When Tony. When Donn stood on the podium in a soaked suit and was a little embarrassed, the person waiting in front of him for the award was none other than UEFA President Michel Platini.

The UEFA number one man watched with a smile as Don pulled his wet hair away from his eyes, without rushing.

Donn had just been drenched from head to tail by the players with the water they usually drank, and that was after carrying him around the pitch for a week. Tang En was caught off guard and was very embarrassed. He had to be glad that the boys didn't splash him with champagne, otherwise he would have been slimy and would have died of hardship.

Platini kept looking at Don and smiling like he was looking at something funny. It wasn't until Don finally straightened out the messy hair in front of his forehead that he handed his hand: "Congratulations, Mr. Donne." ”

Don returned the salute: "Thank you, Mr. President. ”

If Don had pledged his allegiance to UEFA, Platini would have had a bigger smile on his face at this moment, and he would have patted Donn on the face affectionately, and then kissed the French and said, "Congratulations, dear Tony." ”

But now giving an award to a team from the Premier League makes Platini unable to laugh in his heart anyway. Five years ago, UEFA was unhappy that Premier League teams represented by Nottingham Forest and Manchester United dominated the majority of the Champions League semi-finals. So they did everything they could to curb the influence of Premier League teams in the Champions Cup, including secretly manipulating the results of the draw and assigning referees. Later Tony. Donn had a heart attack, Nottingham Forest was in decline, and the Premier League whirlwind was finally a little weaker. It's a pity that Ferguson still broke through layers of encirclement in the last Champions Cup final before retiring and won the championship. The strength of the Premier League cannot be curbed even if UEFA is deliberate.

Now it's even more incredible. Tony. Don came back with Nottingham Forest to lift the trophy once again, making teams from all over Europe a spectator. If this development continues, the European Champions Cup will simply be renamed "European FA Cup" in the future.

This is definitely not the future that UEFA wants to see. In fact, their real thoughts are that "after a certain national league monopolizes the top four of the Champions Cup, it will inevitably make fans of other leagues lose interest in the subsequent games, affecting the ratings, and then directly affecting the TV broadcast share, in the final analysis, it is one word - money".

UEFA is not a charity, and there is no financial allocation behind it, so they have to pay for their own profits and losses, so naturally they get the money and do what they do.

If three Premier League teams and any other league team reach the semi-finals every year, even the most die-hard fans will have a day of aesthetic fatigue. What should I do if I am aesthetically tired? If you don't watch it, TV broadcasters will reduce their share, advertisers will reduce their investment, and finally the money will become less and less.

Platini lifted the gold medal in his hand, and at this time Don should bow down and let Platini hang the gold medal around his neck. But he didn't. He hadn't done that in a long time. He was not accustomed to bowing in front of others, even to receive a gold medal. He always received the other party's medal with his hand.

Platini looked helplessly at the unruly lord and handed him the gold medal in his hand.

Donn saw the unhappiness in Platini's eyes, though it quickly faded. He knew what Platini was upset about, but he didn't care.

After receiving the gold medal, Don En directly put it in the pocket of his suit jacket, looking unconcerned. Real Madrid fans must have spurted blood in their hearts when they saw this scene - the highest honor they coveted was treated like this by the rude and uncultured English hillbilly.

Tony. With the gold medal in his pocket, Donn shook hands with some of the officials behind Platini and walked to the side of the stage, where he waited for George with everyone. Wood comes to power.

This is the highlight of all award ceremonies – the presentation of trophies.

George. When Wood walked up to the stage, his teammates on the other side were gesturing and whistling at him. They were as excited as if they had seen a beautiful naked woman - at this moment, the big ear cup was in their eyes, the graceful arc, the bright shell reflecting the light was indeed a beautiful naked woman with a surname pose to tempt them.

Wood bent down for Platini to hang the gold medal around his neck, and then walked with the UEFA president to the table where the Champions Cup was placed.

"Champion! Champion! Champion! The Forest players shouted in unison in the back, they didn't care what UEFA thought about them winning the title, they just knew that the title was theirs!

Platini was distracted by the sudden shouting from behind, and he glanced back at the group of players, seemingly with an approving smile on his face. Tang En watched from the side, and said in his heart that the cultivation of being a great official is really good......

Platini held the trophy up and handed it to Wood.

"Congratulations, George. You are the champions of Europe! ”

Wood unceremoniously accepted the trophy and held it high. The teammates behind him roared and toasted together: "Champion - Hooray!!" ”

At the same time, countless red confetti erupted from behind the podium, and more red and white streamers poured down from the roof of the Bernabeu Stadium, accompanied by the loud "We Are the Champions", and in the enemy's lair, Nottingham Forest was crowned King of Europe.

