A 4-0 home win over underdogs Macedonia, a 2-0 away win over Wales, and a 3-1 friendly against Australia. Tony. Donn's New England team has played three international A games and has yet to lose. It only took three games for Donn to prove that his title as the "Godfather of Champions" was not for nothing, and his "always and everywhere" rhetoric was well received by more Englishmen – it seems that he does have two brushes, not just words.

But there are also those who disagree.

Macedonia, Wales and Australia are not strong teams, and they played friendly matches against Australia, so the victory in these three games does not explain anything. To test the true level of a team, it is definitely not to play against a team of this level, but to challenge stronger opponents. For example, Serbia four days later.

Unlike the previous three opponents, Serbia has always been a force to be reckoned with in European football. As a member of the former Yugoslavia, the level of football has always been at a high level, just look at the Serbian players who play for major European teams today:

Manchester United's centre-back Nemanja Vidic is undoubtedly the most recognisable of the Serbian stars. There are also defenders Branislav Ivanovic who plays for Chelsea, Stankovic who plays for Inter Milan, goalkeeper Stojkovic who plays for Sporting Lisbon, defender Stepanov who plays for Portuguese giants Porto, defenders Lukovic who plays for Udinese, defenders Tosic and Kachar who play for Werder Bremen, and striker Lazovic who plays for Bayer Leverkusen......

These are seasoned veterans who play a vital role in their respective clubs. Serbia, having them, was enough for England to put away its arrogant posture and deal with it carefully.

Nemanja Vidic, who plays at Manchester United centre-back and captain of the Serbian national team, has told reporters that he is not at all afraid of the menacing England side today: "I know them well, I play against them every weekend. I wouldn't be afraid of England with so many stars, because football is not about who has the most value to win. It's our home game and we have the edge. ”

The captain is full of confidence, as the head coach of the Serbian team, Radomir. Antioch is very low-key. He told the media that England are a great team, with a number of world-renowned stars and a title-winning coach who has just led Forest to the treble. Serbia don't compare to them, so he will be aiming to try to hold on to a draw on his home turf.

Some England fans expressed their joy at the opposition manager's weak remarks, but Donn would not think that Antici was really afraid of them like ordinary fans.

"He's an old man. Do you know what that means, Des? That is to say, he is experienced and cunning. I've only managed two teams other than England – one for Nottingham Forest and one for Nottingham Forest. But Antić is an old man who has coached six different teams, with experience in the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona, and has had successes and failures...... I am inferior to him in terms of experience. He said that their goal was to keep the peace, was it really the peace? Serbia are also aiming to qualify for Spain in 2016, but they just lost 3-2 away to Denmark in the last round, so what's the point of a draw with us? If this game is our home game and they are away, he said I would have believed it. Don pouted, a look of disbelief evident on his face.

Now they're on a flight from London to Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. The players were busy with their own business, some were listening to music, some were playing handheld game consoles, some were reading magazines and newspapers, some were watching movies, and some were resting with their eyes closed.

Donn and Walker sat down and talked about the opponents they were going to face next.

'Their centre-back combination is strong and I don't think it's a good idea to start Mitchel. His body was too thin...... After all these years, he indulged in the technique of his feet, but his physical strength never increased. I think that's what he did, when he was at Forest, he would be out of shape against a strong centre-back. It's the same with this game. ”

Walker asked, "So who are you going to use?" ”

"Fast striker. Serbia's centre-backs are slow to turn around. We used our speed and dexterity to break through their defences. At this point, Donn adjusted his sitting position and motioned for Walker to come up a little. The noise in the plane was too loud, and he didn't want to shout it hoarsely.

"We're going to make an adjustment, I'm sure that old man Antici must not have imagined." "I'm going to put Walcott up front, he's quick, he's smart, he's right to use against Serbian defenders," Donn said mysteriously. ”

Walker thought about it for a moment and thought it was feasible, so he nodded. However, he is still a little worried: "Walcott has played the most at Arsenal is a wide ......"

