Mike..

…been a bad girl, she’s like a chemical. Though you try

Ed snapped off the stereo and swung his Audi over to the side of the road, he killed the engine and reached over to the passenger seat. After fumbling in his jacket pocket for a moment he retrieved his mobile – he was right, it had been ringing, he really ought to get around to sorting out a car-kit.

The call register showed that it was someone from the club who’d been trying to contact him, probably Naïmi. He hit the redial key and, sure enough, his assistant answered within two rings

“Brahim, what’s up?”

………

“Sorry, it’s an English phrase... you were trying to get hold of me, what’s going on? I’ll be in by…” he quickly checked his watch “half past at the latest”

………

“Really? I see, well tell him to keep them busy and get the number where he is. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes and get straight back to him”

Finally some news on the scouting front, Serge Lesnard had been sent to seek out African talent and had come across a number of young players at some sort of football clinic. It seemed a sensible idea, plenty of young hopefuls got released by clubs every season and a couple of enterprising agents had arranged to gather a few of the brighter prospects together in the hope of landing them jobs at smaller clubs. The problem, according to his assistant, was that Serge formed part of a much larger contingent of scouts and coaches from all across Europe and signatures were being snapped up pretty quickly.

He started up the car again, gunned the engine, and pulled back onto the main carriageway.

to stop it, she’s like a narcotic. You wanna torture her, you wanna talk to her…

retired_jgirl87

I'm really enjoying this. If I can do half as well on the new Dutch story that I'm writing as you have done here, then I will be a very happy man indeed. Top stuff, flippers. :thup: :thup:

Mike..

Cheers Spav, from what I've read you won't have any problem with quality writing though :thup:


The list of names, and past clubs, that Lesnard had supplied had been impressive and Ed had needed to restrain himself from offering trials to a dozen or more players, in the end he’d entered negotiations with just three but, predictably, competition was fierce and he found himself still trying to cajole them nearly a week later.

In the meantime his current squad had been getting used to the Friday/Tuesday schedule of the Second Division. A record crowd of nearly 5,000 had turned out for the visit of Guingamp (at least a record for the league) and Ed felt slightly sorry for Jacques Leglib as the home support had made it clear that he was no longer their favourite son. With his side back to full strength he’d been quietly surprised at how good they looked when playing on home turf, matching the promotion contenders for chances and eventually securing a great win.

The return of Cami and Di Bartolomeo had been the big difference for Ed, and it was the former who volleyed home from the edge of the area just after the break. Leglib had taken some stick for that but, truth be told, there weren’t many keepers who would have got to the shot. To add insult to injury a composed performance from Mat Valverde had earned him a Man of the Match rating in the other goal, as well as three points for Pau.

The Tuesday game had been tougher, a trip to Châteauroux whose season had started with two high-scoring wins. Again Ed had watched his side carve out some decent opportunities, but only a couple of really telling efforts – easily handled by Vincent Fernandez, a on-time French Under 21 keeper. The defence were finding it hard, it was clear that they couldn’t afford any lapses in concentration, and Julien Labat was caught out as the home side struck early on. Once they were behind it had got harder, Ed wanted them to try and find an equaliser but the formation discipline faded the longer the game went on, and they paid the price with a second goal near to the end.

To be fair they were expecting a tough season and defeats away from home would undoubtedly be the rule, rather than the exception, he’d seen enough to give him a degree of optimism and if he could get a couple of these African players signed up he’d be able to add to the strength and depth of the squad.

Mike..

The crowds continued to grow, obviously word was spreading that Pau looked like they could actually make a go of retaining their Second Division status. Over five thousand turned out for the Friday night visit of Montpellier and were treated to a real gem. Once again the home advantage lifted his side’s game, and Ed watched Valverde turn in another strong clean sheet as Cami ran the show in midfield.

Tchami’s opener was a beauty, racing onto Millereau’s through-ball to bury a long range shot in the second minute, but the fans had to wait until the second half for the real showpiece of the evening. Bruno Carotti had already been booked early in the game, and when he was spotted holding onto Tchami’s shirt he was directed to the changing rooms by Monsieur Fautrel. Ed had never particularly concentrated on fancy set-piece routines, he’d grown up as a no-nonsense kind of player. For direct free-kicks you take a run-up, and smash it at the keeper – if it’s indirect you take a run-up, the man over the ball gives it the lightest of touches, and you smash it at the keeper. He knew, however, that his players and coaches did spend time coming up with variations and they produced one from Carotti’s foul.

Tchami took a few steps and then cleverly disguised an almost square-ball to Khalifa Ba – the defender came in at an angle that gave him a clear line of sight to goal, cutting out the wall completely, and lashed it home to double Pau’s tally.

The win lifted them to 8th place in the table, not a position Ed expected to be seeing again any time soon, but more importantly it gave them a cushion over the early strugglers, and the belief that they could compete at this level. Now if he could just get a couple of the Africans to sign up…

Mike..

“Well first of all welcome aboard, it’s great to have you both joining us, and secondly – we need to do something about those names, the lads need to tell you apart”

Ed had finally landed his men, or at least two of them. He’d missed out Ingi Hojsted – a former Arsenal trainee who Frédéric Robin had come across during his travels, but the African clinic had produced a couple of strong looking Senegalese players; Séga Doudou N’Diaye – who looked like he’d be giving Millereau immediate competition for the right to partner Tchami, and Leyti N’Diaye – a utility man with a commanding physical presence.

