Reverse.

Chapter 46 Catching the mole

"The time, place, people, events... so detailed, so detailed that I don't believe it's a rumor."

Sam McNeill looked at the four people standing in front of him. They were Tyne's current "captain team": Wang Lie, Elliot Goetz, Charlie Cohen, and Matej Katic.

He finally stopped his gaze on Wang Lie:

"If it weren't for the media reports, I wouldn't even know there was a conflict within the team... Wang, as the team's first captain, this is your dereliction of duty."

Before Wang Lie could speak, Elliot Goetz next to him hurried to defend him: "It's my fault, boss. Wang and Dean did have a quarrel in the recreation room, but it was resolved on the spot, and I didn't allow anyone to tell anyone about this matter..."

"Even to me as the head coach?" McNeill said with a serious expression.

Goetz didn't know what to say.

Wang Lie said: "I'm sorry, boss, it's my fault. I thought it was over at the time..."

"Whether it's the past or not, as the captain, you have to keep good communication with me as the head coach. If there is any big thing in the team, you have to let me know, otherwise I would be blind and deaf. The time when Dean and Vitini almost had a fight, Goetz, you didn't tell me actively, you just said it in passing. How can this be okay?"

Goetz quickly stated: "Yes, it's my fault..."

"I'm not asking you to be spies in the locker room, but at least you have to tell me about this kind of conflict, right? Otherwise, I won't even know why they performed poorly on the court."

The four captains stood in a row and were scolded by McNeill.

Wang Lie, the most famous one among them, also kept silent and stood at attention.

To be honest, although he has always been the captain of the national team, the captain's armband was actually given mainly because of his fame and status.

Wang Lie lacks real experience as a captain.

His role as captain of the national team was more of a symbolic one, and the actual captaincy matters were mostly handed over to the vice-captain Chu Yu. After all, Wang Lie was really not good at building relationships with people...

He has never been captain of a club, whether it was the French team Born where he made his debut in Europe, or Athletic Barcelona, ​​or Sofia United, he was not the captain.

Moreover, there are actually some differences in the responsibilities of the captains of the national team and the club.

At least the national team's locker room is temporary. Everyone comes back from all over the world, gets together to play a few games and then disperses.

Unlike a club, everyone is together day and night, and there will be a lot of contact in training and life.

A qualified captain should not only set an example on the training ground and lead the team to victory on the field, but also care about his teammates, understand their problems in life, training and games, and try his best to solve them as a captain.

Wang Lie indeed did not do enough in this regard.

Since we didn't do enough and were criticized by the head coach, we have to accept it.

Wang Lie took the initiative to express his position: "Sorry, Boss. I will pay more attention to the situation in the locker room in the future. If there are any problems, I will communicate with you in time."

McNeill is not the kind of head coach who likes to act like a hair dryer. In addition, given his relationship with Wang Lie and his status, it is impossible for him to really give Wang Lie a cold shoulder.

Seeing Wang Lie take the initiative to admit his mistake, which was equivalent to giving him a way out, he immediately took advantage of the situation and softened his tone and expression:
"I understand that you just joined the team and you don't understand many things yet. Elliot, Charlie, you have been on the team the longest, so you should help Wang more often."

"No problem, Boss."

"Okay, boss."

Goetz and Cohen both agreed in unison.

McNeill looked at Katic again and said, "Matej, you have a lot of experience as a captain of a top club in Madrid, so don't hold back."

Katic quickly said, "I will help Wang manage the team, Boss."

"Okay, you guys go back and train normally. Also, calm people down and don't let this incident affect them. The conflict is a thing of the past. The weekend's game is the top priority."

After the four people left, assistant coach Cesar Valo, who had been watching quietly in the room without saying a word, asked, "Why don't you let them help find the traitor?"

McNeill shook his head and sighed, "What are you fussing about... Especially at times like this, we need to be quiet. The match with the Scouse is imminent, but we are busy catching the traitor? How can we play the game? Instead of making the team panic in order to catch the traitor, it is better to turn a blind eye and let the matter go. Stability is the top priority right now."

