Favorable or Dangerous?

As a head coach, you can't just passively adjust the lineup whenever you notice a player's form dropping; you have to find the root cause and fix it. It's a coach's responsibility to spot issues early and address them, a key part of managing the team.

Sometimes, a player's stubbornness isn't always right, like playing while injured. The spirit's admirable, but the effect might not be.

Two days after the showdown with Manchester United, on Tuesday evening, Aldrich was in his office going over notes. He'd just held a pre-match meeting with the players. The meeting was relaxed since the upcoming match was the final round of the Champions League group stage. Millwall had already qualified, and they planned to send an all-reserve lineup against visiting Galatasaray. The result wasn't crucial; what mattered was whether they could give the squad valuable experience.

Knock knock.

Aldrich looked up and said, "Come in."

The door opened, and a head peeked in—it was Ronaldinho.

Aldrich watched him swagger over, taking a seat across the desk, and sliding an envelope toward him.

Frowning, Aldrich asked, "Not enough time off?"

That envelope had been handed out earlier to Ronaldinho and all the other first-team players, especially the attacking ones. Inside were a Christmas card and a notice of their holiday break.

With six Millwall players nominated for the Ballon d'Or shortlist and Christmas approaching, the schedule had lightened up. Aldrich had decided to give them all a break so they could attend the award ceremony and spend Christmas with their families. After a ten-day rest, they'd return to prepare for the second half of the league season.

Ronaldinho grinned and shook his head, saying, "Boss, three days off will be enough for me—just the three days around Christmas."

He was different from the other players; his family was in Brazil, and besides summer, Christmas was his only chance to go home. Even reporting for the national team was no break since he'd be training and competing, not on vacation.

Leaning back in his chair, Aldrich gazed at Ronaldinho for a minute, then chuckled and said, "I give you a holiday, and you think it's too long?"

Ronaldinho shrugged, "I don't want to look like I'm getting special treatment here."

Aldrich nodded, "Understood. Then, report back as scheduled."

Ronaldinho stood, waved goodbye, and quietly closed the office door.

A few minutes later, Pirlo, Nedvěd, Larsson, Henry, and Schneider—five other players nominated for the Ballon d'Or—also left their envelopes on Aldrich's desk.

They shared Ronaldinho's thoughts. Some felt the break was too long, and some didn't want time off at all.

After sending them off, Aldrich stood, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and looked out at the evening sunset. Smiling, he closed his eyes with satisfaction.

The next night, at Wembley.

Before the game, Aldrich was in the locker room. Today's lineup featured eleven starters, some looking nervous—Villa was one of them.

He sat there, his kit and shin guards meticulously arranged, waiting for Aldrich's pre-game talk.

"We've already qualified for the Champions League. My only expectation today is this: play to the standard you show in training."

With that, Aldrich turned and walked out.

Villa stared, wide-eyed.

That… that was it?

Other players like Gronkjaer, Lampard, and Gattuso were seasoned despite being reserves. In a low-pressure game like this, all they had to do was follow Aldrich's instruction: perform well and showcase their training results—that was enough.

At Wembley, Aldrich met Terim again. This time, he stepped forward to shake hands and exchanged a few polite words before parting.

The stadium wasn't as packed as usual, with Millwall having already qualified and Aldrich's statement about fielding the reserves lowering neutral fans' enthusiasm—it was understandable.

The final round of the UEFA Champions League Group H matches will conclude today. With a record of four wins and one draw, Millwall has secured the top spot with 13 points, advancing to the knockout stages early. Galatasaray, on the other hand, has only managed one win, one draw, and three losses, totaling 4 points. They are three points behind second-place Hertha Berlin. Much like AC Milan, Galatasaray must win their match to have any hope of advancing. Millwall, fielding an entirely reserve team today, seems to have handed Galatasaray this opportunity.

Lineup:

Goalkeeper: KellerDefenders: Ferreira, Neill, Barzagli, ColeMidfielders: Gattuso, Lampard, LarmoreForwards: Van der Meyde, Villa, Gronkjaer

Aldrich sat back, watching the match with his chin propped up. Despite fielding the reserves, he wasn't worried about the game at all. He actually enjoyed matches like this—not specifically because of the opponent, but because of the scenario.

Galatasaray came as the away team, needing a win to advance; a draw would be meaningless. Since there could be a three-way tie in the group, they needed a decisive win. They had no choice but to go all out and attack fiercely.

Drawing from their previous away game against AC Milan, Aldrich paired Neill with Barzagli on the defensive line to add experience and stability—a comforting presence, at the very least. This young backline had gained confidence from the match against Milan and wouldn't be as hesitant. Plus, Galatasaray's strength wasn't on par with AC Milan, so the pressure from their aggressive offense was relatively manageable.

The game unfolded just as Aldrich expected. Terim set up an aggressive 4-1-2-3 formation and urged his players from the sidelines to push for goals relentlessly. Millwall, well-prepared defensively, launched counterattacks that were sharp and dangerous.

