Dinner Plans

As the lights began to glow in the city, Aldrich drove Yvonne to the Maxim restaurant. Brady and his long-lost friend Saul were already waiting for them inside.

Saul, holding a menu, feigned a worried expression and said, "If you two hadn't shown up, we would have made for the door. This place is ridiculously expensive."

Aldrich and Yvonne sat down side by side, and he curiously asked, "What have you been up to lately?"

Saul handed Aldrich a business card with a smile, saying, "I'm doing an internship."

Aldrich glanced at the card and saw that Saul was a photography journalist. 

That's great, he thought. His friends were at the age where settling down and building careers was the norm, and it brought him immense joy.

After ordering their meals, the four chatted about their recent lives.

Brady shared that his website had launched. It was low-cost, small-scale, and not well-known, and he was swamped with work, overseeing content creation while personally handing out flyers at various subway stations. He couldn't afford ads, but the tabloid culture in England was deeply rooted. Commuters often grabbed a free tabloid, and Brady managed to distribute his flyers by building rapport with the staff who handed out those newspapers, sometimes tipping them to include his promo inserts.

Aldrich discussed various aspects of his website development with Brady. Essentially, he was sharing ideas inspired by some successful football media templates he had seen.

Brady nodded frequently and even took out his notebook to jot down Aldrich's suggestions.

Initially, he aimed to consolidate traditional media resources to create an online football media platform, but Aldrich's innovative thoughts began to shape his idea into a full-fledged football portal instead of just a one-way information outlet.

Towards the end of their conversation, thanks to their friendship, Brady asked Aldrich to periodically write exclusive match reviews for him. Aldrich couldn't refuse, especially since his profession required him to watch numerous matches every week. He often caught live matches from top European leagues, and if they were close enough, he would attend in person—like the England derby or the North London derby— jotting down notes while enjoying the games.

After their enjoyable dinner, Aldrich drove Yvonne home, only to discover mid-journey that they were neighbors. She had secured an apartment in the club's community due to her managerial role at Millwall, which qualified her as an executive, and her new place was directly across from Aldrich's.

Perhaps because players were somewhat in awe of Aldrich, the apartment across from his had remained vacant, with no players choosing it when searching for new homes. But now, it finally had an occupant.

In the following days, Millwall shifted its focus, primarily relying on a youth squad in the league. Nevertheless, Aldrich insisted on starting Larsson, structuring the attack around him to create more goal opportunities. The primary lineup would mainly tackle strong opponents and the FA Cup. When March rolled around and the UEFA Cup quarter-finals reignited, they would enter the final sprint of the season.

Come February, Yvonne officially started her job. As a club official, her content revolved around club matters and football topics—her workload was manageable. She was also set to be the first host for Millwall TV, and when she would step down depended on the workload and the club's growth.

Beginning in February, the club would conduct interviews with staff during training breaks for promotional purposes—players, coaches, administrative personnel, even security staff—everyone was included to comprehensively showcase the club's culture.

Even through the past century of winless seasons and the dark times when football hooliganism peaked, the narrative would not gloss over those realities in their introductions; it was fundamentally part of English football culture, something that couldn't be prettified or excused in the eyes of outsiders.

At the start of February, after the team faced two draws in a row, they finally achieved a significant win. Nowadays, Premier League teams often approached Millwall with a defensive counter-strategy, which posed challenges for the young players. Despite the struggle in breaking through defenses, they had to be cautious of counterattacks from the opposition. Thankfully, Larsson bolstered their attacking efforts, keeping the team afloat. Following the two draws, Aldrich decided to unleash the strongest lineup to secure a win, alleviating the psychological pressure on his players. This way, he maximized psychological protection for them and helped instill a sense of ambition, making them realize their gaps compared to key players and encouraging them to chase that gap.

After training one day, Aldrich, dressed in the club's dark blue training gear, returned to his office, only to find Yvonne entering with a group of staff members. They had previously arranged to conduct an interview that evening, which would be aired on the club's TV channel, with a transcript to be published on the club's official website.

Naturally, the interview had to start with the head coach.

As Aldrich looked at Yvonne, who was elegantly dressed and impeccably poised, he felt a strange sense of nostalgia for the passage of time. That little girl had matured into a woman with a hint of charm.

The camera was set up in the corner, focused on Aldrich. He took a seat at the desk without changing clothes or applying makeup, sitting across from Yvonne in a casual manner.