This time, they are also the king of kings – the Triple Crown.

“…… We are champions, my friends! We are the champions, and we win all battles......"

Amid the music, confetti fell all over the sky, and Don looked up at the scene. The confetti of ribbons floating in the air glistened under the flood lights of the stadium, as if they were fragments of memory, each with a face and a memory. It's been eleven years, and it's been so long since I've been like this. Some of their names and faces had faded into his memory, while others were still clear. Is that the end there?

Looking at the confetti flying in the night sky, thinking about it, Tang En's heart was a little reluctant.

※※※

The reporters at the press conference were waiting impatiently, and Don was late. He changed into a suit, his hair was dried, and he looked much more stylish than when he received the award. What's even more stylish is that he suddenly shook out a red cloak on the stage, and then made a bullfighting move.

"Spanish journalists, what do you think of what I learned? Let's give some applause! He smiled and said to the people below, "That's very proud." We just killed a giant bull. He made a sword stabbing motion.

He smiled as he looked at the Spanish reporters in the audience whose faces had changed color. From the press conference before the match, he was looking forward to meeting today. I'm glad he had the last laugh, and this red cloak for bullfighting was not bought in vain.

The faces of the Spanish reporters below were suddenly clouded, and no one applauded him.

This is a naked provocation, and this action is also destined to set the tone of this press conference - you provoke, we find fault.

Michelle left after the interview in front of him, and the bloody storm that will happen here here naturally has nothing to do with him. After taunting the Spaniard, Don sat down in his chair and nodded to the host, who motioned for the reporters to ask questions.

All the reporters raised their hands, and Don didn't look carefully at which of them were the Spanish reporters who had just sneered at him, and which were the English reporters who might be biased towards him, so he randomly clicked on one. The person who stood up was a reporter from the Spanish newspaper "Marca", a middle-aged man who gritted his teeth when he spoke, obviously stimulated by Donn's "performance" before: "First of all, congratulations on leading the team to win the treble." Secondly, I want to ask Pepe about that red card, he could face a very serious penalty, do you have anything to say, Mr. Donn? ”

Pepe's egregious violent foul during the game is sure to be the focus of much media attention after the game. The Spaniards will use this as a lever to attack Donn and overturn Nottingham Forest's achievements point to face. And now, they want to spoil Donn's good mood at the press conference.

Don raised his eyebrows and put away his smile: "I support Pepe, and it was understandable to be impulsive at that time. After all, Real Madrid relied on that penalty to equalise in the last minute. It's just such a coincidence. If it were me, I would be angry. As expected, Don chose to protect the calf. And he also secretly scolded UEFA.

"Do you support beating people?" The Marca newspaper reporter asked.

"In that situation, I can understand even if he hit someone." Don replied with a blank face. "It's my ......," Donn paused, a big smile suddenly appeared on his face. …… Maybe I'll be able to hit it too. ”

The reporter of the Marca newspaper looked a little bad on his face, and he sat down angrily. I guess I'm thinking about how to say bad things about Don in the newspaper.

The second to be named was still a Spanish journalist, this time with the newspaper As. The finger is still pointed at Tony. Donn, but the reason has been changed to tactics. "Nottingham Forest infringed on Real Madrid players many times throughout the game and committed 30 fouls in 120 minutes, is that not normal?"

"It's a normal tactical setup." Donn took the blame on himself, "I let them do it." And you saw it, Mr. Reporter. Don pulled the gold medal out of his pocket, and a golden light shook in the light that the reporter's head tilted and his eyes closed slightly. We are champions. ”

"Is there a reason to win such a championship?" The reporter was very upset by Donn's frivolous behavior, and what he said was already out of the scope of the reporter's question, and he lost his mind a little.

Don spread his hands and looked innocent: "Why is there no reason to take it?" We don't steal, we don't steal, we don't rely on referees, we don't rely on UEFA, we don't have an exaggerated home advantage, we don't have a last-minute penalty help, and we have one less person than Real Madrid. If we have no reason to win the championship, then dear Mr. Ace News, tell me who else in the world has more reasons than us to win the championship...... This one? Tang En shook the reporter's eyes with the gold medal again, he was deliberately angry with the other party.

"Alright, next." Don ignored the red-faced Spaniard who bit his lower lip and turned his head to nod again.

This time it was finally the English reporter who stood up, but in a sense he was still Donn's "enemy" - a reporter from The Sun.

