Continuing a Legacy or Making my own?

June 3rd 2013

*BZZZZZZZZ*

*BZZZZZZZZ*

*BZZZZZZZZ*

*BZZZZZZZZ*

"Gah that can't be the time already can it? I was having a good sleep there"

"Yes it is baby, please turn the alarm off I still don't have to get up for another hour"

I rolled over in bed to grab my phone and turned the alarm off. I had a voicemail from the club but I didn't pay any attention to it I was on my leave. The misses hated it my mornings alarm goes off at 7, make myself a drink usual a smoothie or just a glass of water and watch Sky Sports News for half hour before I go for my run along the river.

I walked into the lounge and flicked the tv on and looked out the French doors across our balcony, across the River Thames into the distance. It was a clear morning and I could easily make out the Wembley Arch. What a stadium that place is the roar of the crowd no matter the game there was always a buzz! I remember going to watch Luton Town play in the Johnstone Paint Trophy Final in 08/09 when they went into administrations and where deducted 30 points for the 08/09 season. My god they where great that season in the JPT too bad about the league though. Finishing 15 points behind 22nd Place and safety is not bad considering they started on -30 points. If they didn't have those points deducted they would have finished middle table.

Walking into the kitchen I decide to make a smoothie as I am there cutting up a banana and some strawberries I hear the TV going. The days football news came on the usual rumours going along, few of the lads being linked with moves away, then one headline catches my attention "It's confirmed everybody he's back. The Special One is back" I run out the kitchen with the knife still in my hand but more concentrated on the TV. I didn't make it. I grabbed my Ipad and searched on BBC Sport Website and Sky Sports Website to see if it was true. Walking back into the kitchen as the pages loaded too finish my smoothie.

As the blender was going off the BBC website popped up first and in big letters across the page it said:

Jose Mourinho has retuned the Premier League and is back in Charge at Chelsea FC

We have confirmed reports coming out of Cobham, Chelsea's Training Ground, that Jose Mourinho has returned to the club as Manager of the team he holds close to his heart


As I poured my smoothie I thought to myself 'They're right then. He came back to England and not just England but Chelsea' and with a few gulps of my smoothie I went and got ready and went for my run. Forgetting about the voicemail message on my phone..

Good start and goodluck

2014-10-03 14:03#195542 TheLFCFan : Good start and goodluck

Cheers man good luck with yours

June 3rd 2013 - 09:45 AM
Walking back into the flat I noticed a Car out the front that I recognized but thought nothing of it. He lives two streets down. Maybe he couldn't get a space outside his. As I walked back through the door I heard people talking. One voice was Becci's but the other I hadn't heard since? Well since I started my annual leave and the owner of the car outside.

I walked into the Lounge and there was Becci standing in one of my t-shirts and a pair of joggers. The man she was talking to I had known for the 6 years and he had become a bit of a father figure for me since I had lost my dad a few year's back. He turned round and we hugged each other and started to chat.

"You stink mate!" Chuckling as he said it

"Cheers. What do expect I've just been for a run!" I replied "I wasn't expecting to see you until Monday? What you doing here now?"

"Have you not checked you phone? He's back!" my friend said.

"No I haven't I am on leave why would I check my message's from the club? Everyone knows I go for a run in the morning. And yes I did I saw it on the news!" I explained

"Thought so. When I pulled in the car park and didn't see you car I turned round to come and get you!" My friend trying to stay calm but finding it difficult "He want's everyone back at the club now! There is a massive meeting in 45 minutes about this season and how the club is going to go forward. I've been speaking highly of you to Jose you know. He wants to meet you."

"Okay Steve. Okay let me have a shower and I'll grab my kit" I said trying to stay calm but it was difficult. He wanted to meet me!"Hang on? How long have you known he was coming back?" I questioned while running into the bathroom.

Steve didn't answer..

Cliff hanger dun dun dun
are you taking the role as a player in this career?

2014-10-04 20:30#195629 TheLFCFan : Cliff hanger dun dun dun
are you taking the role as a player in this career?

Have to wait and see;)

A nice start... but what does Jose want?!?

June 3rd 10:30am
Only just managing to get to the meeting in time me and Steve snuck into the meeting room before the boss would notice he sat with all the other first team coaches and I went and sat with the few youth coaches that I remembered as my actually team where not there most where probably still on holiday or somewhere else and like me had not seen the message.

Thinking back to when I was rushing out the door trying to grab everything I needed and Becci saying to me " Calm down you will have plenty of time to get there you wont be late."

"Yeah I know but I want to get there so I can compose myself before I meet him." I exclaimed "Hang on why you not at work?" I questioned.

