In the lonely summer of '95, the bureaucratic Football Association was also uneasy, and the Italian Football Federation not only scoffed at Aldridge's letter of recommendation after receiving it, but even leaked it to the media, leaking Millwall's letter of recommendation intact as a pastime and entertainment for the whole of Italy.

Aldridge read the news published in the newspaper Roma Sport, and there was no shortage of Italian football critics who belittled and ridiculed unknown clubs in England.

In fact, the selection of young echelons of national teams in various countries has always been from the country, which is understandable, after all, the scope of coaches' inspection of players is not as large as that of the whole of Europe and even the world, and it is logical for players who have emerged in the domestic youth league to be selected into the youth echelon of the national team.

Aldridge is also nicknamed the ball blind in Italy.

They think it's ridiculous that Aldridge has never seen Italian football at all, that they think they have a few Italian players in their hands who are talented, and that they want them to be in the national team.

After reading the report, Aldridge put down the newspaper and said with the same expression: "Mr. De Rossi, you must not have watched Millwall's game, and not many people in Italy have watched it, you think I am arrogant, think I make a fuss about football talents, I don't care, the Italian league is the first league in the world today, I don't deny it, but it doesn't mean that Europe will still be ruled by Italy ten years later, please forgive my honesty: I not only have the backbone of the future Italian national team in my team, There is also the future European champion, the world champion. I don't think we can agree today, but my sincerity will not be diminished, Millwall's door is always open to Danielle De Rossi, and I just want to say one thing at the end: Daniele stays at Roma and he can be a loyal star, but he comes to Millwall, and I'm sure the day he retires, the trophies will be countless, because that's what I'm working for. See you again. ”

With that, Aldridge and Andrew got up and left, and the old Derossi, who saw the two leaving, looked at his son thoughtfully.

Walking out of the café, Andrew scratched his head and said, "How are you talking?" It felt like the conversation had fallen apart. ”

He couldn't understand Italian, and he was confused about the whole process.

Aldridge said casually: "It's not that the talks collapsed, because there was no room for negotiation in the first place, it doesn't matter, De Rossi is only 13 years old, and I firmly believe that before he is 18 years old, Millwall will definitely have a more attractive place than Rome." ”

"Brescia now?"

"Hmm."

Prior to the trip to Brescia, Millwall had already submitted a transfer offer of up to £1 million to the opposing club: to buy Brescia's 16-year-old Andrea Pirlo.

At this time, Pirlo only made one appearance for Brescia at the end of last season and did not attract the attention of the major Italian giants.

The £1 million transfer intention was finally fixed at £1.5 million, and Aldridge intends to come in person to negotiate a personal deal with Pirlo.

There is a very important factor: Pirlo is a rich second generation, and it is difficult to impress him just by the amount on the contract.

Although Aldridge's team already has a lot of attacking and defensive midfielders, he still lacks the most crucial piece of the puzzle in the tactical system: a master playmaker!

Although Nedved also has good organizational skills, he also has the characteristics of fast breaks, in the overall picture, Aldridge needs a commander in the midfield, so that his midfield offensive system, not only has the penetration of passing to tear the defensive line, but also has the sharp knife to break through the defensive chain, and can open the bow left and right in the offensive mode.

In Brescia, Aldridge met with Andrea Pirlo, the 16-year-old who had just signed with the club last year and was suddenly sold, and who was born rich and could not understand the importance of £1.5 million to a small club.

Pirlo, who was born in a merchant family, is obviously accustomed to seeing big scenes, facing Aldrich and Andrew alone, without showing any stage fright, indifferent and undisguised pretentiousness.

"Andrea, can you call it that? Well, excuse me, have you heard of Millwall? ”

Pirlo shook his head frankly, then added: "I've seen some news about Millwall in the newspapers these days, and I know it's a club in London, and it doesn't seem to be in the Premier League. ”

'No, we won the First Division last season and in two months we have the Premier League at Millwall. Andrea, first of all, I want you to understand what kind of club is interested in you and wants to get you to the table. ”

Aldridge did not despise Pirlo because of the age gap, in football, there is no age gap, whether it is a player or a coach, strength is everything.

Pirlo perked himself up and nodded for Aldridge to continue.