Initially, both felt the atmosphere was a bit awkward, but soon they found their rhythm, and the tension dissipated.

Aldrich began sharing the story of his family's support for Millwall, which began with his grandfather. Some of the memories were his own while others he had heard from Arthur. Undoubtedly, the Hall family had formed a bond with the club since its inception, a sentiment that had been passed down through generations. When it came to his turn, Aldrich refrained from expressing his own feelings towards the club, bringing that topic to an end.

Reflecting on the journey from taking over the club to being close to claiming their first top-flight league title two and a half years later, Aldrich voiced numerous sentiments, candidly discussing some of the troubles he had encountered.

What was the biggest headache?

Each transfer window, Manchester United persistently bombarded them with offers for Larsson that neared transfer records.

Last summer's loss of four crucial players was a significant blow for Millwall.

Even with the team performing well now, Aldrich firmly believed that if those four hadn't left, Millwall would be even stronger.

At least in the front line, while Shevchenko filled Pires's spot, glancing at the bench revealed Phillips, Tony, Van Nistelrooy, Gronkjaer—all either immature or limited in positioning and skills.

Thank goodness Millwall hadn't suffered any major injuries in attack this season.

"But Millwall generated thirty million pounds in transfer income last summer. That money is enough to bring in two to three top players. Even if part of it went to building a new stadium, acquiring one or two players to strengthen the squad shouldn't be a problem. Why didn't that happen?" 

Aldrich paused for a moment before responding to Yvonne's question. "You see, in the past, football clubs resembled non-profit organizations, symbols of honor and diverse cultural spirits. But nowadays, clubs have turned into businesses. Many have gone public, and of course, they defend themselves by saying it's for financing—so they can buy better players and make their teams more competitive. But in the stock market, every stock needs to turn a profit. Those owners show through their actions that football has become just like real estate—an investment, a money-making machine. That's not what I'm after. I don't deny the importance of money in football, but I can't agree with this development model, especially for clubs like Millwall, which doesn't have deep pockets. Right now, we're carrying nearly two hundred million in debt, and we plan to pay it off in fifteen years. That makes us even more cautious about shaking the foundations of the club."

Yvonne quickly followed with another question, "What do you believe is Millwall's foundation?"

In a low voice, Aldrich replied, "Our model of developing talent from within. The outside world often claims that Millwall lacks experience, and I agree. Many players in our squad haven't experienced European competitions, but the national team's experience somewhat compensates for that. We have an incredibly talented roster, with players like Southgate, Makélélé, Nedvěd, and Larsson—each line has top-tier players. They are important pillars for the club's growth. I hope they will stay here for a long time, not only to maintain the team's competitiveness but also to set an example for the younger players and help them grow. I believe that in three to five years, Millwall will find its footing. We can aim to nurture one or two exceptional players for the first team every season, creating a healthy cycle. Therefore, our foundation lies in youth training, not in making big gambles in the transfer market. For clubs like ours, if we pay over ten million pounds for a transfer, and one or two players cannot integrate into the team, it can be detrimental—not just financially but to the entire team's dynamics—because it limits the opportunities for young players, compressing their space within the team. Rather than taking those risks, I'd rather believe in the players we cultivate carefully, giving them opportunities and letting them see hope here, harboring ambitions to serve the club and achieve glory."

Aldrich highlighted his vision for the club's development strategy, aiming to establish Millwall as a beacon of youth training. He wanted to signal to the outside world that Millwall would offer its young players more opportunities, something often lost when clubs hoarded talents through aggressive purchases.

This signal needed to be backed by their achievements.

A positive aspect was that younger players like Pirlo, Shevchenko, Capdevila, and Butt could succeed here, serving as the best advertisement, while those yet to shine, like Lampard and Ferdinand, would have similar impacts as their opportunities to play increased.

In addition to discussing youth training, Aldrich talked about management, player discipline, training plans, and the club's future.

Both as a head coach and owner, he had the most thoughts and directly influenced the club's development. The interview lasted nearly four hours, ending only when the sun set.

Once the cameras were off, Yvonne showed a hint of fatigue. Checking the time, she smiled at Aldrich and said, "How about I treat you to dinner tonight?"

Aldrich smiled and politely declined. He had a date with Melanie that evening. Fortunately, she was working late; otherwise, he would have had to cancel.

Upon hearing that Aldrich was meeting Melanie, Yvonne smiled as she said her goodbyes but revealed a hint of disappointment once outside the office.