Chapter 67 Faith and Life
After defeating Juventus and successfully winning the Coppa Italia, Fiorentina has already won the fifth championship this season. Now, for them, this season, there is only the last game left, and that is the Stadio Olimpico in Rome The Champions League match against Manchester United.
Although the media has repeatedly hyped it before, when this battle is about to come, Beckham, who once wore Manchester United's No. 7 jersey and has won countless honors, still becomes the focus of media attention.
Representing Fiorentina and meeting his old club Manchester United in the Champions League final, what kind of situation will it be like at that time? The curiosity of countless people has risen at the moment before the decisive battle.
Beckham does not shy away from this topic. As a professional player, Beckham knows very well that things like this will always happen in a head-to-head confrontation with his old club on the football field: "When I hear Manchester United When I finally eliminated Arsenal and met Fiorentina in the final, I almost cried. I love Manchester United deeply. I think the night of the game will be an emotional night. I try to avoid thinking about Manchester United as much as possible, I don't want to forget, but in my heart Manchester United will always be my belief, it is the supreme existence."
Beckham's career began with Manchester United in the Premier League. The former England captain also played for 10 seasons at Old Trafford and has always had a special affection for Manchester United.
Today, Beckham, already wearing a purple jersey, will follow Fiorentina to challenge his former club. When looking forward to how he will face his former teammates, Beckham said that he only wants to be part of the game.
"To face Manchester United as a Fiorentina player is so special and extraordinary for me, and to be back in the Champions League final on behalf of a team that has had as great a history as Manchester United's is truly extraordinary. Chance. And in front of the Manchester United fans, the manager, against my friends, it will be unbelievable, now I want to say, I don't want this game to start, but I think they will be happy to see me Yes, I miss the players and fans of Manchester United very much. Looking back now, the time that has passed does not seem far away. Many people have left Old Trafford, just like me, Bart, Phil. Weir, there are a lot of good team-mates who have left, but there are still a lot of familiar faces, such as Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville, and of course Sir Alex Ferguson!"
Although it was a coincidence that Fiorentina and Manchester United met again in the Champions League final, for Beckham, the meaning of this match was completely different.
Returning to the mainstream arena, giving up the comfortable holidays of the major leagues in the United States, giving up the high salary in the United States, and continuing to compete in the high-intensity leagues in Europe. I can represent the "Three Lions" in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Meeting his old club is a very strange reward for Beckham. Beck? Beckham stated before that he hoped to play against Manchester United in the final, and he got his wish. The upcoming Champions League final will be Beckham's first challenge to the Red Devils as an opponent since he moved to Real Madrid in 2003.
"I don't expect to be in this game, I just want to play part of the game, just like I did for Manchester United, for Real Madrid, for the LA Galaxy, I am willing to give everything for Fiorentina, as a professional player, this is My life, but I will not abandon my beliefs. I miss the team, players and fans. The Manchester United group has a very special position in my heart and will never change. I will cheer for Manchester United at the moment before the game, but the game After starting, I will not forget that I am a Fiorentina player."
As Beckham said, Fiorentina is his life, but Manchester United is his belief. In Fiorentina, Beckham won the Serie A title for the first time, which will make him a rare player to win the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A.
Beckham said: "Winning the championship is my wish. It feels great to win a championship with Fiorentina. I know that some people have said something completely unnecessary before. Lost competitiveness, I don't think Serie A has lost its charm, of course not, Fiorentina has the strongest strength, so we won the Italian league championship, now what we have to do is, let Fiorentina's championship blood continue, in the final of the Olympic Games, I Hopefully, we can still have the last laugh."
Faith and life!
Obviously belief is above all else, but Fiorentina fans will not be jealous, because only such a Beckham is perfect.
Fiorentina's coaches and players did not criticize Beckham either, and they can all understand Manchester United's position in Beckham's mind.
Prandelli said in an interview before the game: "I can understand David's mood. He must be hesitant and looking forward to it. I have also experienced it before. That is when I returned to Blue Italy on behalf of Juventus. The stadium, when facing Atlanta, of course it cannot be compared with David's experience. Regarding the game, whether David will be able to, it is not yet certain, I will arrange the lineup according to the competitive state of all players, but obviously, David David is in the lead right now."
Degan also expressed his support for Beckham in an interview: "I don't want to jump into the dispute between him and Sir Alex Ferguson. It is meaningless. What happened at the beginning is unnecessary to mention now. I also I don't think this game has anything to do with revenge. David just needs to work hard on the court. Like David, I am also looking forward to the game. I have met the same players on the same battlefield for two consecutive years. Opponent, this experience is amazing, David will definitely hope to play well, and so will I!"
At the same time, Beckham's former teammates also expressed their expectations for this game.
Beckham's good buddy, now Manchester United captain Gary Neville said in an interview: "We should be happy to have such a legendary star, the spokesperson of the country's image, which has gone beyond The category of football. But in football, he should be remembered in history. His resume covers Manchester United, LA Galaxy, Real Madrid and Fiorentina. They are the best clubs in football circles. One part, but the whole club, he's a great player and I'm thrilled to be back on the same pitch as David Beckham."
