stuffed the fried fish into his mouth, then stood up and stepped forward to take the plate.
"I made a Scotch egg. Try it, George. How do you like it?"
"Ma'am, you are too kind."
"You must not have eaten enough tonight."
"It's okay, it's okay."
George Li could only laugh, because he really didn't eat much for dinner, but because of Ferguson's face, he couldn't say it out loud.
"I know, Alex took you to eat that food, how could you want to eat that food."
This time, George Li did not answer, but looked at Ferguson.
Cathy glanced at the two people and continued.
"Only he would want to eat this. I'm Scottish myself, but I don't like eating that either. It tastes too strong."
After the home game between Manchester United and Leeds United, Ferguson took Lee George to have dinner. This was what the two had agreed upon before the game. Lee George asked assistant coach Brian Kidd to lead the team back to Leeds City first. , I will go to the appointment first.
When Ferguson invited George Lee to dinner, the main course was haggis, which is known as Scotland’s “national dish”.
Haggis is Scotland's most famous delicacy, it's rich in flavor and really good. However, people who eat haggis for the first time often get nauseous when they learn how it is made—haggis is made from sheep’s offal.
When George Lee was at Manchester United, he was taken to eat this by Ferguson.
At that time, George Lee was only in his early 10s, but he showed extremely high football talent and was deeply loved by Ferguson. When Ferguson held coaching meetings, he often asked Lee George to take notes for him.
Ferguson was not afraid that after Lee learned about Manchester United's tactics, he would leak it.
Because Ferguson and George Lee's father, Jim Lee are good friends. They met at the racecourse and later became friends because of their common hobbies.
This is also the reason why George Lee is from Yorkshire but went to Manchester United's youth training.
"Thanks."
George Li took the Scotch eggs from Mrs. Ferguson, but did not eat them immediately. Instead, he put the plate on the table aside.
Ferguson’s wife, Cathy, picked up the paper box on the table, pulled out two sheets and handed them to George Li.
"There's something in your mouth."
George Li took the paper and wiped his mouth. It was the bread crumbs from the fried fish he had just eaten.
"I remember when you were a child, you didn't like fried fish."
Cathy asked again.
"I......"
Before George Li could return, Ferguson interrupted the two of them.
"Okay, Cathy, you should go and rest first. It's getting late." Ferguson gently pushed Cathy. "It's getting late. George and I still have something to talk about."
"Goodbye, George." Cathy was getting ready to come out.
Halfway through, I turned around and came back again.
"If I wake up tomorrow morning and find you two drinking too much here, I will take a photo of you two drunk and send it to The Sun."
"Good night, Cathy."
George Lee and Cathy say goodbye.
Ferguson sent Cathy to the door of the study, then returned to the table and sat down.
George Li picked up the whiskey on the side and poured a little into Ferguson's glass, which was already empty.
"A little more." Seeing that George Li only fell a little, Ferguson seemed a little dissatisfied.
"That's enough. As you get older, drink less." George Li put the bottle down without following him.
Ferguson picked up the glass and drank the whiskey in one gulp.
George Li looked at him and had no intention of pouring it on him again.
"That Dutch striker of yours is good," Ferguson said.
After dinner and a chess game, the two finally started talking about football and returned to their respective jobs.
"Don't you also have a Dutch forward? He's much better than mine, but he just didn't play today. I heard he'll be back in the next game, right?"
"Yes, I didn't let him play because you were my disciple, otherwise I would be in such a mess today?"
"Come on, will I believe it?"
"Ruud Ruud may be leaving this summer. Will your Dutch striker be sold?"
"Old man, is this interesting?"
"Hehe~" Ferguson smiled, picked up the wine glass and prepared to take another sip, but found that there was no wine in the glass.
George Li got up, went to the bookcase and found a small cabinet with a small wine cabinet inside. He turned and smiled at Ferguson.
Ferguson also smiled at Li.
George Li looked at the wine twice and took out a bottle of wine.
"It's still like this. After all these years, Cathy didn't find out that you were hiding wine here?"
"She knows, but she won't tell anyone. She must often take advantage of my absence to see if the wine here is missing a few bottles at a time."
"It's better to drink less." George Li opened the wine with a corkscrew, took two more wine glasses, poured two glasses and returned to the table.
A glass was handed to Ferguson, and the two touched it lightly.
"Drink this, be healthy."
Ferguson took a sip and spoke to George Li again.
"It's not that I won't sell it to you Brown, but it's true that my own defense is also short of manpower. You saw it today. What is the back of Manchester United now? Even Leeds United can score two goals against me. If it weren't for penalty kicks, If we didn’t get in, we’d get three.”
"Hey, you're scolding your team for not living up to expectations, so don't bring me with you."
"Hey, boy. Now that your wings are strong, you dare to challenge me."
"Before I came here, I just thought I could score points. It's an away game again."
"Ruud van Nistelrooy, Rooney, Keane and Ferdinand are all gone, so my only central axis is Scholes."
"So, when I saw your lineup and the situation on the court, I thought, I'm going to leave with 3 points. But in the end you saw it, it was almost."
"You kid, your team pressed me for the whole game. The few people in front of you just kept staring at my defenders and my midfielders. My offense couldn't be organized well at all."
"Isn't defensive counterattack what you are best at?"
"Shit, defense can last a lifetime, can it prevent a champion?"
"As long as I don't concede the ball, and then rely on counterattacks to score 1-0, that's fine. If it really doesn't work, it's 0-0. I just don't lose."
"You are talking about the Portuguese in London."
"1-0, 1-0, 2-0, 2-1. Won all 4 rounds and only conceded one goal. I have to admire him. There are indeed two blows."
