Became The Premier League’S Youngest Manager [EN]: Chapter 215

Even as they exited the stadium, the cheers and chants of the home fans celebrating their victory still faintly echoed. Inside Andrees Moor’s box, however, a silence had fallen.

AC Milan’s Chairman, Billy Beane, remained composed, but Paolo Maldini, the technical director who had watched the game beside him, clenched and unclenched his fists, still visibly excited.

“That’s a shame.”

“Ah…?”

Helena turned to look at Paolo Maldini, surprised by his sudden remark.

“If I were still playing… could I have stopped that last attack? Could I have? Or not? I keep thinking about it.”

Billy Beane chuckled softly beside Paolo Maldini, who smiled sheepishly at her questioning expression.

“I used to be like that back in Oakland. When I watched the games, I’d get angry about why they couldn’t do certain things. Of course, I couldn’t do them either, so I didn’t really have the right to say anything, but I couldn’t help getting emotional.”

Paolo Maldini turned to look at his superior, listening to Billy Beane’s calm words about his own professional career, which had ended with him failing to make it as a promising prospect in Major League Baseball.

“Does it get better with time?”

“…No.”

After a moment of silence, Billy Beane’s eyes gleamed as he replied.

“It shouldn’t get better with time. It’s a driving force for improvement.”

“I see.”

Paolo Maldini nodded at the elderly chairman’s words, a man who had led a club through all sorts of incidents and challenges.

Billy Beane turned to Helena, who had been watching their conversation, and smiled.

“I’m sorry. It seems Paolo’s blood is still boiling when he watches games because he’s young.”

“Weren’t you the one who said it shouldn’t get better with time?”

Billy Beane chuckled at Helena’s remark.

“That’s right. I suppose so.”

Billy Beane turned his gaze back to Andrees Moor’s stadium, where the excitement of the game still seemed to linger.

“It’s a truly wonderful stadium, with wonderful fans, and above all, a wonderful team.”

“Thank you.”

Billy Beane shook his head slightly.

“Until the end of the first half, I was sure we’d be able to return with the result we wanted, but from the second half onwards… it’s clear that the rumors of him being one of the top managers in Europe are not exaggerated. To be able to achieve such a result just by changing the players’ roles, not even substituting them.”

Helena smiled at the praise for her boyfriend, who was also the manager of the team he led, but she didn’t reply.

As if he hadn’t expected an answer, Billy Beane nodded and continued.

“Anyway, the complex procedures like club acquisitions and deals are problems for the bankers and lawyers to solve in New York, so I’m not too worried about them. But after coming to Burnley today, I think it’s worth calling it the jewel of Northwest England.”

“Enough that you want to own it yourself?”

Billy Beane nodded emphatically at Helena’s direct question.

“Of course. And I know that Cartwright Fund considers how you plan to lead Burnley in the future to be the most important thing, not just the acquisition price. I’m sure you’re meeting with the Red Bull guys too.”

Helena didn’t say yes or no, but the experienced chairman continued, as if that alone was an answer.

“I want to make both AC Milan and Burnley destinations.”

“…Destinations?”

As Billy Beane nodded, Paolo Maldini, who seemed to have regained his composure, joined the conversation.

“A place where players in their prime want to go. A place where anyone who wears that jersey feels proud and honored. I want to make it that kind of place.”

“Ah…”

Helena fell silent, taken aback by the unexpected words.

“Of course, there’s the club’s finances, and there’s joy and pleasure in discovering and nurturing good players. But it’s also important to know and protect the club’s history and tradition, and it’s meaningful to have that core group of players.”

These were the words of Paolo Maldini, who had played for AC Milan for three generations, his grandfather and father both having served as captains and lifted trophies.

Helena nodded at his words, which felt weighty rather than just a conventional greeting.

“So, we want to approach it a little differently from Red Bull. Instead of simply discovering promising players and then selling them when they reach their prime, we want to create a place where players who are reaching their prime want to come.”

“Hmm…”

A flood of thoughts raced through Helena’s mind.

Billy Beane chuckled softly beside her, seeing her complicated expression.

“This isn’t a conversation that will end in just one day, so let’s continue talking in the future. But today, after watching such a wonderful game, I wanted to talk before the afterglow faded. That RedBird’s idea is to create countless nights like this in Burnley.”

“…”

***

Although they had secured a spot in the Champions League semi-finals with a dramatic victory against AC Milan, Burnley’s manager and coaching staff were not afforded any time to rest.

They had to play the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday and then face Tottenham again on Saturday for the 34th round of the Premier League.

Both Liverpool and Burnley had been on a winning streak in the Premier League since February 2024, maintaining a tight gap in points.

Burnley had 81 points after 32 games with 27 wins and 5 losses.

Liverpool had 86 points after 32 games with 28 wins, 2 draws, and 2 losses.

The point difference was still 5 points.

However, Burnley faced a tough schedule in the next five games, starting with Tottenham, followed by Manchester City, Aston Villa, Norwich, and finally Liverpool, with four formidable opponents.

Manchester City, Liverpool, and Tottenham, who had dominated the Premier League for a long time, forming the so-called Big Six.

Aston Villa, who had invested the most among mid-table clubs and consistently achieved good results.

The match against Norwich, perennial relegation candidates who went back and forth between the Premier League and the Championship, was the only relatively manageable one, but it was still only a brief respite in the five-game stretch.

On the other hand, Liverpool’s Premier League schedule was relatively easier.

