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Chapter 262 We thought of the same thing
"...According to insiders, Exeter United has formally requested Tyne FC to negotiate ticket revenue...As of press time, Tyne FC has not yet responded..."

"...It is understood that Tyne fans have launched a new campaign on local social media called 'Let's Fill the Stadium.' The organizers stated online that they are doing this to show their support for Exeter United. However, they have not linked this campaign to the issue of ticket revenue distribution, and they respect the club's choice. The club is the club, and the fans are the fans..."

"The 'Let's Fill the Stadium' campaign has garnered increasing support and response from Tyne fans, with many posting short videos indicating their intention to attend the match. It's speculated that tickets for Tyne's League Cup match against Exeter United at home will likely be extremely difficult to obtain..."

“Some Tyne fans said their club had also faced bankruptcy at one point, so they understand Exeter United fans. They hope Exeter United can overcome their difficulties…”

Jamie Olsen trembled as he watched the comments and messages rapidly increasing below his video.

When the video was first released, the comments below were mostly sarcastic remarks and insults.

Now, those negative comments have long been swept away to the deepest part of the Atlantic Ocean, washed away by the enthusiastic support and encouragement from Tyne's fans.

Everyone is saying:
"I'm a Tyne fan, and I'll be there."

"Come on, Exeter United! Love comes from Newcastle!"

……

His colleagues were also scrolling through their phones, exclaiming in surprise, "Oh my god! Jamie! You really did it! The club really contacted Tyne! It looks like we have hope!"

Despite being pleased with the support from Tyne's fans, Jamie Olsen dared not think in that direction.

The club has contacted Tyne, but Tyne has yet to respond.

In what situations would someone read a message but not reply?
Of course, there are times when you want to refuse, but are too embarrassed to refuse directly.

Tyne FC is probably trying to figure out how to reject Exeter United without being criticized for being cold-hearted...

However, Olson did not tell his colleagues the truth, as that would damage their confidence.

Let him wait with hope until the final judgment of fate arrives.

Of course, even he himself needs some confidence.

For example, seeing how supportive the Tyne fans were, he couldn't help but wonder if the support from so many Tyne fans for Exeter United would put pressure on the Tyne club's management.

Thinking about putting pressure on the Tyne club's management, Olsen suddenly realized he had made a mistake...

He shouldn't just be calling out to Tyne Club.

He should also call out to Wang Lie!
It's important to know that Wang Lie is Tyne's star player, and his influence in the club may even be greater than that of head coach Sam McNeil.

Players are often quite loyal, since they don't need to consider as many complicated things as clubs do.

If we had included Wang Lie in our lobbying efforts back then, given Wang Lie's influence within the Tyne Club... perhaps the Tyne Club would have already agreed to our request?

At this moment, as Olsen regretted his initial oversight, another thought suddenly occurred to him:
Given Wang Lie's reputation and personality, if he really went to Wang Lie and shouted that message...

Then what he would likely receive would not be the insults and ridicule from the fans, but rather Wang Lie's merciless rejection!
After all, China Wang is clearly not the kind of person who is willing to take orders from others.

He wasn't afraid of angering the fans, but if he really angered Wang Lie, Wang Lie might just persuade Tyne FC to refuse to give ticket revenue to Exeter United...

So thinking about it this way, perhaps it was actually the right thing for him not to mention Wang Lie by name in the video.

※※※

"Guys, do you think our club will agree to Exeter United's request?"

In the locker room, Tyne's players were discussing the day's hottest topics.

As more and more Tyne fans joined the "Let's Fill the Stadium" campaign, it also attracted more media attention.

The media attention and reports naturally made the players aware of what had happened.

"I don't know if the club will agree, but I hope they will. Honestly, this is hardly a loss for us; I don't believe the club will go out of business without a few hundred thousand..."

"Yes, yes. I've read the media analysis. Exeter United might be entering administration now, and once they're in that process, it seems difficult to get out... If they could get an extra million or so in revenue right now, they could delay entering administration for a few months. Maybe in those few months they'll find someone to take over the club?"

After Tyne fans amplified the issue and demonstrated solidarity, helping Exeter United has become a trend.

Even the Tyne players in the locker room were basically on Exeter United's side.

The team's vice-captain, Elliot Goetz, didn't join the discussion. Instead, he moved next to Wang Lie and asked him in a low voice, "What do you think, Wang? Do you think the club will agree?"