Giggs also said: "When we refer to some great players, it is difficult to find one who is outstanding on or off the field. There are many good players and first-class players in the UK, but Beckham's performance on the field is exactly that. A role model for young players. We used to fight side by side for Manchester United. As long as he appeared on the field, he always made the team play easier. Many teammates benefited from this and had to admit his hard work in everything. Make him a big part of the team, let him run the midfield, Beckham is like no one else, I had a great time playing with him. In terms of football alone, he is probably the most influential man in England , his influence was enormous."
Even Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson expressed his expectations for this game in an interview: "Beckham is a great player. He always trains on the training ground. He uses his talent to let himself have Brilliant football career, he has always inspired his teammates, no matter off the field or on the field, his words and deeds are a role model for young players, he is a natural leader, everyone will always follow him, I used to be his head coach For many years, I have to say that Beckham is a very talented person. No matter where he works, he has many people following him. He is an excellent player and a person with good character. He may be the world leader The most famous player in the world, if you talk about him, the whole world knows who that is, I don't know a footballer who is more popular than him."
The friendly signal before the start of the game is always just a kind of courtesy. After the start of the game, even good friends, mentors and apprentices, will only be popular on the field. The championship is something that no one can ever give up.
As Beckham said in an interview before, Manchester United is his belief, Florence is his life, belief is paramount, but life is more important.
The day of the decisive battle is getting closer and closer. The Manchester United team has already taken a special plane and arrived in Rome. They have entered the Champions League final for the second consecutive season and encountered the same opponent for the second consecutive time. This time, Manchester United cannot afford to lose.
In the world of football, everyone knows what Ferguson is thinking. At his age, with such brilliant achievements, he should have retired a long time ago. In the past few seasons, there will be the same news every year: Ferguson is preparing to retire. Face is looking for Ferguson's successor.
But every season, what people see on the bench full of faces is always the same face, flushed face, loud voice with highland accent, and victory after victory.
It's not that Ferguson doesn't want to retire, he just wants to win the Champions League again before retiring, and now the opportunity has come again.
"The same mistake will not happen twice with Manchester United. This time we have only one goal, and that is to win the cup!"
Manchester United has started the final preparations before the big battle in Rome, while Fiorentina will continue to stay in their batting ground, enjoying the tranquility before the big game.
"The old man seems to be aggressive!" Degan smiled and handed the newspaper to Beckham.
Beckham didn't pick up the news, he already knew about the above news. Even though he had been away for five years, Beckham still habitually wanted to know everything about Manchester United.
"I know, I've been used to it for a long time. When I was at Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson was like this. Although he is old, anyone who is familiar with him can feel that he is always full of desire for victory. Eagerness, passion for the game!"
Digan smiled: "How does it feel to meet your old club in the final? Don't tell me what you only say to reporters, I know it's not that simple!"
Beckham pondered for a while, and kicked the ball under his feet: "My mood is very contradictory, Rhodes! I never hide it. I am a Manchester United fan. I have always been. Manchester United has always been the most important thing in my heart. The team, now I want to snatch the championship from them, I know what to do, if it's just an ordinary game, it's fine, but this is the final, you know the meaning of the final!"
Winner and loser!
This is the meaning of finals, there will always be only one winner, and the winner will always be remembered by people, and the loser will have nothing left but a silver medal that records the shame of failure, and of course they don't want to be remembered Remember, a runner-up is, to put it nicely, a loser.
"Of course I know, so I always want to win, and I'm also afraid of losing, like~~~~~~~"
Degan didn't finish, but Beckham knew he wanted to talk about the 2006 World Cup final in Germany, where Belgium, which made it to their first World Cup final, lost to Italy.
Of course, if Digan hadn't left early due to injury, perhaps the result would have been completely different.
That was the only time Degan lost a final!
Beckham smiled: "Me too, I hate failure too, Rhodes, I think I should thank you!"
Digan looked at Beckham in surprise.
"Thank you for allowing me to have such a crazy experience at this age, the Serie A champion, the Italian Cup champion, and the Champions League champion soon!"
To be honest, in world football, people who can have such a glorious resume like Beckham are really rare. At the club level, Beckham has already got everything, and the three major European leagues The owner of the championship, Beckham is a well-deserved first person.
Degan did not refuse Beckham's thanks, but only asked: "David! When belief and life conflict, which one will you choose!"
Beckham didn't expect Degan to ask him this question. After thinking about it, he said, "I think I will choose life. When my life defeats my ideal, I will pray to my ideal."
Digan was taken aback for a moment, Beckham's answer was really strange to the extreme.
Beckham continued: "Rod! To you, is belief more important or life more important!?"
Degan didn't hesitate: "I'm sorry, David! I don't have any beliefs. If I have to find one, my belief is the champion. There is nothing else except the champion!"