"I'm not in today got the day off. I might go do some shopping as I am not going to be spending the day with you now am I?" she answered smiling all the while and sticking her tongue out at me. I know she wasn't to bothered about spending the time with me she meant her question in a joking way, I mean we had just come back from Holiday not 5 days ago and we did nothing but chill out while there.

As I was sitting there I thought to myself 'Where's my wallet?' searching my pockets I couldn't find it but then I remembered hugging Becci and she went into my back pocket. The cheeky cow must of taken it and most probably will use it for shopping later. I just text her saying 'Don't spend too much' I didn't mind her taking it I mean she did just pay for the Holiday

There was a sudden silence in the room. Steve had vanished from the front row, wonder where he could of gone? Then I saw where he had gone, in through the door came the Boss and Steve. Steve had a spring in his step, and the man behind him commanded the room and you could tell.

And the meeting started. We went through all the formalities of asking how everyone's Holiday's where. The Boss was saying sorry for calling everyone back in Early and that he will give us the time off, we then got down to business. He listed off targets for the whole club and the way he would like it to be run, the main thing was he wanted to start bringing in the youth players who had the potential or some of it at least and if there wasn't any he would then buy players. I liked this idea it was good. I loved the idea of developing our youth players. He gave instructions to the youth coaches to start rating each player on their performances and to start making sure the same tactics are used from the first team.

After about an hour the meeting room was pretty empty the only people that where left was the First Team Coaches, a few scouts (who I had not seen when I first came in) and me. He said out a list of the scouts names but this did not include about 10 names, 1 of them being mine. They where to carry on with their normal jobs of scouting out new talent. They left shortly followed by First team coaches who where all give a file to read up on and prepare for the first training session.

The only people left where me, 2 other scouts, Steve and Jose. We huddle into a small circle. This gave me a chance to study his face closer. He looked a lot older now than when he was first here, well that was 8 years ago. You could still see that fire and passion in his eyes, he held the conversation with authority but also willingness to let other speak. We must of been talking for about 20 minutes before he came to the reason we where not to scout for new talent.

"I want you guys to go out to each game that is played and report on how each team play. We could look at the match reports but I want us there at each game watching, looking out for weaknesses and seeing any ways we can combat there game style" Jose explained this calmly but also you could here the passion in his voice.

I looked at Steve gob-smacked. He smiled at me re-reassuringly.

Well this is a new turn in my career.

Intresting mate wonder what will happen next

2014-10-06 15:35#195722 TheLFCFan : Intresting mate wonder what will happen next

i've had this idea for a while but never had a save to utilize it until now

3rd June 14:30
Sitting at my desk still in a state of shock and dis-belief of this new role I had. I had told Becci about this and she screamed down the phone saying congratulations and that my dad would be proud of me. I was in here by myself everyone else had either gone home either after the meeting or lunch to prepare for work the next day. As I was about to get up and leave when Steve walked in...

"Still in shock are we mate?" Steve asked.

"Yeah I am." I replied "I mean how have I been given this opportunity? The other guys doing this have so much more experience than me." I questioned Steve

"I know mate but he see's something in you." Steve explained "He knows you've only coached in the youth teams before you became a scout, but he has watched a few of the videos of your games where you managed and he loves your adaptability. Like the game against Man City U15's you had a mix of our U13's and your U14's in your squad that game what was the score at half time?"

"5-2 too City." I replied

"And how did the game finish?" Steve questioned.

"10-6 to us." I replied again. I didn't quite understand what he was saying.

"Correct but it wasn't because you told your team to play better, you changed the formation and the way we played. They played 5-3-2 the whole game and you had started with your tried and trusted 4-2-3-1 like the first team play but you changed it to a 3-4-3 in 2nd half and told them to get at their defense down the wings." Steve was explaining this clearly to me but what did it matter it was just one game I have done that in a few games the last season I was coach before I became a scout. Against Everton, Liverpool, Southampton, Juventus, PSG and Real... Hang on Real Madrid? When was that game? Racking my brains, was it before or after Jose had joined them as manager? Steve was still going on about something in that City game.

"Steve?" I interrupted him "Did Jose see the game where my U14's dismantled the Real Madrid U16s?"

Steve looking back at me with a big grin on his face "Yes he did Alex and he was impressed with you, their U16's team was unbeaten until they played you and your team." I was standing at this point but slumped back into my chair. He had seen that game? It was one of my proudest moments with those lads we where invited to a tournament in Brazil and their where teams from all over the world, it was a mix of U16, U15 and U14s all playing together in a massive tournament. We where in the Semi-Final and our game had finished before the 2nd half of Real's had started. |I took a wander over to it too see what we where up against as the winner of this game would play us, I found a spot in the shade of a tree and asked someone the score I was still in my Chelsea Training kit. They where losing 1-0 to Arsenal U16's to a penalty what happened in the 2nd half was immense. It was a tight affair but on the counter Real where deadly the game finished 5-2 to Real Madrid but it could of been more if they where in the mood for it. As I walked away shocked the man I had asked the score about turned round and said "Good luck against them mate. You may need it!"