The reporters of the Sun are trained to know the way of journalism, and it is not their purpose to congratulate Don and ask some innocuous questions. If you want to play, you can play exciting, don't be afraid of attracting hatred, if you don't attract hatred, that's mediocrity. To be a journalist is to have the consciousness of being scolded by tens of millions of people and still not changing his face.

"Mr. Donne, I heard that your contract will expire on June 30th, but you have not renewed your contract with the club until now, is there anything ...... Catch? ”

This authentic paparazzi in England made an extraordinary move, and they were shocked. Not many people know about the fact that Donn has not renewed his contract with the club, and it is fair to say that even the players of the Forest team are not aware of it. I didn't expect the people from the Sun to find out.

Don couldn't help but look at the man in front of him.

"It's a shame you not to go to Scotland Yard, Mr. Reporter." By saying this, Donn is admitting that the Sun's news is true. The discussion below became louder, and the host had to come out to maintain order.

But the reporter had to embarrass Donn: "So you're admitting it." So what is the reason why you chose not to renew your contract? ”

Donn was prepared and came up with an excuse to deal with Evan and Allen: "Before the Champions Cup, I don't want to be bothered by those contract terms and annual salary packages. ”

"That means the contract will be renewed after the Champions Cup? Ah, Mr. Donn, you have to understand the feelings of those who care about you and the Forest fans, who must want to renew their contracts as the club's meritorious coach and continue their glory......

These words sounded high-sounding, but Don knew that the bastard was not well-intentioned.

"You'll know when the time comes, Mr. Reporter." Don wasn't good either, he responded. This Q&A is concluded.

Maybe it was because the three people who found fault in a row were in a bad mood, and Don didn't order it casually this time, but ordered Pierce. Bruce.

Bruce obviously didn't know that Don hadn't even renewed his contract with the club, and it seemed that Donn was really tight. When he stood up, his eyes wandered a little, and his mind must still be thinking about what had just happened. The questions asked are also very good, not newsworthy, nothing more than the team's tactical arrangement, praise the performance of certain players, and talk about the feelings of the treble......

Tang En's answers were fluent, and the two of them seemed to have been rehearsed a long time ago, and the questions and answers went quickly. The other reporters below were all doing their stenographic earnest, but they all shook their heads at the same time - it seemed that the good thing was over.

After answering these questions, Bruce suddenly came to his senses, and he still wanted to ask. "Tony, is it true that you will renew your contract after the Champions Cup?"

Don was stunned by Bruce's question, and his face suddenly looked bad, but it didn't appear on his face for less than a second, and he changed his smile again.

"You'll know then, Mr. Bruce."

Pierce. Bruce sweated on his forehead when he heard Donn's last name. He understood that the king of Nottingham Forest was angry. However, it strengthened his doubts about Donn's early contract extension with the club.

A year ago, the media hyped the news of Donne's contract extension with the club, and at that time the Forest club had offered Donn a new five-year contract, more than double the annual salary he is currently getting, and that annual salary figure made him not only in terms of performance, but also in terms of income, among the top coaches in England. Originally, everyone talked very well, and Don was ready to sign the new contract, but he didn't expect that Allen forcibly intervened in the sale of Lennon. Without saying a word, Donn immediately suspended the contract extension talks and told Evan to wait a year before talking about it.

At that time, Don did a great job, and the two sides had an unpleasant quarrel. There are even rumours that Donn is leaving that summer to take charge of Manchester United. Although Don didn't leave in the end, much to the surprise of those who thought he should have gone, rumours of a conflict between him and the club raged for a while. It has directly affected the team's summer preparations, and the team's morale has fluctuated and transfers have tended to stagnate. As a result, Forest's new season started slower than several other rivals, otherwise they would not have chased Arsenal in the final minute of the season to win the title.

Bruce knew that Donn and Allen were at odds, but he didn't expect him to really renew his contract with the club until now......

After this final, believe Evan. Doggetti will definitely be eager to come up with a new contract, and where will Donn go from here?

The Nottingham Evening Post reporter frowned, and he suddenly had a sense of foreboding.

At this time, the man in his eyes had already gotten up to leave, and the host hurriedly announced that the press conference was over. The reporters wanted to ask questions, but Don walked out without looking back.

This post-game press conference, which should have been a happy and joyful one, did not see any festive atmosphere at all......

Pierce. Bruce looked around and had this thought in his mind.

※※※

Instead of going back to the locker room, Donn walked straight to the bus parked outside the stadium, where his team was waiting for him.

Don stepped into the carriage and waved, "Go back and celebrate, guys!" The season is over, don't think about anything and have fun! Let go and play! ”

He was greeted by a crowd of people cheering wildly. After a hard season, gritting your teeth and persevering until this moment, why? Isn't that what the boss said!

