The second match after the New Year was the FA Cup third round, where Millwall traveled to face lower-league team Welling. Thanks to goals from Van Nistelrooy and Gronkjaer, Millwall easily secured a victory and advanced to the next round.
The next day upon returning to London, Phillips and Andrew went together to Aldrich's office.
Seeing the two arrive together, Aldrich immediately understood the reason for their visit.
From the moment he joined the team, Phillips had been a substitute. Two and a half years had passed, and he was still just a benchwarmer, but he was only six months away from turning 24.
In other teams, that might not be a big deal, but his skills had improved dramatically, and considering his age, he was older than many forwards in the squad. Yet, his ranking as a striker remained near the bottom.
It wasn't that Aldrich didn't give him opportunities; rather, his performance on the pitch had been unsatisfactory. In the first season, Millwall played a 4-4-2 formation, and he performed well as one of the two forwards. However, in the last season, Millwall switched between 4-4-2 and 4-2-3-1, and he remained just one of the forwards.
Putting him in a lone striker position would require the entire tactical system to revolve around him. His teammates would have to create space through their movements while he would seize any chance to shoot as soon as he got the ball.
This season, playing with a 4-3-3 setup, Aldrich had him try out as a winger, but the results were disappointing. Unlike Larsson and Shevchenko, who would make incisive runs after linking up, Phillips instinctively gravitated towards the center of the pitch, clogging up the space for the central striker.
Was Phillips talented as a forward? Yes. Could he score? Yes!
But he felt increasingly out of place at Millwall.
This was a typical example of a clash between team tactics and player characteristics, independent of Phillips's personal ability.
Since he had fewer chances to get on the field, he worked hard in the reserve squad, scoring 23 goals in 12 games during the first half of the season. This performance caught the media's attention: "Phillips is really wasting his talent at Millwall!"
Phillips felt his situation was tough at Millwall, as the gap between him and his teammates widened. They seemed to be on completely different wavelengths on the pitch.
When his teammates worked hard to create opportunities, hoping he could link up or provide support, he instead chose to finish the attacks himself. His teammates, who were in better positions to score, felt helpless and, given his seniority in the team, could only swallow their frustration.
Following his conversation with Andrew, Phillips chose to be straightforward with Aldrich.
The atmosphere in the office was relatively cordial; Phillips had been brought back by Aldrich from a lower-tier league team, and he held a great deal of respect for the young manager. If Aldrich still had the magic to help him shine at Millwall, he definitely wouldn't want to leave.
However, Aldrich wasn't a magician. Phillips came to the team at an age where his habits on the field are pretty set, and changing those habits would be tough. Trying to do so carried the risk of ruining his career. Aldrich had long regarded Phillips as a wildcard or utilized him during the development of younger players, relying on him to lead the charge while keeping the team defensively solid. The results had been acceptable.
Faced with Phillips's growing discontent, the two sides communicated calmly without falling out.
Aldrich patiently analyzed Phillips's playing style, discussing his positions on the pitch, the areas he posed the most threat from, and what tactical context he needed to excel.
Phillips was more of a pure striker, similar to Owen, but such a straight shooter wasn't the mainstream template for future forwards in the football world. Therefore, in the traditional English 4-4-2, he was better suited as one of a pair of forwards—one tall and strong, the other agile—where he could play the killer role while relying on a teammate to draw attention.
After Aldrich's thorough analysis, he earnestly said to him, "Kevin, I understand if you want to leave. With your talent, you could definitely be a main striker at another club. Staying at Millwall could hinder your future. However, I hope you'll heed my advice regarding your transfer. I can promise you, I won't sell you to the highest bidder, but rather send you to the club that suits your career development best. I don't want you to end up in a team that doesn't allow you to shine and cause you to falter."
Phillips was profoundly moved and nodded solemnly in agreement.
Regardless of the circumstances, Aldrich's actions were for his own good. As for the personal treatment after the transfer, that was Andrew's job to negotiate, and the transfer fee had nothing to do with him.
It seems like Aldrich is just meddling in things that aren't his business.
If a player wants to transfer, so be it—what does it matter to him where they go?
Besides, aiming for the highest transfer fee is clearly in the club's best interests.
Yet, Aldrich disagrees. He believes that every player's transfer affects him and Millwall significantly, and it's certainly not just about the transfer fee involved.
Last summer's transfers of four players showed that apart from Pires, who found himself in a difficult situation at Arsenal, the other three had performed well, directly impacting Millwall's reputation; they were all players who had left from Millwall.
Toulalan might already have made a name for himself in Ligue 1, but Solskjaer and Vieira's successes reflected Millwall's nurturing influence.
Aldrich needed to maintain an image of Millwall nurturing elite players, and he needed a good reputation. Just like Ajax, people, when they hear that name, think not just of a top Dutch club, but also of a cradle for talents.
Thus, he couldn't focus solely on the transfer fees for each transfer; the continuation of the careers of the players leaving was equally his concern.
