If Aldridge's team played at the Bernabeu, they would have been booed and trembling by the fans, but at the Lion's Den Stadium, it is clear that the team does not have an advantage on the field, but a clearance, a scramble, a collision, even if it is a foul, will attract applause from Millwall fans.

Despite their notoriety, there is no denying that the enthusiasm of the fans here is unparalleled.

Fans don't choose whether to applaud the team's style of play because it's conservative or flashy, and they don't give up singing and cheering because the team is behind, for them, a lifetime, or even a family's loyalty for generations, will only be dedicated to one club, whether the club is at the bottom or at the top, and these chanting "Nobody likes us, it doesn't matter!" Fans, even more so.

The first half was not a good or even dull game, but Millwall fans watched it with relish and applauded.

The four players of Makelele, Thuram, Stam and Nedved were quickly remembered by the fans, and even the fans in the stands were asking each other for their names.

The reason is very simple, this kind of tough guy image who is fierce in defense and dares to collide fiercely with the opponent's players is the representative that fans appreciate the most!

The British believe that football is the sport of the fathers, what they want is blood, what they want is fierce, and what they want is hard work!

If a player is afraid of hitting each other and is afraid of scrambling, then it will be a complete disappointment for the fans.

At the end of the first half, Aldridge took the lead in walking back to the players' tunnel, the score was 0:0, although Millwall was not tired of defending in the first half, because their defense was not embarrassed, but lacked effective and smooth attack, especially under Aldridge's tactical arrangement, prohibiting other players except the central defender with blind big feet and long passes.

Although it was a warm-up game, Birmingham City were clearly looking to build confidence by beating a League One side, particularly last season's third-placed side in League One, so that they could return to League One with the ambition to come back next year.

But they were disappointed to find that Millwall's backline was a bunch of fierce men!

Even if the left-back Lucas Neal is only 17 years old, but he is also a fierce and desperate guy, there is no way, Lucas naturally wants to become famous with a goal, the main position of the left-back, for the time being, he is competing with Zambrotta, of course he has to work hard.

As for the tower-like Stam, the ferocious Thuram and the simply stunning defensive awareness, plus the desperate Saburo Nedved, Birmingham looked ferocious in the first half, but in fact there were zero chances of threatening the ball.

Aldridge waited in the locker room for the players to come back and sit down to rest, he said calmly: "The first half was good, I don't have a high demand for the warm-up game, you just need to treat it as a confrontation game in training, but I repeat one point, remember my tactical requirements, focus on defense first, Lucas, in the second half you pay attention, reduce fouls in the danger area, you are still young, you need to accumulate defensive experience, don't worry about losing your position, Gareth will help you fill in the position, But you have to chase back as soon as you lose your position. ”

Lucas Neal heard the head coach's roll call, and suddenly chuckled in his heart, for fear of being substituted, and when he heard Aldridge's advice, he nodded fiercely to show that he understood.

In terms of tactics, Aldridge has nothing to change, this team has only been training together for ten days, he can't let them condense higher combat effectiveness and form a tacit understanding at once, and now the requirements for the team are very simple, that is, to stand in a dead position, everyone completes their own defensive tasks in their own area of activity, and on the basis of defensive stability, the players will naturally stabilize their mentality, and then be able to play better.

If you give them more tasks at the beginning, it's defense, it's attack, it's passing, it's running, and so on, not to mention the players, Aldridge thinks it's going to make the team messy.

Now is the time to shape this team, and it is enough to lay the foundation first.

The midfielder encouraged the players and Aldridge clapped his hands to get them out of the way to start the second half, trying not to carry any pressure.

At the start of the second half, Aldridge was still sitting in the dugout, but turned to Jenson and said: "Let Richards, Materazzi, Zambrotta, Vieira, Ballack, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer warm up, replace them in the 60th minute of the game, oh, Zambrotta replaces Thuram, let Lucas stay on the field, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer replaces Larsson, Henrik didn't get enough rest before the season." ”

Jenson nodded, turned around and called the players on the bench one by one, and then saw a group of young players rushing out of the woods and starting to warm up in earnest.

The situation on the pitch remained dreary, but the more Birmingham played, the more they found Millwall's defence watertight, and 10 minutes into the second half, they no longer tried to organise ground penetration, but attacked in the simplest way possible: long balls.

Aldridge was overjoyed to see the football flying high and low on the field.

He really needs an opponent to train the team's air defense through this traditional rush bombing, which is an essential part of the defense.

Five minutes later, Aldridge came on with a large number of substitutes, and then he shook hands with each of the players who came off the pitch and patted them on the shoulder.

Schneider and Pire, who stayed on the field, were not as nervous as in the first half, they were able to control the ball well, and they were the best on the pitch from a technical point of view, and when Birmingham couldn't attack in the second half, Schneider and Pire frequently created threats on both flanks, and several crosses landed well, and Trezeguet would have scored if he hadn't been in the groove yet.

Before the break, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer shook off a defender in front of the penalty area and fired a long-range shot that unfortunately hit the post and bounced off the bottom line.

When the final whistle blew, the score was still 0-0.

It was actually boring for a friendly game, and Millwall, as the third in League One last season, failed to beat Birmingham City, who were third from bottom in League One last season, which was logically disappointing, especially when the field was not dominant, but the fans not only did not boo, but applauded after the game, and then left calmly in order.

In the next two warm-up games, Millwall's performance was not only stable, but also getting better and better, and Aldridge was pleased to find that these players were really big players, all of whom had a calm temperament of youth and old age, and their performance was stable and excellent every game.

In the second game against Oxford United, at the Lions' Den, Larsson headed home from Schneider's cross in the second half to give Millwall a win, albeit only a narrow 1-0 victory, but Aldridge was more satisfied that the team's backline did not give the opponent a chance.

In the last warm-up game against Oxford United, the team played a hearty counterattack on the basis of defence, Trezeguet and substitute Ole Gunnar Solskjaer both scored, plus Southgate scored a goal from a corner, Millwall finally won 3-0.

In the three warm-up games, Aldridge's basic purpose of training was achieved, that is, defense, three games without conceding a goal, and giving the opponent few opportunities, although the opponent is not strong, but it can build confidence in the team, this intangible gain is more valuable.

With three days to go, the 94/95 League One will kick off, with Millwall hosting the first round of the league against the challenge of Xiu Anlian United at home.

After training that afternoon, Aldridge gathered the players together and asked them to wear the home team uniforms for the official match.

Aldridge called the first-team coaches to his side, and they sat in neat and orderly chairs, while the players stood in two rows behind them according to their stature, forming an orderly fan.

Under the sunset, Aldridge sat in the middle of the front row, his expression was gentle and smiling, and the coaches around him were also relaxed, but the players behind him had serious expressions.

After Millwall's 94/95 first-team 'family portrait', Aldridge changed into a suit and leather shoes, then removed the chair, and stood in front of the players with his hands in his pockets rather coldly, looking like a young gangster, and the photographer stood in the chair this time and photographed the first team players and their manager with their heads held high in a slightly overlooking angle.

After the photo was washed, Aldridge asked the staff to post a family photo in the hallway of the club, and then another photo of the handsome and grim first-team team and manager was enlarged as part of the club's publicity.

As Millwall fans were looking forward to the new season, they were surprised to find a leaflet posted outside the club for the new season, and everyone who saw it couldn't help but sigh: what a young team.

From the manager to the players, Millwall have been refreshed in less than three months, and although it is not yet clear what the future holds, at least they look energetic for now.