Wang Lie shook his head: "I don't know. To be honest, I'm not actually very familiar with Mr. Foster..."

He knew why Götz had come back to ask him, because everyone assumed that with his influence in Tyne, he must have a very good relationship with the club's management, and that they could even influence the club's policies to some extent.

In reality, given Wang Lie's personality and style, it would be difficult for him to maintain close relationships with anyone—except his family.

He learned about Exeter United online himself, rather than from the head coach or general manager.

Elliott Goetz didn't know whether Wang Lie was telling the truth or not, but he didn't care. He wanted to find out Wang Lie's attitude towards the matter.

So he said, "I have an idea, but I need your support."

"Don't be shy, go ahead and say it."

“I don’t know how the club will handle this, but I watched the video of that Exeter United fan and read a lot of reports about Exeter United… To be honest, I was quite moved. A fan going to such lengths for his hometown team. Tyne almost reached the same point as Exeter United before, but we were lucky to have the current owners… I want to help Exeter United.”

As Goetz spoke, he observed Wang Lie's expression. The latter remained calm, without frowning or showing any impatience.

But that's precisely why Goetz couldn't figure out what Wang Lie was thinking.

After hearing what Goetz said, Wang Lie didn't express his opinion, but instead asked him, "How do you plan to help? You can't exactly call on us to donate money to them, can you?"

“I want one of your jerseys, with the whole team signing it, and then after the game, we’ll donate it to Exeter United. Let them auction it off…”

Wang Lie understood why Goetz had come to him for advice: his jersey, along with the team's autographs, would indeed fetch a higher price at auction.

But he still reminded Goetz: "No matter what, a jersey won't fetch an astronomical price. The money from auctioning a jersey might just be a drop in the bucket for Exeter United."

Goetz nodded and then shook his head: "I know, of course. But this is all we can do."

After listening for a moment, Wang Lie nodded and gave Goetz an affirmative answer: "Okay."

Seeing that Wang Lie had agreed, Goetz smiled with relief.

But when he heard Wang Lie's next "but," the smile on his face froze.

Fortunately, Wang Lie didn't mean to tease him. Instead of pausing for breath, he continued, "But Elliott, I think an ordinary jersey, even with the signatures of the whole team, still lacks a story and might not fetch a high price at auction... So, I plan to use our match jerseys from our game against Exeter United."

The so-called "field jersey" is the jersey that a player wears during a match.

They were taken off directly from the players and were soaked in sweat.

It might even have some unpleasant smells.

However, in the world of jersey collecting, such jerseys are actually more valuable.

Compared to brand-new, numbered jerseys that you can buy as many as you want at a fan shop, jerseys worn by the players themselves and used in matches are much rarer and have more collectible value.

Elliott Goetz hadn't expected Wang Lie to be so thorough, but he had no objection: "That's even better!"

Then he stood up and announced the decision to his teammates in the locker room.

Unsurprisingly, he received everyone's support.

※※※

After training, Sam McNeil called Wang Lie aside and said to him, "Wang, you should know about Exeter United, right?"

Wang Lie nodded: "Yes, I understand." At the same time, a strange thought popped into his mind; he felt a sense of déjà vu about this scene, as if he had seen it somewhere before…

Seeing Wang Lie nod, McNeil continued, "To be honest, I don't know if the club will agree to Exeter United's request. I haven't made any suggestions to the club either. But a club is a club, and a team is a team. I think our team should still make some statements. So I've prepared a jersey; take it to the locker room and have all the players sign it..."

As he spoke, he handed the jersey in his hand to Wang Lie.

Wang Lie smiled; he remembered where he had seen him before.

It was in the locker room before training started!

So he waved his hand: "It's not that I don't want to support you, boss. It's just that we've already decided on this in the locker room: we'll use my jersey, signed by the whole team, to give to Exeter United after the game so they can auction it off..."

He succinctly conveyed the team's decision made in the locker room to the head coach.

He added at the end, "This was Elliott's idea."

He was afraid the head coach would think that it was his idea as captain that was proposed.

After hearing Wang Lie's explanation, McNeil laughed: "Okay, I'm a bit late. I think the idea of ​​the jerseys is great, so let's go with your idea."

※※※

When assistant coach Cesar Varo saw McNeil return, he was about to ask him if he had finished.
But when her gaze fell on the jersey he was holding, she exclaimed in surprise, "Wang refused?!"