"Boy, I can see that in the next few seasons, his Chelsea and your Leeds United are going to cause trouble in the Premier League and go sideways in the league."
Although he was being praised by Ferguson, George Li always felt weird.
Ferguson sighed and spoke again.
"Last season, when you were the acting head coach of Leeds United, I was thinking that if you could practice at Leeds United for a few years, you wouldn't have to achieve anything, as long as you don't get relegated and keep your position."
"Wait a few years. When I retire, I will suggest to the board of directors that you take over my job."
"Actually, Leeds United is a good team for you to lead. You don't have to pursue the upper reaches of the league. It's not a problem if the capital is still in relegation. It can completely transition to you coming to Manchester United."
"Result, result..."
"Jim, this old boy, he f*cking bought Leeds United, he f*cking bought a team and made you the head coach."
"After I heard the news, I hated the next time I went to the racetrack and let my hair dryer trample him to death." The hair dryer was a horse, Ferguson Racing.
Ferguson was angry when he mentioned this.
His face turned red, as if he was turning on a hair dryer during a game.
When George Li saw his former mentor like this, he couldn't help but chuckle to himself. Although the old man is older, he is still like a child sometimes.
George Li took out a notebook from his bag. The notebook had a very chronological feel.
"Is this?" Ferguson seemed to have thought of something.
"That's right, after that car accident, I couldn't become a football player at all. When you came to see me, the notebook you gave me contained your decades of coaching experience."
"Why, you think that if you tie me today, you won't be able to use it anymore, and you're starting to look down on me?"
"I can't say that. I have been reading it for several years and it has really helped me a lot. I returned it to you today because I wrote a little bit of what I have written in the past few years at the back and wanted to show it to you."
George Li is like a child handing in homework, waiting for the teacher's correction.
Ferguson pushed the notebook aside instead of flipping through it.
"After that person left, the right wing has always been a problem. The team is now old and weak. I am thinking of changing the way of playing."
"So, are you willing to let Fanny go?"
"He will leave sooner or later, and I have to shift the core of the offense from him to Wayne and Cristiano."
"You need a striker who can serve those two young guys, right."
"Yes, any recommendations?"
"Yes, go and ask the price of Drogba from Chelsea."
"Pretend I didn't ask."
Although George Lee respects Ferguson very much, it is impossible to recommend players to him. After all, the two teams are rivals in the Premier League.
Ferguson started talking again.
"It's not just me who needs blood, the Frenchman is also changing."
"I can see it. This season, he has made special use of the kid from La Masia. He probably wants to start the midfielder first."
"He likes to use young people. Anyone over 30 years old only signs for one year. I don't know what he is thinking?"
"How about you buy Vieira in the summer."
"I dare to buy, but he dares to sell?"
"Hehe, I understand." George Li smiled.
"Seriously, George. You are my proudest disciple. Although you can't become a player, you can definitely become a successful coach like me."
"Old man, you must have drunk too much."
Ferguson suddenly started to be sensational, which made George Li feel that he had drunk too much.
"I didn't drink too much, George. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Manchester United and Arsenal are exchanging blood. As long as you beat Chelsea, you can become a figure like Clough."
"Old man, you said that there will be a few more teams like Chelsea in the Premier League in the next few years. By then, will you and Wenger find that the team you have worked so hard to complete is no longer as good as others? A team that has piled money on it.”
"What..." Ferguson was startled by Li's words and broke into a cold sweat, and he woke up instantly from the drunkenness.
"Old man, if one day you strive for fame all your life but are unable to attract the players you want, they will go to other teams because they offer higher salaries. There will be someone richer than the owner of Russian oil. If someone comes to buy other Premier League teams, there will be teams from the Middle East, the United States, and China. What will happen then?"
Ferguson said nothing.
The two of them sat there quietly for half an hour, without anyone speaking.
Until George Li's cell phone rang, Li glanced at it, it was a text message, and prepared to get up.
"Old man, it's getting late. You should go to bed early. I have to leave and go back."
"Why don't you stay one night? How can you go back so late?"
"When Chris returned to Leeds, he drove over to pick me up."
"Chris, Chris..." Ferguson said the name repeatedly.
"He said he wouldn't come in, lest you get upset when you see him."
"No, he came to say hello just after the game in the afternoon."
"Old man, I'm leaving. Please take care of yourself. We will meet again in April next year. I hope you can field the strongest lineup by then and we will have another battle."
"That's not necessarily true. Maybe we will draw together in the League Cup and FA Cup."
"No, it won't." George Li replied firmly.
In the end, at George Li's insistence, Ferguson did not send Li out, and George Li walked out of Ferguson's house on his own.
^^^
The next day, when Cathy opened the door to the study, she did not see George Li and Ferguson. He looked for them everywhere in the house, and finally found Ferguson who was getting up in the guest room.
After George Li left last night, Ferguson thought about it for a long time in the study until midnight.
Because it was too late and he was afraid of waking his wife, he slept in the guest room.
"Why did this child leave so late at night?"
"He is no longer a child, he is a father himself."
"Speaking of this, he is also very hard-working. He also has three children, and he did not remarry after that incident. No one took care of the children. I heard that his biological son was in the Netherlands and was taken care of by his father-in-law."
"Okay, okay. I heard their team's coach Peter said that it was at the Ajax youth training camp because I had an agreement with his wife."
"What did you talk about later?" Cathy was curious about the conversation between the master and the apprentice last night.
"He said that not only did he not like eating fried fish before, he also didn't like eating Scotch eggs. You have forgotten that."
""Yeah? "
Cathy started to keep recalling the time when George Lee stayed at their house when he was in Manchester United's youth training as a child, and whether this was included in his eating habits at that time.
While walking, I was talking to myself.
"George is really a picky child."