Within the first ten minutes, both Gronkjaer and Villa had missed one-on-one chances! The game was thrilling, as Galatasaray attacked with ferocity while Millwall's counterattacks were equally deadly. However, the scoreline remained steady by halftime.

1-0.

Neither Gronkjaer nor Villa could find the back of the net. Instead, it was a well-coordinated move between Van der Meyde and Larmore that made the difference. After a precise give-and-go, Larmore kept his composure in the box, calmly slotting the ball into the net to shift the scoreline.

As the second half began, the Turkish "Emperor" took a risk, abandoning the defensive midfielder and switching to a 4-3-3 with three forwards, one central midfielder, and two attacking midfielders.

His team was swiftly punished for this gamble. With no defensive midfielder to intercept, their defense was full of gaps. In the 49th minute, Larmore assisted Villa, who beat the offside trap and netted the ball.

2-0.

Aldrich made substitutions.

Klose came on for Villa.

Joe Cole replaced Larmore.

As Villa exited, he seemed to linger, perhaps hoping for a word of praise from Aldrich, who merely nodded without changing his expression.

What was that supposed to mean?

Feeling slightly dejected, Villa sat down, accepting his teammates' congratulations. But soon, he recalled what Aldrich had said to him on the team bus and felt at ease again.

Yes, he had scored, but he'd also missed at least three golden opportunities. Did that merit praise?

If it had been Henry or Larsson in those situations, they would've scored at least two.

Stay grounded, keep pushing.

In the 68th minute, during another counterattack, Klose set up Gronkjaer, who found the net with a precise 45-degree shot from the flank, extending the lead to 3-0.

Aldrich used his final substitution, bringing on Vicente to replace Gronkjaer, the scorer.

After that, the game slowed down. Down by three goals, Galatasaray's hope for a comeback was all but lost. Their players accepted the reality and, to avoid further embarrassment, chose to play conservatively, tightening their defense to prevent any more goals.

The final few minutes ticked by without incident, and the game ended quietly.

Aldrich shook hands with Terim and walked into the player tunnel.

Millwall wrapped up the Champions League group stage undefeated, with five wins and one draw, advancing assertively to the round of 16.

Meanwhile, AC Milan failed to defeat Hertha Berlin in their final game, which meant Berlin advanced in second place with a draw. AC Milan, having been beaten twice by Millwall, secured third place and moved on to the UEFA Cup.

With the Champions League group stage settled, the UEFA Cup's first-round group stage concluded the following day. The day after that, Aldrich gathered with his coaching colleagues in the club's recreation room, drinking beer, chatting, and watching the Champions League round of 16 draw on TV.

When Millwall's group for the second stage was finally announced, Boas sprang to his feet, fists raised in triumph, cheering loudly. The rest of the coaching staff followed suit, letting out a collective shout of excitement.

Millwall had received an incredibly favorable draw!

Bordeaux, Feyenoord, Lazio, and Millwall.

In the round of 16, four groups contained four teams each, with two group leaders and two second-place teams.

Millwall advanced as group winners, and in this new draw, they're joined by Lazio, another top finisher. The main point is that Feyenoord and Bordeaux, two second-place teams, are widely viewed as the weakest of all the runners-up. 

It seemed Millwall's luck couldn't be better.

As others celebrated, they noticed Aldrich standing there, lost in thought.

"Aldrich, aren't you happy?" Klinsmann asked, puzzled.

Aldrich smiled faintly and replied, "I'd rather be grouped with teams like Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Fiorentina, or Porto."

"What?!"

Everyone's expressions turned to shock.

The grouping Aldrich was hoping for would practically be the ultimate 'Group of Death' with almost the lowest odds of occurring in the second round!

Jensen, curious, asked, "What's the advantage in that?"

Aldrich explained, "It gives us a chance to knock out one or two tough opponents early on, which would lower the odds of facing strong teams later in the knockout rounds."

Understanding dawned on everyone. Aldrich continued, "It also keeps our players sharp. Being placed in a relatively weaker group means we won't face much challenge or pressure before the knockouts. But then, suddenly facing a team much stronger than our previous opponents could throw us off."

With this reasoning, the excitement among the coaching staff dwindled significantly.

They couldn't ignore one of the main lessons from last season's Champions League exit: right before they met Bayern Munich, Millwall had it too easy, defeating Dynamo Kyiv comfortably over two legs in the quarterfinals. The sudden jump to face a powerhouse like Bayern, with a clear disparity in strength, had inevitably limited their performance.

In contrast, the season before, when they won the Champions League, they faced Juventus directly in the quarterfinals, and Monaco in the semis, where an early red card added considerable difficulty to the match. Overcoming these challenges, one after another, made them more composed by the time they reached the final, enabling Millwall to perform at their peak.