บท 346: Group of Death
At the 1998-99 UEFA Champions League group draw ceremony, Aldrich could feel the unmistakable difference in his treatment compared to last year.
Last season, in this star-studded environment, he was just a rookie; no one recognized him, and they hadn't bothered to acknowledge his presence.
This year, however, things were different. Many unfamiliar faces came over to greet Aldrich, engaging him in friendly small talk. Most of it was just standard pleasantries, lacking any real substance.
As he settled down to wait for the draw to begin, he soon found someone sitting next to him. Turning his head, he was met with a warm smile.
"Hey, your vice president has been criticizing Millwall lately, claiming the FA is giving them special treatment. It's strange, I'd actually like the FA to give us a little favoritism too—arranging all our Champions League matches after the league games as home games. Yet, over the next three months, we've got five away matches after six Champions League game days, while Arsenal has just two. I really don't get who the FA is favoring here," Aldrich remarked with a teasing grin.
Wenger offered a faint smile. "Actually, I don't support Dein's suggestion. Arsenal playing their home Champions League games at Wembley would severely diminish our home advantage. For Arsenal, returning to the Champions League after so many years, eroding our home advantage further would be unwise."
Aldrich shrugged. "But my team was also debuting in the Champions League last year."
"True, but your squad had already got accustomed to Wembley through the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup the previous season. While your home advantage might still be reduced, at least there was an adjustment period in place."
Aldrich didn't argue back; Wenger's point was valid. They had rented Wembley in preparation for the Champions League.
"So, what are your ambitions for the new season?" Wenger asked, looking at Aldrich with a smile. "You did say Arsenal wasn't in any shape to contest on two fronts, and who would consider them favorites in the Champions League?"
After years away, Arsenal probably wouldn't even break into the top ten favorites for the title.
Aldrich shrugged again. "You can't look at it that way; Millwall wasn't a favorite last year either."
Just then, two more figures took seats beside Aldrich, and he turned to see who they were, chuckling to himself.
One was Hodgson, the coach of Inter Milan, and the other was Ferguson from Manchester United.
Hodgson, being an Englishman at the helm of a powerhouse like Inter in Italy, had made quite a name for himself.
After settling down, he warmly exchanged pleasantries with Aldrich, soon transitioning into a discussion where he poured out his frustrations.
Millwall's summer transfer window had opened, and all six players leaving his first team had offers from Inter. The offers were more or less in line with these players' market values. Moratti had bombarded Aldrich with calls, but Aldrich had ultimately not sold a single player to Inter.
Being both Englishmen, their conversation felt unfiltered.
"Inter is still looking to buy players? You've got over 30 in your first team! Are you running a football club or assembling an army to conquer the universe? It's not that I don't want to sell. I've been on friendly terms with Moratti for about three years now, and I agree with all his offers, but the players don't want to go to Inter. They outright refused the moves, so there were no negotiations. It really isn't up to me."
Aldrich explained, feeling somewhat helpless. Players like Helguera and Capdevila wanted to return to Spain; Shevchenko headed to Milan, and Trezeguet went to Juventus. They didn't see Inter as an attractive option. Gudjohnsen wanted to be a starter, but going to Inter would have meant riding the bench. Ballack had hesitated but was scared off after glancing at Inter's first-team lineup and promptly rejected them.
With just two days left in the transfer window, most clubs had finished their signings, and Hodgson decided to flatter Aldrich.
Aldrich repeatedly insisted he didn't deserve such praise.
The heated exchange between the two made both Ferguson and Wenger feel a little uncomfortable. At that moment, they had the same idea: Hodgson and Aldridge, could you two lower your voices?
There wasn't any real business talk between Hodgson and Aldridge; it was more of a back-and-forth of flattery, compliments being exchanged.
After the flattery, Aldridge smiled at Hodgson. "With such a luxurious lineup - Ronaldo, Dejan, Baggio, Simeone... You won the UEFA Cup last season, but were second only to Juventus in Serie A. What is your goal for the new season?" Per Everyone is looking forward to Inter Milan achieving good results in the European Champions Cup. "
Hodgson, whose coaching career has been on a steady rise so far, nodded. Although he only took over Inter Milan for the second time this summer, and it has some links to Aldridge, his credentials are solid. He is currently in the stage of pursuing higher heights, so it is inevitable that he will be a little complacent.
"As long as we're not put in the group of death, we definitely have the strength to make it to the knockout rounds. After that, it's all in the luck of the draw."
Upon hearing this, while Aldrich continued smiling and nodding, both Ferguson and Wenger silently scoffed. Luck? After qualifying for the knockout rounds, which of the top eight teams would be a soft target for you to handle?
"What about Millwall? Do you have confidence in defending your title this year?" Hodgson asked, returning the question.
Aldridge replied modestly: "It's too difficult to defend the title. First of all, Millwall needs to focus on qualifying from the group stage; my team is still in the process of getting used to it."
At his remark, Ferguson snorted.