'That's not a problem, he's played as a striker. And I won't restrict him on the right side of the game in this game, he's a little bit freer. ”

After saying that, Donn laughed: "I know that in the current England team, those people in the Forest team have this idea - I was the manager of the Forest team before, so I will take extra care of them. It's not just them, it's the other players who have thought it more or less, ever since I took off the armband for John Terry and Steven Gerrard and chose George. Since Wood, this idea has existed. This game is a good opportunity to show them that no one can enjoy the privilege with me. Even George, he relied on consistent performance and obedience to tactical command to get to where he is today. ”

"I thought you were in control of the team on the day you were forty-six."

"It's not completely under control." Don opened his right palm and clenched it again. "There were also people who were suspicious of me, but they didn't show it. If I want them to die for me, I can't let them doubt me. And...... It's a little annoying, Des. The national team is not as regular as the club, and there are always people who are not there at every training camp and I have to re-establish my image in front of them......"

"I'm rare for you to be so tired of being a coach, Tony."

"It'll be fine in the future, the media will help me get the word out." Don rested his head on the back of his seat and muttered, "I'll take a nap and call me, Des." ”

"Okay."

※※※

The flight of the England team arrived in Nikola, Belgrade. When Tesla was at the airport, it was already half past eight in the evening. The team was not disturbed by much media at the airport and took the bus directly to the hotel where they were staying. Since it was night, they also couldn't get a glimpse of this "crossroads between the Western and Eastern worlds".

The next day, the team appeared at the Maracana Stadium, the home stadium of Serbia, for a warm-up training session to adapt to the venue, which was sought after by many media.

There were even young Serbian fans with Premier League club shirts looking for autographs from the players. Due to the huge influence of the Premier League, although the English national team has always had mediocre results, there is no shortage of stars.

After Wood signed an autograph for a young fan who didn't look like he was 10 years old, he walked down and Don looked at him with his hands around his chest and joked: "Tomorrow night's game, can you imagine him giving you the middle finger in the stands, George?" ”

Wood ignored him and walked straight back to the locker room.

"It's boring!" Don complained behind his back.

The press conference was just as boring. This time, he and the opposing head coach Antich attended at the same time, and when facing reporters, Antich complimented Done vigorously, almost touting him as the number one coach in world football today, and the flesh was so numb that English reporters couldn't help but shiver.

“…… Tony. Donn is a very, very good coach, and it's unbelievable that he's just 46 years old...... It's so young, it's a manager like that, and it's scared all over Europe. To be honest, I am a big fan of him, and if I were the president of the club, I would definitely do whatever it took to keep him...... England are also a very strong team and we have to be careful at our home turf ......'

Such words made Don really want to yawn in public without giving face.

If I were to be blown up by such idiots, I would be an idiot than him.

Don thought to himself.

However, Donn did not show his thoughts on his face, and he was very cooperative with Antić's big talk about his team, and barely mentioned Serbia, only commenting politely when asked that this is a team that needs to be taken seriously. When a reporter asked him to comment on what kind of law needs to be dealt with seriously, he was full of "Vidic" and "Ivanovic", as if he didn't know anyone else in Serbia after leaving the Premier League.

His performance made Serbian journalists very unhappy, this arrogant Englishman! Now is not the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries when the Empire dominated the world! Wait and see, megalomaniacs!

But Antici always had a smile on his face, and he was not dissatisfied that he was slighted by Donn. In his opinion, even though Don has been coaching for eleven years, the forty-six-year-old is still too young. Having won so many honors at such a young age, and becoming the savior of England, leading the team to win three games in a row, it is absolutely impossible not to be proud. As a successful person who is proud of the spring breeze, he must think that there is nothing in the world that he can't do, there is no opponent that he can't beat, how can he put it in his eyes on a team like Serbia that is in a corner of Eastern Europe?

I'm sixty-five years old, and I've seen more bridges than you've ever walked.

His analysis of Donn was half right. Tony. Don is indeed a proud man, and indeed arrogant. But he's not an idiot with a minus 25 IQ.