Aldrich had no way of knowing what was going on in his heart, but he had to show 100% sincerity.

'Here's the list of players in my squad that includes their profile and last season's performance stats, I joined Millwall last season as owner and manager, so first of all, Millwall will be a stable club for a long time to come, and there will be no negative impact on the team due to management turmoil, changes in the coaching staff, which I think is the basis for the long-term development of a club. Secondly, Millwall is an ambitious club and we will not be satisfied with a long stay in the Premier League, I want to make the team the best team in England, after conquering England and then Europe! And, dominate the entire European arena for a long time! If I want to quantify this ambitious goal, then I can explain it as: surpassing Real Madrid, who have won five consecutive titles, and Liverpool, who have won the title four times in seven years, I want Millwall to become the undisputed king of European football in the fastest possible time. Yes, Millwall has no background, no history, the past 100 years or so are blank, boring, and even unbearable, but those are just good news for me, so that I can create an era that is completely mine, and I don't need to be compared with others, Andrea, I want you to be a part of Millwall, and leave your glorious figure in this history. ”

Aldridge was the inspiration he had come to grip, and Pirlo was clearly unfamiliar with such impassioned rhetoric in dogmatic Italian football, but he was clearly mentally shocked.

He was stunned for a moment, and when he lowered his head and opened the document in his hand, he had a strong impression of Aldridge, at least, Millwall was really young.

He paid special attention to the Italian players in the team, in addition to Luca Toney, Gattuso, Materazzi and Zambrotta all made a dozen or even more than 20 appearances, and the coaching staff's ratings and comments for each game were also very simple and meticulous.

Pirlo is not averse to playing abroad, in fact, he is also a little rebellious, even though he is a rich second generation, but his family has always opposed him playing football for a living.

"Andrea, let's talk about you, what kind of expectations do you have for your place and role on the football field in the future?"

Aldrich saw that Pirlo was silent, so he took the initiative to stir up a topic.

Pirlo frowned slightly: "Truth be told, in Brescia, the coaches said I had the potential to be the next Baggio. ”

Aldridge smiled and nodded, in fact, Baggio's characteristics can be divided into two parts to classify, Baggio before 95 years, fast and sharp, running erratic dribbling chic, after 95 years Baggio with age, slower, but the overall picture is stronger, football wisdom is reflected in organizational skills.

Aldridge took out his tactical notebook from his briefcase, circled the position of the forward midfielder on the simple football field frame, and said: "This is the position you play at the club, right?" ”

Pirlo nodded.

"Did you run into any problems?"

Pirlo hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice: "The coaches said I could be Baggio, but I couldn't do it like he dribbled like no one, and the closer I got to the penalty area, I sometimes felt lost, and more energy was focused on how to get rid of the defenders." ”

Aldrich nodded and said: "That's right, Andrea, you can't be a second Baggio, never, your own characteristics are the biggest obstacle that restricts you from copying Baggio, and this, in your lifetime, cannot be changed." ”

Pirlo's eyes were a little gloomy, in fact, he was self-aware, but Baggio's speed, he couldn't reach, let alone the speed under the combination of man and ball.

"But you can be the only Pirlo! You're not the second Baggio, you're you, Andrea Pirlo! If you stay at Brescia, you're only going to work up slowly in the midfield position, and I'm going to give you a bigger stage to get the most out of your characteristics and let you do what you do best on the pitch, and what you can't do, I'm never going to force it. ”

Aldridge's eyes are sincere, and he can use his personality to account for that.

Like many of the players in his squad, those players were quick to convince him that Aldridge would never force them to do what they couldn't.

He never asks Stam to think about the ball at the back, nor does he ask Makelele to take on more offensive tasks outside of defense, Schneider does not have the ability to score from distance, and Aldridge never criticizes him or asks him to improve, leaving Schneider to drown in the physical confrontation in the penalty area.

The talent characteristics of the players are placed there, how the coach blends the players with different characteristics into a whole, it is the responsibility of the coach, to do the best within the scope of the player's ability, this is enough, beyond the scope of the player's ability, if the coach insists on requirements, then, you can't blame the player for not being capable, you can only blame the coach for not having vision and level.