"Then wait until after the game with the Scouse people to catch him?"

McNeill smiled bitterly and said, "How can we possibly catch him? Almost the entire team was there at the time, so everyone is a suspect. Unless Dadomo has a brain attack and confesses, or the traitor reveals himself, we will never know who the traitor is."

Varro was a little unhappy: "So that's it? This time it leaked the conflict between Wang and Dean, so will it leak our tactical arrangements in the future? Do you think Jill already knows our new tactics?"

Josep Gil is the head coach of the Scouse team.

McNeill shook his head. "Not likely. And this tactic is not our secret weapon, it is just the best thing for us at the moment. Anyone with a professional eye can guess how we will adjust - we will not really press forward and attack the Scouse people when we face them. We will definitely adopt a defensive counterattack.

"Actually, I can understand why someone would reveal the conflict between Wang and Dean. Because of Wang's arrival, their good days of living a lazy life in the team are over. They don't like Wang, so naturally they want to make trouble for him. But they don't dare to stand up and confront Wang in person, because if they do, they're afraid that Wang will slap them in the face, so they can only reveal the news anonymously..."

Varro didn't quite understand: "But the conflict between Wang and Dean happened before our match against Herlingham. It's been almost 20 days. Why didn't you expose it then, but suddenly expose it now?"

McNeill pondered, "I think... maybe it's because the next game is between us and the Scouse people. And this game is particularly crucial to Wang's goal. Cesar, you don't still think that Wang's so-called 'bigger stage' refers to the Europa League or the UEFA Champions League, right?"

Varo shook his head: "How is that possible? Even a fool can see that he wants to go to the Champions League."

"That's right. If we want to go to the Champions League, the next game against the Scouse is a crucial one. The key point is that this is not just about three points, but also a chance for Wang to prove to his teammates that he can lead them to the Champions League. If we lose to the Scouse, all the big words Wang said in the locker room before will be bankrupt. In the future, when he talks about his lofty ambitions, fewer people will believe him."

McNeill explained to Varro.

After listening, Varo frowned and said, "Isn't it good to go to the Champions League?"

"Of course it's not good for those who used to just eat and wait for death, without doing anything, and could easily get a high salary every week. And most importantly, can you guarantee that after putting in so much effort and sweat, and working so hard, you will definitely be able to go to the Champions League as Wang said?"

Varro was speechless after being asked by McNeill.

Not to mention the first reason, he really couldn't refute the second reason.

A football match is not like a math problem where you solve it step by step according to the standard answer and finally get the correct answer.

In a football game, you put in a lot of work, sweat, risk getting injured, do everything you should do, and in the end you may get nothing.

Not to mention the entire season - the 38-round league process is too long, and there are many unexpected events in the middle that will determine the outcome of the season.

Just take a game as an example. Isn't it often the case that the strong team bombards the weak team, shoots dozens of times but fails to score, and finally is ambushed by the weak team and scores a goal, thus losing the game?
It is always easy to say nice things, but it is not so easy to realize what you said.

If you can't prove that you can do it, why should you let others work hard for your goals?
Of course, Wang Lie can rely on his personal charm and get some of his fans like Vitini to help him.

But there are still many people in the team who are not his fans. Or even if they admire him, they are not fanatical enough to sacrifice themselves for him.

As Varo thought about it, he suddenly smiled.

"What's wrong?" McNeill asked.

"Now that you mention it...why do I feel like the traitor is that kid Dean?"

"what?"

"Look, is Dean very unhappy with Wang Lie? And what good will it do him if we participate in the Champions League next season? He won't be on the team next season... He has a motive for committing the crime!"

McNeill shook his head: "I think Dean is definitely not the traitor."

"why?"

"Because he's afraid of being scolded. He performed poorly in the previous game and was scolded by the media and fans. He was so scared that he gave up on himself. How could such a person be a traitor and expose the conflict between himself and Wang? You have to know that he is also one of the parties involved. If Wang Hui was scolded, would he be able to escape?"