"Fuck!"
Just a week ago, they had just beaten Manchester United, yet now he was saying the team wasn't ready?
Aldrich noticed Ferguson's reaction and chuckled a couple of times, deciding not to continue the topic.
As the draw ceremony approached, Johansson continued to rave about European football over the past year. Millwall had been named Best Team of the Year again. To the outside world, they were still seen as the dark horse that had conquered the Champions League—almost a fairytale. They had provided many thrilling matches, with their final showdown against Real Madrid being a classic contest, so the honor was widely accepted.
Critics might point out that Millwall had only managed third in the Premier League, but they achieved that with the same points as the second-placed team, just a single point behind champions Arsenal. Plus, they also secured the League Cup. Their performance against other top teams gave them solid ground for receiving the award.
With two consecutive years of European championship wins and an unbeaten record over that span, Millwall was seeded.
During the group draw, Millwall was drawn as the first seed, waiting for other teams to join them in the group.
In the draw for the groups, Millwall was the first team pulled from the top pot, awaiting the arrival of their opponents.
The second team in his group came out, and many eyes turned toward Aldrich—not just to see him, but Hodgson as well!
Inter Milan!
Hodgson remained stone-faced, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
Aldrich, however, appeared visibly awkward...
"Damn it!" Just a moment ago, they had been chatting like old friends, complimenting each other and wishing for success in the Champions League.
Wasn't this nonsensical?
Six groups, eight spots—this was setting up for a fierce battle!
Ferguson and Wenger couldn't hold it any longer; they both turned their faces away, subtly smiling.
After accepting the reality, Hodgson forced a smile. "Well, second in the group can still advance."
"Yeah, sure," Aldrich echoed half-heartedly.
He didn't want to continue the conversation.
Sure, a second-place team could advance. But out of the six second-place teams, only two would qualify.
None of them wanted to settle for second and leave their fate to chance.
The previously spirited exchange between the two had devolved into silence, as they quietly watched the draw ceremony proceed without even glancing at each other.
Damn UEFA!
What a conspiracy!
Aldrich cursed inwardly. He wasn't underestimating Inter's strength; rather, the situation was just awkward and frustrating.
Once the other two opponents in their group were revealed, Aldrich couldn't hold back and muttered a curse under his breath.
Seeing Aldrich's reaction, Hodgson glanced at the big screen, rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't mistaken, and turned to Ferguson, asking, "Are Inter Milan, Millwall, Austria's Graz, and Russia's Spartak Moscow all in the same group?"
Ferguson looked up and nodded. "That's right. Congratulations, the draw looks decent. As long as you don't lose to Millwall, your chances of advancing as group leaders are quite high."
Hodgson nodded slightly. Aldrich was right next to him; he couldn't very well start boasting now.
"How strange!" he thought.
Graz and Spartak Moscow were definitely seen as easy prey!
Sure, they might be formidable in their home leagues, but in the Champions League, they seemed like nothing more than lambs for slaughter.
Wenger also looked confused and whispered: "Did you make a mistake and thought it was another team?"
Aldrich shot his head up, squinted at the screen, and, sounding disappointed, responded, "I read it right."
"Not happy?"
"Not at all."
"Why not?"
"Because the team has to play away in Moscow, damn it! Why couldn't they have put Millwall in a Central or Western European group?"
Wenger then understood.
The UK and Russia were nearly the furthest points apart on the European map.
Although Millwall only had to play one away match, the exhausting journey to Moscow coupled with the fatigue from the game would directly affect their league matches shortly after.
One league match might not seem significant, but given that Millwall was just a game away from retaining their title last season, they could have easily turned a loss into a draw or a draw into a victory to successfully defend their title.
The disparity in performance between the first and second half of last season could also be attributed to the long trip to Kyiv—a seemingly small factor that couldn't be overlooked.
As the draw ceremony wrapped up, Aldrich quickly let go of his frustration.
He stood up to shake hands with Wenger, offering congratulations.
Wenger wore a bitter smile. "My group isn't easy. Congratulations? I also have to lead my team to Ukraine to face Dynamo Kyiv, deal with last season's Ligue 1 champions Lens, and encounter an unfamiliar Greek powerhouse in Panathinaikos."
"Congrats, nonetheless."
With that, Aldrich turned to shake Hodgson's hand quickly. Neither had much to congratulate or wish each other, knowing they would soon meet again, where it would be a clash of titans.
In the end, Aldrich shook hands with Ferguson and congratulated him.
Ferguson's face was grim as he asked, "Were you doing this on purpose?"
Aldrich turned to glance at the big screen and wryly replied, "Fine, let's forget I said anything."
United had drawn a disastrous fate, facing Bayern Munich, Barcelona, and Brøndby.
Aside from the Danish champions who might just be cannon fodder, three football giants would be battling it out. This group was a death zone; the worst part was, the in-fighting between the three juggernauts might leave the second place contender with a low enough score to fail to make it through...
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