Chapter 57: Ferguson Is Furious!
The 2004/05 Championship season's Christmas schedule was absolutely brutal.
As usual, teams played on Boxing Day (December 26), then again on the 28th, and then on January 1st and 3rd.
That's four matches in just nine days.
And it wasn't just the Championship—Premier League clubs faced the same nightmare.
This was the traditional English festive grind, the infamous fixture congestion.
Once the January 3rd fixture (Round 28) was completed, the FA Cup third round kicked off on the 8th.
Bayswater Chinese had drawn Tottenham Hotspur, away.
Tough luck.
By contrast, QPR would host Nottingham Forest.
Then, on the 11th, Bayswater Chinese would travel north to Old Trafford for the League Cup semifinal first leg.
If their FA Cup tie didn't end in a draw (thus forcing a replay), and after playing Round 29 on the 14th, they'd finally get a week's rest.
After that? More back-to-back matches.
The pressure was unimaginable.
Even stacked squads like United, Arsenal, and Chelsea couldn't win every match under this kind of load. Choices had to be made.
For Yang Cheng, the priority was clear: go all-in on the League Cup semifinal.
He wanted to go for it. He had to see how far they could push.
The players felt the same.
In the league, their goal was to stay in the playoff zone—top six.
The League Cup would be done by the end of February.
If they somehow got past Manchester United, as long as they maintained a top-six spot, Yang Cheng would still have time to make a final push for promotion.
He believed in himself.
He believed in his players.
That's why, starting from Round 25, he began rotating heavily.
…
Round 25, Bayswater Chinese hosted Gillingham.
The squad had just come off Christmas. Energy levels were low. Defensively, the rotation was a risk.
Danny Collins, Roger Johnson, Koscielny, and Piszczek all started together for the first time.
Their coordination wasn't great.
In the 34th minute, Gillingham's right winger Nicky Southall delivered a cross. Roger Johnson misjudged it, and Andrew Crofts smashed in the opener.
Bayswater Chinese immediately launched a wave of attacks but couldn't break through.
Until the 79th minute.
Modrić came on and changed the game.
Ribéry assisted Modrić for the equalizer.
Then, in the 88th minute, Ribéry earned a free kick. Roger Johnson powered home a header to complete the comeback.
2–1, a hard-fought reversal.
In the locker room afterward, Yang Cheng didn't scold anyone. Instead, he praised set-piece coach Gianni Vio.
Since joining, the Italian coach had engineered multiple goals from dead-ball situations.
"We should reward him with extra chicken tonight!" Yang Cheng joked.
…
No time to rest. On the 28th, the team traveled to face Wolves.
Despite being 17th in the table, Wolves were a recently relegated Premier League side and couldn't be underestimated.
Funny enough, all three relegated teams—Leicester (14th), Leeds (16th), Wolves (17th)—were struggling in the Championship.
But they were still dangerous.
Yang Cheng rotated again and prepared an aggressive opening.
It paid off—Lambert scored in the 4th minute.
The rest was a battle of defense vs. attack.
Wolves pressed hard. In the 73rd minute, Kenny Miller equalized.
1–1. A fair draw.
…
2005 arrived.
January 1st, New Year's Day showdown:
Bayswater Chinese vs. Queens Park Rangers, away.
QPR treated it as the most important match of their season.
Their mission: reclaim home-field fans.
To focus on this derby, they had even lost their previous two matches.
Yang Cheng?
Still rotated.
He had been drilling defensive schemes lately.
In front of 18,360 fans, the match ended 0–0.
A snoozefest.
QPR manager Ian Holloway blasted Bayswater's tactics: "Way too conservative."
Yang Cheng, meanwhile, was upset with the referee.
In the 86th minute, Aaron Lennon and Ashley Young broke forward. QPR's Georges Santos committed a tactical foul and was rightly sent off.
But the real controversy: Was the foul in the box?
Bayswater players swore it was.
The ref gave a free kick just outside.
Vio's set-piece routine failed.
0–0.
…
After two away games, on January 3rd, Bayswater Chinese hosted Watford.
More rotation.
Watford scored in the 11th minute.
But just four minutes later, Gökhan Inler equalized with a powerful late run into the box.
In the second half, Kitson scored in the 69th minute to complete the comeback.
2–1.
Another reversal.
In four brutal festive fixtures, Bayswater Chinese had 2 wins and 2 draws.