After finishing the press conference, Donn gave Pierce. Bruce called, and he wanted to hear what the news media had to say about his performance at today's press conference.

"How's that, Mr. 007. Do you think I'm a nasty person with the narrow-mindedness of a typical island nation in my own arrogant eyes? ”

"Honestly, Tony. I was a little puzzled when I saw you start performing, how could you just mention Vidic and Branislav Ivanovic who played in the Premier League? But then I understood...... Well, if I didn't know enough about you, I'll admit that I would have fallen for you. ”

Donn was pleased with Bruce's answer: "Well, I'll wait to bear the wrath of the Serbian media." Hey! ”

※※※

The Serbian newspapers published the next day had attacked the arrogance of the English, and Antić must have been stealing pleasure with them.

However, the night's game was completely unexpected.

Before the game, Donn told Mitchel in front of all the players that he would not start this game. This decision undoubtedly poured cold water on Mitchel and surprised the whole team. You must know that Mitchel's performance in recent games has been quite eye-catching, and he has basically secured the position of England's main center forward. But when playing against a strong team like Serbia, Donn didn't arrange for him to play, why?

The explanation given by Donn was that Mitchel's technical characteristics did not fit the overall tactics of the team in this game, so he needed to rest.

At the same time, he also told the whole pair of players what he had been saying through this adjustment - the Forest players will also be suddenly removed from the starting line-up like Steven Gerrard, and I don't have any privileges here. My team has never been a privilege. The criteria for deciding who starts and who don't start are your form and what I need tactically.

After arranging the tactics, Donn changed his arrogance at the press conference and told his players with a serious expression that this game was a test. The Serbs occupy the home turf and will not let them go easily. This game will have to be careful of Serbia's counter-attacks, while putting more pressure on the opposition in attack, forcing them to have no time to counter-attack. In addition, strengthen the interception and close defense in the midfield, and absolutely cannot allow the Serbs to control the ball freely in the midfield.

Once you've done that, it's up to you to see which side of the game plays better.

※※※

England played better in the first half.

Antich did not expect that England did not underestimate the enemy, but pressed fiercely in the midfield, and Serbia was a little unaccustomed. They want England to attack, but they don't want England's midfielders to work tirelessly to press the ball at their feet.

From the very beginning of the game, the Serbs were scrambling by England and didn't know how to play.

England didn't waste any chances, with Theo Walcott scoring a goal and an assist to give his team a 2-0 lead in the first half.

Donne's adjustment was unexpected by Antich, Walcott and Mitchel are completely different types of players, their tactics were originally aimed at Mitchel, but Unexpectedly, Donn played a flexible and fast forward, from the wing to the middle, constantly disrupting the Serbian backline. The 33-year-old was defeated before he and Wayne Rooney were in turn.

In the second half, Serbia made a change to defend specifically against England's fast forward line. Their counter-attacks picked up, too, and they pulled a goal back ten minutes into the second half.

But before the cheers on the Maracanã stadium stopped, England returned to color. This time it was centre-back John Terry who scored from a corner and he grabbed a header from a corner. 3：1。

Scoring so quickly and conceding so quickly was a huge blow to the Serbs, and while they were in disarray, England scored another goal - 4:1, almost sealing the victory.

In the closing stages of the match, Serbia knocked Joe away with a free-kick. Hart guarded the gate, but that didn't help.

England relied on their opponents' unexpectedly tough attitude and proactive attacking tactics to win their first strong opponent in this group 4-2 away from home.

Three wins in a row in qualifying, scoring ten goals, and the team's morale is high. Donn seems to be going to prove with a steady stream of wins that he has no problem even if it's his first time in charge of the national team.

When Antici and Donn shook hands after the game, they looked helpless.

Don shook his hand, patted him on the shoulder, and said nothing. However, he believed that Antici had understood what he meant, and should have understood it from the beginning of the game - he had fallen for Donn, and he was tricked to be played.

(To be continued)