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Chapter 309 Internal strife
This time, Meler Shapman did not make any adjustments or give any instructions to the team after the game restarted.

He stood there on the sidelines, watching the field.

Nobody knows what he's thinking.

Other head coaches might do this to demonstrate their composure and calmness.

But that's definitely not what Shapman meant.

What's the point of him showing composure here when his team is already two goals down?

He should tell the players what to do next.

But he didn't.

Therefore, after the game restarted, the Sofia players, lacking unified instructions, could only play according to their own experience or ideas.

Since everyone has different ideas and experiences, how can we achieve consensus?
This manifested in the game as Sofia United's players being like a disorganized mess. Everyone seemed to be working hard and trying to change the situation, but in reality, the harder they tried, the worse it got.

They were fighting their own battles, not acting like a cohesive unit at all.

Stanley Harris found an opening and raised his hand for the ball, but Niels Zarek didn't see him and instead cut inside before shooting himself.

The ball went wide of the goal line.

That's how Sofia's attack came to an end.

The Sofia United fans in the stands let out sighs of regret, and... curses.

"Why did you shoot? Are you blind? Can't you see Harris is calling for the ball over there?!"

"Damn it! He's only scored three goals since the transfer, and he has the nerve to choose to shoot himself at this point!"

"We spent 98 million on this piece of junk... I now really believe Jonathan Hall took a kickback!"

"Wang is right. As long as that American Hall is still at the club, Sofia United will never be any better!"

Hearing the shouts and curses from the Sofia United fans in front of him, Xiao Cheng couldn't help but lower his head and laugh.

It's true that people can't teach you everything, but you can learn something by doing it.

So Wang Lie was right. If he didn't really beat the Sofia fans, they would still think their team was the powerhouse it once was...

We must tear off their fig leaves!
We need to expose their true colors!

This leaves them with no excuses, no way to avoid it, forcing them to confront the ugliest scars of their club!
※※※

Even when he saw that Niels Zarek hadn't passed the ball to Stanley Harris, who was in a better position, Shapman didn't yell at the player from the sidelines.

It was as if it were just a trivial little incident, not worth his attention as the head coach.

His silence and inaction resulted in a disjointed and disorganized performance for Sofia United on the pitch.

The attacking players want to stay in the attacking third to score, but the defending players are afraid to push forward and participate in the attack for fear of conceding more goals.

The scene looked very divided.

Just before the end of the first half, Sofia United launched an attack, but due to a lack of support from the backfield, the attack was stopped by Tyne before it reached Tyne's 30-meter line.

Aaron Skoten attempted a through ball to center forward Rich Wedel, but his intention was too obvious, and Mateja Katic anticipated the pass. Katic suddenly pressed forward and intercepted the ball before Wedel could receive it.

Instead of immediately pressing for the ball after missing it, Widell spread his hands and complained.

I don't know if he was complaining that Scouten's pass to him was too close to Katic, or complaining about his choice to just stand there and wait for the ball...

In short, he just stood there, spreading his hands and striking a pose.

Katic easily passed the ball to Sergi Cabella without any interference.

Tain seized the opportunity to launch a counterattack.

The Sofia United fans in the stands screamed in alarm, fearing their team would concede another goal before halftime...

Cabella passed the ball to Renzo Pisano in front of him. Pisano received the ball, turned around, and looked up at the right flank.

Sofia United's center-back Stephen Trave noticed Pisano's move and realized that Pisano wanted to pass the ball to Miguel Ribeiro on the right wing.

So he abandoned his position again and accelerated towards Ribeiro.

Sure enough, at the same time he started moving, Pisano also passed the ball over!

Seeing the ball rolling towards him, Travi made a desperate tackle and managed to clear it out of bounds before Ribeiro could receive it!

"Tella made a crucial defensive play!"

"His earlier rash rush allowed Travey to lose possession and gave Tyne a scoring opportunity. This time, however, his forward movement thwarted Tyne's counter-attack chance. This young man is rapidly developing in this match. Regardless of the final result, I think Travey's growth is the biggest takeaway for Sofia United from this game..."

The commentators praised Travi for making the crucial interception.

However, Travi did not become complacent. After getting up from the ground, the first thing he did was wave at Ricky Weddell, who was still in the attacking third, to express his dissatisfaction.

However, this was still just a minor incident.

After failing to mount a counterattack, Tyne was forced to engage in positional warfare against Soforth United.

As the game progressed, time ticked away, and eventually the referee blew the whistle to end the first half.

"First half ends! Judging by the score alone, Sofia United actually did a pretty good job in the first half, conceding only two goals to Tyne. But after watching this first half, many people probably won't be happy with Sofia United's performance... because Sofia United played almost no quality football and didn't threaten Tyne's goal at all! Elliott Goetz was probably the most relaxed player on both sides in the first half!"

Commentator Connor Cowley was unsparing in his criticism of Soforth United.