The pair were brothers*, born a year apart in Dakar, and they clearly came from strong stock. Leyti stood well over six feet and there were several of the current Pau squad who were clearly intimidated by him during their first training session.

After some discussion both agreed to be known by their first names, Leyti was quick to take to the idea – Ed was sure that he thought it made him sound Brazilian or something – and he soon sold it to Séga. Of course FIFA rules were such that they would be registered by their full names, and N’Diaye would appear on their shirts, but Ed just wanted to make communication among his players easier.

------

*Writer’s Note: I have no idea if this is true or not, the game does show them as being born in the same city, but it suits the story so well.

Mike..

The brothers N’Diaye both made there debuts on the road at Sedan – another team hotly tipped by the media. Bertrand Tchami did the damage, his first a true poacher’s strike as he pounced on a moment of hesitation in the home defence and poked the ball under an onrushing Regnault. With Cami taking a knock Ed moved Bindi into the playmaker role at half-time, and Leyti got the nod to take to the pitch along with his brother, who replaced Millereau.

Sedan were clearly rattled at the fact that they couldn’t break down Pau’s impressive defence, things started to get niggly and a number of aggressive challenges eventually earned Nadir Belhadj a second yellow card. Moments later, with the defence struggling to catch him, Bindi broke into the box and saw his effort parried into the path of the charging Tchami – it was the simplest of finishes for the striker who needed no second invitation. Another dismissal followed for the home side, as their frustrations boiled over, and Pau sat back to play out the final minutes of added time.

Ed was pleased with what he’d seen, quite apart from the win Leyti had made it his mission to spray inch-perfect passes all over the park, and though he failed to get a clear opportunity, Séga looked sharp. With the deadline day approaching there was one more bit of good news for the manager too, his final target agreed terms to join the Pau revolution. Akwasi Nana Asare had spent two seasons at Feyenoord but the Dutch team had obviously not rated the fullback quite highly enough. Ed, on the other hand, saw him as the ideal man for the difficult left-back spot that Gardan had been holding down capably.

retired_manpk1

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by flipsix3:
and poked the ball under an onrushing Regnault. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

For a moment I read that as "an onrushing Renault."

that would have been impressive - and dangerous!

Anyway, I'm still enjoying this. KUTGW :thup:

Mike..

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by binny:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by flipsix3:
and poked the ball under an onrushing Regnault. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

For a moment I read that as "an onrushing Renault."

that would have been impressive - and dangerous!
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Mike..

Asare made his debut in Pau’s first televised game, an awkward feeling for Ed who wasn’t particularly keen on the whole media circus thing. A quick word with the on-site commentator to confirm the inclusion of his new signing, and Ed made his excuses and went in search of his players – he’d arranged for the game to be recorded and he’d check the TV coverage later.

-----

Knowing the result didn’t make watching the game any easier – Ed knew that fact applied to most fans. Even now, when he saw replays of England’s Euro 96 shoot-out heartbreak, his heart would be racing. It was the same watching his own side, every Le Mans break, every shot, had him on the edge of his seat willing the ball to miss it’s target. The real treat though, and the thing that would undoubtedly take half an hour out of tomorrow’s training schedules, was the ability to watch the replays of Pau’s goals.

Their opener had been textbook stuff, Cami’s corner and Di Bartolomeo jumped high and headed the ball back into the far corner of the net, via the post. The second was something a little special – Séga and Cami combining to send Tchami clear. Watching the replay from behind the goal gave Ed the greatest thrill, as Tchami chipped the ball the look of joy could clearly be seen on his face as he realised that it had beaten the closing keeper.

The post-match analysis was kind to Pau, and particularly picked out Cami who seemed to be revelling in the competition offered by the Second Division. There was also the chance that the coverage might act as a shop window, Ed had been advised that one or two scouts had been seen at their games lately and the speculation was that Stéphane Millereau might be attracting attention. Before the arrival of the N’Diaye brothers the thought of letting the striker go would never have entered Ed’s mind, but Séga was showing good signs, and with Bonnel and Testas to call on, the 29-year-old might not be nearly as vital as a year ago.

Mike..

On deadline day Créteil came in with a bid for Millereau, and it was a good one. Knowing that time was short Ed called the striker into his office and gave it to him straight – he expected that Séga would emerge as Tchami’s regular partner. Millereau could accept that he would become less of a regular starter, or he could join the side from the outskirts of Paris. For a moment Ed was worried, what if the striker took the situation badly? Thankfully there were no such problems and, with an amicable handshake, Millereau agreed to the transfer.

There were some real deadline day shocks as far as Ed was concerned though, Amiens picked up French international Philippe Christanval for a minimal fee, and even more amazing, Sedan made a free-transfer swoop for Jérémie Aliadière – quite what Wenger was thinking in letting the youngster go was beyond Ed. He’d seen clips of the striker in action for Arsenal and he would have predicted a stellar future, yet here he was signing for a Division 2 side – at least Pau had already got one of their clashes out of the way!