In the Championship, that was already impressive.
In fact, their standing rose, not fell.
With 16 wins, 6 draws, and 6 losses, they climbed to second place, with 54 points—overtaking Wigan (53), and just one point behind Ipswich (55).
…
Then came the FA Cup third round.
Away to Tottenham Hotspur.
With Old Trafford looming on the 11th, Yang Cheng rotated once again.
Lineup:
Goalkeeper: Danny Coyne
Defense: Capaldi, Roger Johnson, Skrtel, Piszczek
Midfield: Huddlestone (deep), Matuidi, Inler
Attack: Ashley Young, Kitson, Lennon
Spurs, meanwhile, went full strength.
Defoe, Robbie Keane, Carrick, Ledley King—all started.
To English clubs, the FA Cup means everything.
Despite the rotation, Bayswater Chinese showed real fight.
Especially in midfield.
Inler and Matuidi harassed Carrick all game, disrupting Spurs' rhythm.
As a result, Tottenham had to funnel their attacks through the left wing.
Swiss winger Reto Ziegler tormented Piszczek all night.
In the 40th minute, Ziegler's drive forced a corner.
From that set piece, Ziegler assisted Ledley King for the opener.
In the second half, just 2 minutes in, Bayswater Chinese countered.
Huddlestone surged forward, collected Lennon's return pass, and lashed in a long-range equalizer.
The England U21 midfielder celebrated wildly in front of 36,000 Spurs fans.
The match turned scrappy.
In the 83rd minute, Spurs attacked again.
Swedish full-back Edman crossed from the left, and Robbie Keane headed home the winner.
2–1.
Bayswater Chinese's FA Cup journey ended in the third round.
…
Yang Cheng wasn't upset.
In the locker room, he consoled his players—especially Piszczek.
Both goals had come down his flank.
Clearly, Martin Jol had spotted his defensive frailties.
"Don't dwell on it. Think about how to improve."
Then he pulled Piszczek aside and whispered, "I have a task for you."
The Pole looked surprised.
"I've spoken to our new technical coach, Danny McGrain. He's experienced and a former full-back. Learn from him. Improve your defending."
Piszczek nodded fervently.
He was coachable.
"If—and I mean if—we hold our line against Manchester United in the first leg, I'll start you in the second leg at home."
Piszczek stared at him, stunned.
A League Cup semifinal against Manchester United?
He had just played 90 minutes against Spurs and was already thrilled, even if frustrated by his performance.
But now the coach was offering him Old Trafford?
"Prepare well. Trust me. Trust your teammates."
Yang Cheng knew: the team had been preparing for this for weeks.
Piszczek's FA Cup start had been planned.
It gave Kevin Foley time to rest—and start in the semifinal.
Because defense would be everything at Old Trafford.
…
While Yang Cheng comforted his player, over in Manchester's Old Trafford locker room…
Sir Alex Ferguson was livid.
Every person in the room was dead silent.
Even the air was heavy with tension—and curse words.
Everyone knew: The Boss was furious.
FA Cup third round.
0–0 at home against lowly Exeter City.
Yes, it was a reserve squad—Piqué, Djemba-Djemba, Bellion, Richardson all started—but still.
That wasn't a result Manchester United should ever produce.
"What are you going to tell the 67,000 fans out there!?"
Ferguson's roars could be heard even from the hallway outside.
In the 60th minute, he threw on Ronaldo, Scholes, and Alan Smith—but it was too late.
Everyone could feel his rage.
Now, a replay on January 19th.
For an already overbooked United, that was a nightmare.
Even worse, Ferguson had planned to rotate for the League Cup semifinal against Bayswater Chinese.
Why?
Because on the weekend, United had to visit Anfield for the Northwest Derby against Liverpool.
The most important fixture of Ferguson's season.
Over Christmas, United had gone 3 wins, 1 draw—a great run.
But that Portuguese lunatic Mourinho?
Chelsea had gone 4 for 4.
Now Chelsea were 11 points ahead.
Even Arsenal, who also won all four, were 4 points ahead.
With Everton and Liverpool nipping at their heels, Ferguson knew—he had to win at Anfield.
Premier League title? Probably out of reach.
But the League Cup?
A trophy was a trophy.
And facing a Championship side?
Why not take advantage?
But now, with this group of "young monkeys" in front of him…
Could he really trust them?
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 20 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Canserbero10