He was so shocked because he felt this shouldn't have been a problem; it was just a small favor, and he would even gain a good reputation afterward. Most importantly, in the half year he had worked with Wang Lie, he discovered that Wang Lie was not as "unapproachable" as everyone had previously thought.

Therefore, he had not considered the possibility that Wang Lie might reject McNeil.

Seeing his reaction, McNeil laughed: "No, no, no..."

He then told Varo about his conversation with Wang Lie.

Varo then realized: "So we were thinking the same thing as the team!"

McNeil happily repeated Varro's words: "Yes, we're on the same page as the team!"

The reason he was so happy was exactly what the words meant.

This is the same as during halftime of Tyne's away game against Atlético Lille.

When the team conceded goals in succession due to his decisions and was overtaken by Atlético Lille, he wanted to see if the team shared his thoughts.

As it turns out, they were on the same page.

The synchronization rate is 100%.

It was at that moment that McNeil truly realized this team was his team.

He is also confident that he can lead this team to go further and higher in the future.

And now, a simple jersey-giving incident has once again given McNeil a firm answer:

Yes, he and this team are truly on the same wavelength.

Others might think it's just a coincidence.

But McNeil doesn't see it that way.

It's a small matter, but it's often in these seemingly insignificant things that the true nature of things is revealed.

The devil is in the details, in these seemingly insignificant little things.

Because only everyday little things can reveal a person's true thoughts, not what they are putting on.

This small incident shows that he shares the same ideas and goals as the team. The team's locker room is also very united.

Now that he thinks about it, perhaps Wang Lie's arrogant goal really could be achieved!

While McNeil was still feeling happy about this, his assistant coach Varo suddenly said, "Wait a minute..."

Distracted, McNeil frowned at him: "What's wrong? What's wrong?"

Varo pointed at him: "Didn't we initially not plan to include Wang in the match roster? That's why you're now going to him with the jersey..."

McNeil froze on the spot.

He remembered:
Considering that this League Cup match is against a fourth-tier English team, and that Tyne is playing at home, coupled with their upcoming Champions League group stage match against Milan City at home next week, he doesn't plan to let Wang Lie participate in the League Cup match against Exeter United.

So that the 38-year-old veteran can get some rest.

Moreover, not only Wang Lie, but also some key players will be excluded from the match roster. He plans to hand over the entire starting lineup to substitutes and rotation players.

For example, in the goalkeeper position, Elliott Goetz would sit on the bench, and the team's backup goalkeeper, Rio Sparks, would start in his place.

If Wang Lie wasn't even on the match roster, then where did his jersey come from?
Seeing that McNeil was stunned, Varo knew that he had figured it out, so he spread his hands and said, "Okay, there's a bug."

McNeil waved his hand: "What kind of bug is this? We'll just add Wang to the roster. But we won't let him start, we'll make him a substitute. Even if he only plays for a minute, that jersey he's wearing will be the one he leaves on the field..."

Varo quickly waved his hand to remind him, "Hey, you can't say that!"

McNeil was baffled: "What's there to be afraid to say? Isn't it?"

"Back then, Heldon also wanted to put Wang on the field in the last minute of the game... You know the rest of the story."

McNeil suddenly realized, then laughed: "That's different. I'm not like Heldon, and the King is not like him back then!"

He has that kind of confidence!

Everything is different from the past. Wang Lie has stepped out of the shadows of the past and gained confidence. Although the road ahead is not smooth, he can already see a glimmer of light on the rugged mountain path.

Perhaps after crossing a few more mountains, he will see a breathtaking view.

※※※

Jamie Olsen spent the entire night scrolling through his phone.

Now that Exeter United has sent an official proposal to Tyne, he wants to know Tyne's stance before the match.

After a day of discussion, he discovered that it wasn't just the local media in Newcastle and Exeter who were paying attention to the matter; the whole of England was already talking about it.

On the internet, on the radio, on television programs...

He started the fire on a whim, and now it has spread throughout England.

Such widespread discussion is like an elephant in the room; Tyne Club can't pretend to be completely unaware...

Please, please say yes!

Olsen prayed and pleaded in his heart.

At 9:30 p.m., a new message popped up on his phone.

It's a news flash from Sky England, and the content is very short:
"Tyne FC has decided to donate their share of the League Cup ticket revenue to Exeter United to help them through this difficult time."

After Olsen read the text on his phone, his face instantly turned red. He clenched his fist and cheered, as if his team had won the game...

His tiny spark ignited the entire wasteland, illuminating the pitch-black night sky!

(End of this chapter)