Before, the boss always waved his whip and yelled in the back: "Run! Keep running! Don't let up! "Now it's finally the finish line, and they're the first to cross the line. You don't have to worry about anything, go to the ground, and take a breath.

The carriage suddenly became lively, some people were discussing where to go during the holidays, some people were busy calling their families and girlfriends, and some people simply fell asleep on their chairs.

Don didn't care what they were messing about, he sat down next to Chrislak and exhaled softly.

"It's finally over, David."

"yes." Chris Rac smiled and replied, "I've got to get some rest!" ”

"Me too." Don nodded.

"You really need to get some rest. Don't let your wife worry too much, you've been working so hard this time. ”

Don hummed, then adjusted the back of the seat, leaned upside down, and closed his eyes, "I'll sleep for a while, and wake me up, David." ”

The limousine bus slowly pulled out of the Bernabéu Stadium, where the lights were out, and headed for the hotel where they were staying. The crowd was still making noise in the carriage, but Donn, who was leaning next to Chrislack, was already snoring slightly.

This hustle and bustle has nothing to do with him.

※※※

When Donn was woken up, the car was parked in front of the hotel, and the players had all gotten out of the car, leaving him, Krislak and the driver alone.

"Huh? Well, arrived? Don wiped his face and sat up from his seat, but he forgot to adjust the angle of the backrest, and lay back down with a limp, the feeling of weightlessness startled him, and the expression on his face changed, and he returned to normal after leaning back in the chair.

Seeing his embarrassed appearance, Chris Rac laughed: "You are like this, where is the demeanor of a European champion coach?" ”

"Didn't wake up...... Yawn—" Donn yawned and stretched, before sitting back up. I moved my neck and shoulders, which were a little sore from maintaining a sleeping position. "I had a dream."

He looked at this old partner who had been with him for ten years. The lights in the carriage had gone out, but his eyes were shining in the darkness, as if they were reflecting the lights of the hotel door outside.

"Sweet dreams?" Chris Rac asked, following Donn's words.

"Sweet dreams." Don nodded affirmatively and got up to leave his seat. "It's a rare dream." He stepped out of the car.

There are still many reporters and die-hard Forest fans waiting in front of the hotel. Seeing Don walk down, there was a stir, which made the security guards and police officers who were responsible for maintaining order like a great enemy.

Fat John and his party were also inside, and when they saw Donne, they shouted, "Tony! Hey, Tony! ”

Don heard the shouts and waved at them.

"Thanks, Tony! Thank you! "The group seemed to have drunk a lot of alcohol and looked excited. He kept shouting "thank you" to Donn, apparently thanking him for allowing the Forest to win the treble that even in the Clough era.

Thin Bill drank the most, red from his head to the base of his neck, and when he saw Donne, he wanted to break through the separation between the security guards and the police, but the person who drank too much had no strength, and his feet were unstable, and he was pushed back by the police. In the thrust, he was still muttering, "Tony...... Hiccup! Tony, next year...... I'll get it next year...... Win three championships, championships...... Hiccup! ”

Don waved at him, "Definitely." ”

Then walked into the hotel lobby. Relieved, the security guards and police retreated to the door, using the location to keep the crazy fans and reporters out.

The players didn't wait, they dispersed, they had their own pastimes, and they had nothing to do with the manager. Don didn't want to join in the fun, so he and Chris Rac walked straight into the elevator and went up to the floor where their room was.

As soon as they got out of the elevator, the two of them saw Evan standing outside. Dogetty and Allen. Adams.

Evan smiled and greeted Chrislak first, then turned to Donn, "Tony, we've been waiting for you for a long time. ”

Chris Rac, though usually very aggressive, is not a fool, and he knows that Mr. Chairman must have something to do with Donne. So I made an excuse and left first.

Chrislak walked away playfully, while Donn continued to stand in the elevator.

Evan looked at him and smiled, "If you don't come out again, you'll have to go back to the first floor." ”

Don touched his nose and walked out with his head down. He wished he could sit back on the first floor. Although that thought has been circling in my heart for a whole year, when I really want to say it, I still have mixed feelings and are very hesitant.

Tonight is Champions Night, and in Nottingham, it's also a sleepless night for more than half of the people.

The players who have worked hard all season will also have fun and indulge in nights like this. It's party night.

As for the reporters who hurried back from the stadium and the hotel, this night was destined to be a busy night.

And now, for the three people who are standing at the entrance of the elevator, it is ...... Showdown night.

(To be continued)