They faced Crystal Palace, Everton, Leeds United, Manchester United, and Burnley in that order.

Everton, their Merseyside Derby rivals, and Manchester United, their Northwest Derby rivals, could be tricky, but both teams had lost their former glory and faded long ago.

Most people expected that they would have already secured the title by the time they faced Burnley in the final match.

In the end, they could focus all their energy on the FA Cup final against Chelsea and the Champions League.

“Yaya, don’t overthink it. We decided to just focus on the next game!”

Taejin said to Hyungmin, who was lost in thought while looking at the schedule.

“Ah? Oh, right…”

As if snapping out of it, Hyungmin put down the schedule and looked around the conference room table.

“I’m sorry. I was out of it…”

“It’s okay. It happens.”

Paulo Morais said kindly.

Everyone knew that he hadn’t slept a wink before and after the second leg against AC Milan, worrying about the game.

Rubbing his tired eyes, Hyungmin asked.

“Where were we?”

“We were going over Tottenham’s expected starting lineup.”

Carolina explained from the side.

“Antonio Conte must be having a headache too, huh?”

Tottenham had a long list of injured players.

In the attack, Son Heung-min and Richarlison, the core of the front three, and Dejan Kulusevski, who had been a useful backup, were all out with injuries at the same time.

With Harry Kane having to lead the attack alone, there were also quite a few absences in midfield and defense.

In defense, key center-back Cristian Romero was out with a calf injury.

In midfield, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg was out with a knee injury.

Fortunately, they still had Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur in midfield, so they could manage to hold on to some extent, but the attack was dire.

Harry Kane was expected to be flanked by Lucas Moura on the right and Bryan Gil on the left.

The veteran Brazilian attacker, who had been useful in the past but had clearly declined with age this season and lost his place in the starting lineup, was on one side.

On the other side was the young Spanish attacker, who had yet to unleash the potential he had shown at Eibar in the Spanish Primera Liga [Spanish First Division] and remained a perennial prospect stuck on the bench.

“Well, Harry Kane must be struggling, but the manager must be feeling a bit frustrated?”

Taejin said with a laugh.

Hyungmin, who had been listening to the player situation from the side, sighed deeply.

It was good that the opposing team’s strength was weakening, but having many injuries was not a happy thing for a fellow manager or former player.

“Well, let’s look at the fact that it’s easier to predict the opposing team’s starting lineup as a positive.”

Carolina said, sensing Hyungmin’s downcast mood.

“Okay. Then what about the defense?”

“Well, there aren’t many options. Three of Eric Dier, Davinson Sánchez, Ben Davies, and Japhet Tanganga.”

Given Antonio Conte’s tendency to play with a back three and the fact that Tottenham only had five center-backs anyway.

“The flanks are less of a headache, at least.”

Carolina nodded at Hyungmin’s murmur.

“Still, both Ryan Sessegnon and Djed Spence have improved a lot this season. They’re almost certain to start.”

Unless Antonio suddenly does something crazy and changes the formation, Carolina added.

Ryan Sessegnon, who had been Tottenham’s sore spot since being signed from Fulham at the young age of 19, finally exploded with potential, completely pushing Ivan Perišić, who was slowly aging, to the bench and solidifying his position as the left wing-back.

On the other side, Djed Spence, who had suffered all sorts of hardships in his first season with the club, finally regained the form he had shown during his loan spell at Nottingham Forest, showcasing his solid defense and destructive attacking ability, and was once again being considered for a call-up to the England national team.

Unless they suddenly changed the formation, it was the best possible lineup for Tottenham.

“I see. Well, then…”

The battle for dominance against a team led by Antonio Conte always comes down to the midfield battle.

And Burnley starts with a guaranteed trump card in the midfield battle.

“…We just need to defend well in the center and attack on both flanks.”

Taejin, who was looking down at the tactical board, asked at Hyungmin’s words.

“Benjamin is starting this time, right? The Team Sesko kids are really grinding their teeth.”

In Hyungmin’s rotation policy, players belonging to Team Sesko strangely appear more often in Lorenzo Lucca’s starting games, and vice versa, players belonging to Team Lorenzo appear more often in Benjamin Sesko’s starting games.

Perhaps thanks to this, both of them were tied at 29 goals as of the halfway point of April.

Having two strikers who can each score around 30 goals in all competitions in a season is an incredibly good feeling for a manager.

There was a slight problem in that the scoring was concentrated on the central strikers, but the teams facing Burnley had a headache because if they blocked the central striker, the players on both flanks would gleefully come up and score.

“Well, healthy competition isn’t a bad thing. The kids are doing well too.”

Eventually, Hyungmin, unable to watch any longer, placed a limit on the new stakes that could be placed, but the players, who had already made this a pleasure, focused on the fun rather than the amount of money, so it didn’t mean much.

In this situation, there was a possibility that there would be some sabotage in the game, but strangely, the competition spread, and if they failed to create an assist when the opposing striker was playing, they would experience a mental breakdown, being branded as lacking in skill.

In addition, Nicolas Seiwald had subtly hinted that the winning side would treat everyone to a lavish meal and then donate the remaining amount.

Of course, Nicolas Seiwald didn’t know that thanks to that remark, he had gone from being a despicable bat in the manager’s eyes back to being a virtuous Austrian man from a good family.

“Okay, then shall we make a plan?”

Hyungmin shouted ambitiously, but later, looking back on this day, he thought to himself.

What plan, my ass.