In the live broadcast, the Sofia players also left the stadium with their heads down, hurrying towards the players' tunnel, as if they could hear the commentary...

Marvin Block, hearing Connor Cowley's commentary beside him, could only shake his head with a wry smile and offered no rebuttal.

Because Sofia played really badly.

If he wants to maintain his image as a neutral, objective, and professional person, then he shouldn't be refuting Connor Cowley at this point.

No matter how unwilling he was, he had no choice but to endure it to avoid his reputation collapsing.

To his surprise, Conor Cowley turned to him and asked, "What do you think of the first half, Marvin?"

Brock took a deep breath, composed himself, and then smiled, trying to speak calmly:

"I agree. Sofia United's performance in the first half was terrible. They were basically completely dominated by Tyne. If someone who doesn't know much about either of these teams watched the first half, they probably wouldn't think Sofia United is a traditional powerhouse... But I think the biggest problem lies with Sofia United's manager, Meler Shapman. He basically didn't make any effective adjustments after conceding a goal. Especially after the second goal, what kind of play was the team playing?!"

Connor Cowley laughed when he heard this.

Because he remembered that before the match, when Wang Lie said that Shapman was not qualified to coach Sofia United, Marvin Block, who was next to him, posted an article criticizing Wang Lie for saying such a disrespectful thing.

Now he apparently also believes that Shapman is not fit to coach Sofia United...

However, since they were still his commentary partners and often worked together, Connor Cowley gave Marvin Block some face and didn't directly bring up his previous criticism of Wang Lie during the live broadcast.

Otherwise, it could very well embarrass Brock. Sometimes they would make jokes, but Connor Cowley knew exactly what jokes he and Brock could make and what jokes they couldn't.

Seemingly having opened up, or perhaps realizing that criticizing Sofia United was in line with his neutral and objective persona, Marvin Block, after criticizing manager Meler Shapman, began criticizing the players:
"...I can understand the objective fact that the players have been tactically lost this season. But I still have to say, even so, even with this or that objective circumstance, it is not an excuse for the players to play like this in the game! You are not ordinary players, you are Solfo United players! The team badge on your chests is more important than your names!"
"As players of Sofia United, you must give everything to win! No matter how strong the opponent you face, you should never give up on the pursuit of victory! This is the tradition of Sofia United! This is why Sofia United has become one of the top clubs in England!"
"I know Wang is strong, but I'm not talking about today's match. I'm talking about other matches. Apart from today's match, have you guys performed just as well in other matches?"

He's already referring to the Sofia United players as "you," as if he were standing right in front of them, berating them to their faces.

They were furious that they didn't deserve to wear the red jerseys of Sofia United.

Just like when Wang Lie angrily denounced Meler Shapman as unworthy to stand in front of the Sofia United manager's bench.

At this point, he no longer considered whether he had the right to criticize the team, nor whether his words showed respect for the Sofia players...

From this perspective, Wang Lie's approach was correct.

By winning one victory after another against Sofia United, we can make everyone at Sofia United reflect on their actions and seriously consider what Wang Lie said.

This is actually the same as Wang Lie's goal of winning the World Cup.

Back then, he was still young and his words didn't carry much weight within the Chinese team. So when he said his goal for the World Cup on home soil was to win the championship, everyone just took it as the arrogant words of a young, impulsive genius and no one took it seriously.

Even now, with his performance that is absolutely phenomenal at all ages, let alone at thirty-eight, when the old story is brought up again, everyone in the national team, whether they experienced it or not, no one dares to disregard his words.

Similarly, Wang Lie has repeatedly stated his intention to save the Soforth Alliance, but very few people are willing to believe him. Many people think he is just trying to find a plausible excuse for his revenge, and some even believe that Wang Lie is a despicable and shameless hypocrite who, under the guise of doing what is good for the Soforth Alliance, is actually harming it.

Therefore, no matter what Wang Lie says now, very few Solskjaer United fans will be willing to believe him.

But that doesn't matter. As long as Wang Lie can deliver a convincing performance every time he faces Sofia United, handing them defeat after defeat with goals, then sooner or later his words will be regarded as gospel by more and more people.

A player's words are only listened to if they are accompanied by performance.

Conversely, no matter how eloquent or reasonable your words are, if you lose the game and can't even score, what face do you have to utter those "big words"?

※※※

The Sofia players, of course, couldn't hear Conor Cowley and Marvin Bullock's criticisms and accusations against them.

But they were also very unhappy.

Stephen Travey didn't even wait to enter the locker room; he pointed at Ricky Weddell, who was walking in front of him, and yelled, "Why didn't you just grab it back on the spot?!"

Viddell turned to look at him, his expression a mixture of impatience and bewilderment: "Are you out of your mind, kid?"

After saying that, he continued walking forward and entered the locker room.

He didn't want to argue with his teammates.