If Phillips's performance declined after leaving, he would surely earn the "flop" tag; if he succeeded, Millwall would benefit in terms of reputation.
Phillips wouldn't leave during the winter transfer window due to the squad's depth needs. Moreover, he wanted to leave with a champion title, even if he wasn't a starter. This season, Millwall was competing on four fronts, and the match density was greater than last season. In the latter half of the season, rotations would become more frequent, and he would have more opportunities to deal with injuries and suspensions.
In contrast to Phillips, Tony found himself in a state of confusion, and Aldrich hoped he could remain patient.
During training in preparation for the weekend league, Tony shared his concerns with Aldrich.
He detailed his struggles and how, while he scored plenty in the youth and reserve teams, he hadn't replicated that brilliance in the senior team.
The crux of the issue was his fatal flaw: speed.
Millwall's attacks were fast-paced, with quick passes and movement. When he played as a striker, if he pulled wide to support, he often found himself a beat slow in making his run into the box.
He couldn't match his teammates' tempo. Unlike Larsson and Shevchenko, who could burst into the box like lightning, crucial passes arrived in an instant—Tony missed too many promising chances simply because he couldn't keep up.
He worked hard, and both coaches and teammates noticed, but speed wasn't something that could be vastly improved just by diligent training.
Fortunately, Tony is still under twenty, and Aldrich patiently tells him, "When your talent is holding you back, you need to work harder than others and think more while playing."
Is he calling him stupid?
Absolutely not. Aldrich elaborated, advising him to observe the game more calmly and use smarter positioning to compensate for his speed weaknesses.
Players who play with their heads have a brighter future. Some players may have physical advantages but run around the pitch like headless chickens—covering a lot of ground, but most of it ends up being useless.
Moreover, Tony's physical attributes made him a powerful striker in the box. When Millwall faced tough matches, he would be crucial. However, that also posed a limitation; expecting him to drop back to disrupt opponent attacks or to push forward from the midfield to link up with teammates would be unrealistic. His role was simply to stay at the front, either to finish off the play or serve as a pivotal point.
Tony accepted Aldrich's advice: first, to play smart, and second, to hone his technical skills.
He has the ability to receive the ball in the box, but whether it's shooting or creating chances, he still needs to improve his ball-handling skills.
On the weekend, Millwall hosted an old rival, Liverpool, at The Den, a team that was seen as a push-over by the fans.
In the year and a half, Aldrich had faced Liverpool four times, with three encounters in league matches and one in the FA Cup final, creating many delightful memories for Millwall fans; Liverpool's history definitely included Millwall's name.
The painful memory of an 0:8 humiliation was still fresh. Just at the beginning of the new season, Millwall had inflicted a 4:2 defeat on them at Anfield, shattering their hopes for revenge.
The outside world remains quite perplexed, even speculating privately that Aldrich has a grudge against Liverpool. Millwall always seems particularly fired up when playing against Liverpool, and they manage to leave Liverpool completely bewildered.
In reality, it was largely tactical. Aldrich was unperturbed when facing teams that aimed to attack head-on. Millwall compacted their formation when defending; transitioning to offense unleashed tremendous pressure forward. A single wave of attack could be devastatingly powerful. Liverpool attacks? No problem. When they pushed forward, the gaps at the back were Millwall's pathways to victory.
As the players entered the pitch, a small disturbance occurred.
The players stood ready to step onto the field through the tunnel when a dozen or so "toys" fell from above—male replicas of female intimate toys.
The referee's expression darkened, and the stadium staff immediately rushed over to pick it up, while also warning the fans sitting nearby. Of course, they couldn't identify who had thrown it down.
At the front, wearing the captain's armband, Southgate reluctantly smiled, while his teammates curiously peeked around.
Simultaneously, a resounding chant broke out from the stands.
"Collimore! Can you still score today?"
The expressions of Liverpool players collectively turned grim.
Redknapp, who had clashed verbally with Aldrich at Anfield two years prior, could barely lift his head, while Liverpool had been beaten to a pulp by Millwall, rendering his father, old Red, inconspicuous in East London.
As for the main character in this whirlwind, Cole, once hailed as a genius forward, had grown increasingly dispirited at Anfield. Off the pitch, however, he was still a man of distinction.
He has had relations with nuns twice in the convent and is addicted to group activities. Although unmarried, he participates in partner-swapping games. Meanwhile, he also goes live on television with adult film stars.
The oddest part? He had openly sold these details to newspapers.
People speculated whether he was insane, or bluntly put, he seemed to be a degenerate.
The Liverpool squad, fed up with their teammate's irresponsible behavior, is buzzing with rumors that Collymore is on his way out of Anfield soon.
As a person involved, Collymore has a bad temper. He even takes it out on his girlfriend, so when provoked, he storms out and starts shouting at the stands, only to be met with the outrageous laughter of the fans.