Varro thought about it and nodded, "Yes, I saw a lot of people scolding Dean on the Internet last night. Some people even blamed Dean for our poor performance..."

McNeill spread his hands and shrugged: "So he is just looking for trouble?"※※※

"Fuck it, let me know who the traitor is, I won't let him off!"

Coming out of the head coach's office and walking back to the locker room, Charlie Cohen said with gritted teeth.

Gotz hesitated for a moment and said, "I didn't mean to suspect anyone. I just said what I saw... When Wang and Dean clashed, there was no fight. I think Gunduz felt a little regretful. He was the one who told me that Wang and Dean had a fight at the beginning, which made me think that they were fighting..."

Katic quickly spoke up for his central defender partner: "The traitor can't be him. I know Hugo, he just likes to have fun. It doesn't mean he will tell outsiders about our team's news. After all, when this kind of thing is exposed, it will definitely make the atmosphere in the team more tense. How can he have fun then?"

There was some truth in what Katic said, and everyone else nodded.

"Who could it be? Could it be Dean?" Charlie Cohen proposed another candidate.

This time it was Goetz who spoke for Dean: "I have known Dean the longest. He is a coward. If I ask him to be a spy, I am afraid that he will be too scared to do it once he thinks about the consequences of being a spy. Besides, how could such a cowardly person use the conflict between himself and Wang to expose the truth? If Wang is scolded, he will also be scolded, and he may even be scolded more severely."

Everyone looked at Wang Lie.

Wang Lie nodded: "I also think it shouldn't be Dean. He was involved in both conflicts. If he was the traitor, wouldn't he be digging his own grave?"

"Who is that?" Charlie Cohen frowned. "If the traitor is not removed, people will be uneasy. Whatever happens in the locker room, the media will know it in a blink of an eye. Who can stand this?"

They walked and guessed all the way and finally walked out of the locker room.

Then Sonny Dean screamed:
"I said it! It wasn't me! It wasn't me! It wasn't fucking me!"

※※※

Although head coach McNeill told the assistant coach that he would not catch the ghost, his meaning had not yet been conveyed to the team. So early this morning, the locker room launched a full-scale "catch the ghost" campaign.

Most people were unanimous in their opinions, and the first person they suspected was Sonny Dean.

There's nothing he can do about it. Who made him never conceal the conflict between himself and Wang Lie?

Who in the entire locker room didn’t know that he was very unhappy with Wang Lie?

This time, the revelations directly hit Wang Lie, pointing out that after Wang Lie joined Tyne, he became a trouble in the locker room, causing public outrage and resentment.

Wang Lie has performed well in the last two games. The haters cannot criticize Wang Lie based on his performance on the field, so they can only find another way to criticize him based on his personality and interpersonal relationships.

Moreover, Wang Lie really doesn't have a very good reputation in this regard, and some people really believe that he is being slandered so much.

In just one night, the public opinion that was previously favorable to Wang Lie changed. More and more people began to predict Wang Lie's future in Tyne. The reason was that he had caused two internal conflicts in the locker room just after his arrival. If he continued to cause trouble like this, Tyne's "mercenaries" with a bad reputation would sooner or later fall apart and be completely finished.

So who is the biggest victim of this insider incident?
It’s Wang Lie.

Who is the biggest beneficiary of this insider incident?

It’s Sonny Dean who is unhappy with Wang Lie.

With this analysis, it is so reasonable that Dean is the traitor!
So when Dean came to the locker room, Vitini immediately stood up and accused Dean of being a mole and leaking what happened in the locker room to the media. His accusation was also supported by many teammates.

And Dean couldn't produce any evidence to convince others...

Of course, there is no evidence to prove his innocence in this matter - how can he disprove something he never did?

So it becomes an endless loop:
Dean couldn't prove himself, so he couldn't respond to other people's doubts about him, but he knew he really didn't do it... This feeling of doing nothing wrong but everyone thinking he did something wrong was so terrible that it made him lose his temper.

