Judging by the results of the last decade, Newcastle are a strong team in English football. This concept was developed from Kevin. When Keegan began his move to St James' Park, Done even felt that the best years of Keegan's managerial career had been spent at Newcastle, rather than with the England national team.

Of course, despite a decade in the Premier League, Newcastle are also a traditional powerhouse in England, having only won four league titles at the turn of the last century, but they have won the FA Cup six times in their highest status. Even in the early days of the Premier League, the FA Cup was still the most important competition in the minds of the English people, and it was not until the influence of the league and the UEFA Champions League that the FA Cup gradually lost its status.

What makes Newcastle unequal to Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool is that they have not left a mark on the history of English football and have not ruled the land in a row. Therefore, they can only be a second-rate strong team, not a giant.

Nottingham aren't big clubs either, but they have one more advantage over Newcastle – they have won the European Cup.

But it makes no sense to talk about how brilliant the past achievements were. Newcastle are still a second-tier team, and Nottingham Forest are considered by the media to be inferior to the Magpies when they face Newcastle, even though Forest are still in the table ahead of Newcastle...... What does Donn think of such an evaluation?

'Newcastle are a strong team and Souness is a great senior......,' he told The Echo outside Newcastle's airport. Tony. When did Don ever use the term "senior" for his opponents?

He didn't use Wenger, he didn't use Ferguson. Even his opponent did not call him "senior". Souness is certainly a predecessor, but his achievements are far less than the above three. Does Donn's saying this mean that he really intends to relent?

'It's always going to be harder to play away from home than at home and it's even harder to play at St James' Stadium. So if you ask me what the outcome of this game will be, I'm sorry, I don't have anything to say. Squeezing out of the pile of reporters, Donn quickly got into the bus. The car door closed behind him, leaving behind a group of reporters who had not received any news and drove away from the airport.

As the car drove into the city, the roof of St James's Stadium loomed over the banks of the River Tyne, peeking out from behind the building and disappearing. Because the stadium is in the heart of Newcastle City, it can be very crowded on the day of the game, so the hotel where the Forest team is staying is close to the stadium, and the traffic is only 10 minutes by car.

Newcastle has long been England's gold medal city, because compared to other cities in England where the "derby" is rich, Newcastle has only one team, and that is Newcastle United (newcastle_united). In a city with a population of only 280,000, 50,000 people sit at St James' Park every time a home game is played.

The roar from the 50,000-strong stands...... The Forest have yet to experience such a scene, and they have mentioned that the biggest venue for the game is the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, but that is only a neutral venue. St James' Park is perhaps second in the list of the hottest stadiums in England's top flight.

Which stadium is the first one to ask? The stadium was not big, if not small, with a capacity of less than 10,000 people, but it was the most terrifying stadium for opponents, because it was the home of Wimbledon.

Forest have played a number of away games since promotion to the Premier League, but Donn believes St James' Park is the best place to test the team's resilience.

Of course, everyone wants to meet an easy opponent, but in reality this is impossible. Nottingham Forest have played a total of 10 league games this season, with Arsenal and Chelsea playing against strong teams, but perhaps their strongest opponents are Everton, who are unbeaten with one win and two draws. But considering the games against Arsenal and Chelsea, the Forest team is on their home turf, and they have taken a big advantage.

Newcastle are weaker than Everton, and Forest are still playing away this time. With a packed schedule and a lot of bad luck, it's no wonder Newcastle's local newspaper, The Echo, is optimistic about the game, believing that Souness's side should get the three points on a smooth basis.

The Nottingham local media view is the exact opposite of Newcastle's, with the Nottingham Evening Post believing that now is the best time for Forest, who have won back-to-back victories, can pick up a point at the worst result at St James' Park.

※※※After the team checked into the hotel, had a brief lunch, and after a break, Don asked Chris Rac to assemble the team and go to St. James' Park for a training session on acclimatization.

Because it was a pre-match adaptation training, there were not many media who followed, and they did not have permission to enter to shoot and interview, so they could only take pictures of the Forest bus entering the stadium outside the stadium gate. However, after the acclimatization training, the league will arrange a pre-match press conference attended by both head coaches to answer some questions from the media.

For example, Alain. The conflict between Shearer and Souness, like the gossip about Kluivert's nightclubs...... They can also expect the megalomaniacal Tony. What amazing quotes does Don have?

Only then will a large number of media arrive.

There are few media outlets these days, but there are plenty of Forest fans who have followed the team from Nottingham to Newcastle, wearing striking red shirts, waiting outside St James' Park in hopes of catching a glimpse of their idols.

It's as simple as that.

Donn, who saw them in the car, said to Chris Lak: "Tell the players later, I'm only going to give them 10 minutes to shower and change clothes after training. Then come out and sign autographs for the fans. ”

David also noticed the group of fans, did not object, and nodded: "I understand." ”

Taking his eyes away from the fans, Donn began to think about what it takes to win away at Newcastle. But he didn't notice a little bit of green in the red.

※※※ Adaptation training is very simple, the main thing is to let the players get used to the field, do a few sets of simple set-piece exercises, and finally shoot and shoot for entertainment and relaxation. The plans are all laid out before coming here, and the coaching staff is responsible for the specific training. Don O dragged Chris Lak back and forth on the pitch as if he were walking, but in fact used his feet to personally inspect the quality of the pitch's turf.

"It's a little fluffy, it won't rain tomorrow, right?" Don looked up at the sky with some concern, gloomy and gloomy, and could feel the humidity in the air just by using his nose.

"It's likely to be raining." David walking next to him. Chris Rac said.

"What the hell!" Donn cursed under his breath, "Let me think about it, how many games I remember the Forest were played on a sunny afternoon?" Thankfully, there will be no hurricanes in the North Sea......"

Chris Lak laughed silently: "I want you to water the tap and water the stadium and cause trouble for Arsenal for that youth team game. ”

Hearing Chrislac say this, Donn really crouched down, fiddled with the turf with his hands, and it was wet. "Damn! They also poured a lot of water! ”

This time Chris Rac didn't laugh silently, he laughed out loud: "It seems that everyone will do this." Tony, I rarely hear you complain about the weather, what are you worried about? ”

Donn looked around at the empty stands at St James's Stadium, which would be filled with a day of frenzied Newcastle fans who would incessantly use boos and singing to put pressure on Forest. Forest have lost just one game this season, away to Blackburn Rovers in the opening round of the league. Playing away and playing at home are two completely different feelings.

He was really worried, but he couldn't tell Chris Lack.

"No, I'm not worried about anything. We have nothing to worry about. ”

After the acclimatization session, Donn met Souness in the stadium's press room, the gray-haired Scotsman who looked a little serious. He only succeeded his boss Robson as head coach in September, and he has won two straight games in a row at Newcastle, and it is time for spring to be proud. Don's title of "senior" seems to have made him pick up the shelf of his predecessor a little, and the smile on his face when he shook hands with Don in front of reporters was almost invisible.

To be honest, this scene is what the reporters want to see the most, and they are expecting Don to fight back, but Don has let them down. After answering a few casual questions at the press conference, Donn didn't communicate with Souness until the end of the press conference.

When the press conference ended, the Forest players also came out of the dressing room and went to the parking lot to sign autographs for the fans, which is a request from the coach and everyone must comply. Donn walked out of the press room and walked straight to the parking lot outside, the coaches got into the car early, and Donn stood outside chatting casually with Chris Lak to see how the players were doing. He was delighted that no one was impatient in the face of the enthusiastic fans.

(To be continued)