But Travi didn't let him go, chasing after him and shouting at Wedel again as soon as he entered the locker room:
“That last play… when Katic intercepted the ball, you were right behind him, why didn’t you mark him closely? Why did you let them just push the ball straight into our defensive third? If I hadn’t predicted it correctly, we might have conceded another goal!”

Trailing by two goals and playing terribly in the first half, nobody was in a good mood. So, facing Travi's repeated criticisms, Wiedel finally snapped, turning around and pointing at Travi with a sarcastic remark:

"What right do you have to talk to me like that, kid? How did we concede our first goal? Huh? Wasn't it you who lost the ball in your own half? We were playing quite well, not conceding a goal, but because of your mistake! Everything was ruined! And now you have the nerve to criticize me in front of me! I didn't cause the goal, but you did! If we're going to lose this game, you're the culprit! The root of the failure!"

Wedel's words were scathing, because in a sense, he was stating a fact...

That mistake in the first half is an indelible stain on Travis's record, a wound he carries.

In the locker room, right in front of everyone, Videl ripped open Travi's wound, rubbed salt into it, and displayed this bloody scene to all.

How can a young person save face?

How could Tel Aviv possibly put up with this?

He felt a surge of heat rush to his head and was about to pounce on Wedel.

Fortunately, his teammates had noticed his earlier comments about Wedel, and they had been on guard all along.

So when Travi suddenly attacked, they immediately stood in front of him.

Especially Tyler Murphy, who is tall and strong, and can overpower Travi in ​​terms of strength.

He stood firmly in front of Travi, shouting at him, "Calm down, calm down!"

Behind him, Videl continued to taunt Travi: "Ah! You've broken down, want to beat me up? Looks like I hit a nerve, you know that, right? Come on, you little bastard! You've only been on the team for a few days, what right do you have to boss me around?!"

Ricky Weddell is 1.9 meters tall, the same height as Travis, but stronger. If the two were to fight, Travis might actually be at a disadvantage.

So Videl wasn't intimidated at all and continued to provoke us.

When the team's vice-captain, Aaron Scouten, saw that captain Murphy was about to stop Travis, he came over to persuade Wedel: "Say less, Richie! You have to understand that Stephen is in a bad mood..."

Facing the vice-captain, Wedel retorted without hesitation: "Why doesn't he understand me? Do you think I'm in a good mood? Damn it, we were beaten like eleven wild dogs in the first half! And he yelled at me over something so trivial. I didn't kick him when he was down!"

Travis, who was being held back by Murphy, was still yelling, "Bullshit! At least I gave it my all on the field, unlike you!"

When Sofia manager Meler Shapman walked into the locker room, this was the chaotic scene he witnessed.

Travi and Videl roared at each other across the people trying to break up the fight.

A few players, including Tyler Murphy and Aaron Scouten, are trying to break up the fight.

Meanwhile, most of the players remained seated, watching the "show" unfold with blank expressions, showing no intention of offering any advice or intervention, as if the scene before them had nothing to do with them.

At that moment, Shapman suddenly didn't think there was anything good about coaching a top team anymore, and he began to miss Breda Sports, where he used to work.

Although it was only a mid-table team in the Eredivisie, his coaching life there was much happier than in Manchester...

Looking at the chaotic scene before him, Shapman made a decision in his heart:
Regardless of the outcome of this match, he will announce his resignation at the post-match press conference.

Wang is right, I am not qualified to coach Sofia United.

Thinking of this, Shapman looked around and finally found a water bottle that someone had taken a sip from and then thrown on the ground.

He then bent down to pick it up, aimed at the area between the two sides in the conflict, and threw it forcefully!
Bang!
After a loud crash, the bottle cap was smashed open, and the water inside sprayed out, splashing onto everyone around.

The commotion finally alerted the locker room, silencing the previously noisy crowd.

Travi and Wedel turned to look in the direction the bottle had come from—their head coach was watching them calmly.

He didn't roar, but for some reason, this calm head coach made everyone feel unfamiliar and intimidated.

"Look at you guys, I feel like I'm managing a lower-league team... Sorry for being so blunt, but even at Breda Sports, where I previously managed, there was never any infighting that escalated to the point of fighting in the locker room. You guys have really opened my eyes. Ah, so this is what makes England's top clubs so special?"

※※※

"Although we are two goals ahead, this is not something to be happy about. You have to remember, our opponent is Sofia United, a powerhouse. Never underestimate a powerhouse team, even one that has fallen on hard times!"

In the away team's locker room, it wasn't head coach Sam McNeil who was reminding the team, but captain Wang Lie.

His expression was so serious that it was impossible to tell whether he was being sarcastic or not.

"We didn't do enough in the first half, and everyone needs to work twice as hard in the second half. A two-goal lead against a top team is not safe! So I hope everyone doesn't get complacent with the current score, and doesn't think they've been completely crushed by us—absolutely, absolutely don't have that kind of thinking, or you'll be in trouble. This applies not only to this match, but to all matches! Especially in the Champions League!"

(End of this chapter)