"I've said it before! I have no reason to do this! I'm also a victim! So many people scolded me last night, am I out of my mind and digging a hole to bury myself?! Vitini, use your small brain to think about it, if it were you, would you do this?!"

"Who are you calling petty-minded?!" Vitini was furious.

"Is this the key?! The key is whether you will do it or not!"

"Why would I do this? I don't hate the king! And you! Everyone knows that you have always hated the king! So you are the most likely to do this!"

Dean was about to go crazy facing Vitini who was completely unable to communicate. He roared: "I said it! It's not me! It's not me! It's not fucking me!"

After yelling, he decided to give up trying to reason with these people. He would no longer be a player of this team in a few months anyway, so it didn’t matter what they thought of him… It didn’t matter who they loved! He just had to hold on for a few more months!
Just as he put on his headphones and planned to isolate himself from the world, the locker room door opened.

The four captains who had just been called away by the head coach appeared at the door.

"Although I have no evidence, I think it was definitely not Dean," said Elliot Goetz.

He was the first one in the locker room to express his support for Dean.

"Without evidence, don't make random guesses about your teammates," Charlie Cohen also said.

Hearing the quarrel in the locker room from outside, they also realized how much impact catching the traitor would have on the team.

"Then aren't we going to catch the traitor?" Vitini asked.

Just as Goetz was about to answer his question, Wang Lie patted him on the shoulder.

He turned and looked at Wang Lie.

Wang Lie came out and said to Vitini and the others in the locker room, "The most important thing now is our match against the Scouse in two days."

"But...if we don't find out the traitor, who knows what will happen next? Who will dare to speak in the locker room?" Although his idol had spoken, Vitini was still unwilling to accept it.

The other teammates nodded one after another. Although they didn't say anything, they all supported Vitini's opinion.

Wang Lie shook his head: "Don't worry about whether there are traitors or not, just focus all your energy on the competition and training."

Seeing that many people still looked unconvinced, Wang Lie asked them, "Don't you want to think about why something that happened so many days ago had to be exposed at this time?"

"Yes, why?" Hugo Guenduzzi asked, he was really puzzled. "If the media hadn't suddenly reported it, I would have almost forgotten about it."

"Because they are afraid." Wang Lie replied. "Our opponents are afraid."

There was a commotion in the locker room. Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment. Many people exclaimed reflexively: "How is it possible? The Scouse people are afraid of us? They are third in the league!"

Not to mention them, even the three captains behind Wang Lie didn't understand why he said that.

"So what if we're third in the league? Being scared has nothing to do with the league ranking. We're in good form recently, so it's normal for them to be scared. Don't you know that you're actually very strong?"

Wang Lie's words silenced everyone in the locker room...

Should I say that I am strong or not?

Facing the silent teammates, Wang Lie continued: "If you are not strong enough, why should I say that relegation is not our goal and we should go to a bigger stage? If you are not strong enough and can't do it, wouldn't I be slapping myself in the face? Maybe some people think I was pretending, but I can tell those who think so with certainty: I am not. I just believe in you, more than you believe in yourselves."

When a top star who scored two goals and provided one assist in two appearances, brought two victories to the team and proved that he is still as good as ever, looks them in the eye and tells them that he believes they are strong, it is hard for anyone not to be moved.

It is true that Tyne's players are "mercenaries", but they are also flesh and blood people.

Who doesn't desire praise and recognition from others?
Especially when the person who praises and recognizes them is an extremely successful top player.

Even Sonny Dean, who was wearing headphones, didn't turn on the music, but was listening quietly to what Wang Lie had just said.

There was still silence in the locker room, but this time the silence was different from the previous one.

Facing the silent teammates, Wang Lie spread his hands:

"I don't care who the traitor is, and I won't think about finding him out... There is no point in doing so. We only need to do one thing, and that is to play the next game well and win. As long as we can win, the traitor will naturally disappear. Because in a winning team, there is no soil for pessimists to survive!"

(End of this chapter)