I replied to him "Nah we will be fine we are the only team left that is not an U16's team so my lad's must be good" I chuckled nervously as I walked away, my head going into overdrive about how we where going to cope with that counter attack.

As I snapped back into reality I saw Steve staring at me waiting for a response. "What?" I said.

"Do you want a lift home or are you going to walk?" Steve replied chuckling away "Oh and by the way, Jose will meet you Wednesday next week..."

Nicely written as always and keeps me wanting to know more... keep it up!

9th June 11:30

As I was walking down the corridor to meet Jose my mind was going mad. What would he want to talk about? Why did he choose me? What type of meeting is this going to be? I had asked the other guys who had already had a meeting with him about this but they where all very vague it didn't help my nerves asking them it just made them worse.

I knocked on his office door. I heard a voice saying come in. As I walked into his office, it was large and spacious there was a small fridge and a tea/coffee machine in the corner, there was his desk in the other corner next to the window looking out onto the training pitches, then in the middle was a round table and he was sitting there with Steve.

"I will leave you two too it then." Steve said while smiling at me and gave a nod to Jose. He gave me a reassuring pat on the shoulder as he walked out.

"Please sit down Alex." he gestured to a chair at the table. "Would you like a drink?" Jose asked.

"Could I have a bottle of water please?" I replied. I didn't really drink Coffee and it was too hot anyway for a Tea.

As Jose passed me the bottle of water he said "So Steve tells me you feel like you don't deserve this new job role?" He questioned but I knew it was rhetorical so I didn't reply. "Well I do. I've seen you in action as a coach and you have the potential to be a manager. I have seen your reports about new young players and they are always detailed, you don't miss anything. You list not only the important things about the player, you also suggest ways that the player could improve and list their weaknesses."

"Yeah I know I have also been praised for the way I go into detail in reports." I replied. "But it still doesn't answer me as to why you chose me over others?" I asked

"Like I said Alex it's because I think you have the potential to be a manager. This job role is kind of like one of the final jigsaw pieces in training to be a manager." Jose explained "I believe in you Alex and I want you to prove to me that you can do this. Or are you not the same cocky coach I spoke to 3 years ago and watch his team dismantle my U16s?"

"What are you saying? I knew you where there and you watched the game but we didn't speak?" I questioned him. We never spoke did we? I only spoke to my team and a few other coaches of different teams at the tournament.

"You told me your lads must be half decent if they where the only U14s team left in the tournament and all the others where U16s" He replied smiling at me. My jaw dropped open, that could not of been him? Was he really the bloke I was standing with under the tree watching the Real Madrid vs Arsenal U16s match?

"Was that you? The guy I asked the score about and you said to me 'Good Luck Mate. You may need it'at the end of the game?" I looked at him questioningly but I was still in shock, I couldn't quite believe it.

Jose Chuckled as he replied "Yes it was me and I was impressed with your confidence. Here is the list of the League games I want you to go see for me." He handed me a file not a big or heavy one just 3 pages. As I scanned through the games I had been given, I was unimpressed. Stoke, Sunderland, Palace and Southampton where the main places I was going. I didn't mind Southampton they play attractive football and Sunderland are under new leadership in Poyet and he likes attractive football but Stoke I know Hughes wants to play attractive football but he just does not have the players to do it.

"Yeah that's fine. Will we have to go to games like the Champions League and the FA Cup or just league games?" I questioned. I think he knew I wasn't happy with the team's he had given me.

"Yes you will but they will be decided at a later date." He replied. " I know you are not impressed with the team's I have given you but I feel you will be best person to scout these teams, over the past few season's these have been teams we find all difficult to play and I want us to find their weaknesses."

I breathed out a little bit with a sigh of relief, he was putting faith in me to prove myself. "Okay thank you for the explanation. I better prepare for my first game of the season. Thank's for the meeting and clearing some questions I had." I said "I will see you at the meeting before our first game."

As I walked out the office I felt 10 feet tall and unbeatable. Time to prepare for this season and prove myself to one of the best manager's in the world.

No pressure then...

Loving this, it's different and impressively written. I can just imagine incognito Jose standing under a tree at an under 16's match now lol!

2014-10-08 12:55#195831 Ziechael : No pressure then...

Loving this, it's different and impressively written. I can just imagine incognito Jose standing under a tree at an under 16's match now lol!

I wanted to do something different for a story

Thankfully I am at a part now where this story can really pick up and take shape as we get to the start of the season