Aldridge's announcement of the player's departure caused an uproar in the venue. Journalists couldn't help but raise their hands, scrambling to have their questions heard.
The focus immediately focused on two key questions: how will Millwall spend their newfound transfer revenue and, more importantly, who will replace the five players now set to leave?
Aldrich remained calm and composed, showing no signs of distress despite losing nearly half his starting squad, as if the sky hadn't fallen after all.
"We've gained a significant transfer income from these players leaving. Part of this money will be used for the club's operational costs, some will go toward repaying the debts for the new stadium, a portion will be set aside for the summer transfer budget, and the remainder will go towards establishing a new youth football academy next to the Leo training ground."
Previously, the youth team had been based solely at the training ground for training purposes. Now, Millwall aims to create a more comprehensive youth football academy that provides a personalized environment for young players from all over the world, helping them develop both on the pitch and guiding them for scenarios where they may not become professional players.
With the expansion of the Leo training ground last year, the first team moved in, and the youth teams also expanded. This has made the youth team's facilities smaller than before, prompting Aldrich to plan for a new youth football academy based on actual development needs.
Reporters were more concerned about Millwall's lineup for the upcoming season.
"As last season's Champions League winners, Millwall is set to lose at least four key players this season. Despite the ample funds, should we be worried about the team's competitiveness next season?"
Aldridge said: "With the departure of these five players, Millwall's strength has indeed weakened. However, I would not say that we fell from heaven to hell. Although we lost Shevchenko and Shevchenko on the forward line, Trezeguet, but our Van Nistelrooy proved last season that he can take over Trezeguet's position, and Ronaldinho will also get more opportunities, and we also have Duff, Van der Meyde, Gronk Jarl and Gudjohnsen, as well as Klose, have adapted to English football after joining us last season. At least I am not worried about our forwards. In terms of defense, Materazzi is fully capable of replacing Helguera. Barring injury, Zambrotta would have been our starting left guard all season.What we need to worry about is the depth of our bench. But as I said, Millwall has an abundance of talent! We've been pouring resources into youth development for years, and we certainly hope those young guns will step up and join the first team when they're ready to fire on all cylinders!"
After hearing Aldrich's words, the reporters deep in thought.
On the surface, selling five key players seemed like a harsh reality.
But considering it further, it appeared that there were enough capable replacements for each position.
Van Nistelrooy would replace Trezeguet.
Ronaldinho would step in for Shevchenko.
Materazzi would take over for Helguera.
Zambrotta will replace Capdevila.
Ballack had always competed for a starting position with Pirlo, so the core midfield remained unchanged.
Just as Aldrich mentioned, while Millwall's strength may have slightly decreased for the new season, it was by no means a dramatic drop—the only real worry was the depth of the bench.
"So according to you, Millwall won't be making big moves for new signings this summer? I mean directly purchasing stronger players to bolster the first team."
It seemed the reporters were thinking along the same lines. Given Aldrich's past few years of practice, Millwall fans might end up in tears again this summer.
Hoping the team would buy star players to lift morale seemed unrealistic.
Aldrich was now the head coach of the Champions League winners, which had elevated his status considerably. Previously, he might have worried about bringing in big-name stars to fit in, but now, he wasn't concerned at all, especially with the rich talent pool he already had—there was no need to waste money on risky gambles.
"No, our recruitment work is ongoing. I want to emphasize that Millwall is a rational club. We don't bring in players for the sake of it; we make decisions based on the club's actual situation."
After this press conference, the news published by Fleet Street caused quite a stir.
Millwall's five star players were heading off in different directions!
The Lions fans reacted rather calmly. Their experiences over the past few years had taught them that Millwall didn't care who came or went, as long as one person remained unchanged—Aldrich.
It wasn't so much numbness as it was an absolute trust in Aldrich.
David Miller, a columnist for The Times, published an article titled "The Second Generation of Lions Is Taking Shape."
With Premier League and Champions League titles representing a pinnacle, Aldrich had built the first generation of Lions to success in Europe over the past four years.
After announcing the departure of five key players, combined with the premature exit of Stam, a pivotal figure in last year's league championship, the mainstays of the first generation of the Lions have now seen half of their starting lineup shed the deep blue jersey.
After achieving tremendous success, it was entirely normal for players to choose to leave. Now it was time to test Aldrich as he began to form the second generation of Lions from the summer of '98. Though we would still see notable figures like Larsson, Nedved, and Southgate, the entire team would undoubtedly change, requiring Aldrich to adapt his tactics to fit the new players. While there wouldn't be a complete overhaul, remaining stagnant would make replicating the miracle of reaching the Champions League summit in '98 nearly impossible. Thus, Lions fans could look forward to the growth of the second generation, while Millwall's competitors needed to seize their opportunities during this period; otherwise, once Hall's team grew formidable again, Hall would demonstrate his moniker as the "Trophy Harvester" through action!
Aldrich's work toward the new season officially began. His first task was to send off a few individuals—not players, but coaches.
Benitez was heading back to Spain, while Torlop, a former Belgian player who had not made it in Ajax, was now a coach. At 30, Torlop had been a part of Millwall's first-team coaching staff. His contributions to Millwall's success had not gone unnoticed. Now, however, he received an offer from Sint-Truiden in the Belgian second tier. With promises of sufficient time and long-term contracts from the owner, Torlop submitted his resignation to Aldrich.
In a bar in Sunderland, Aldrich and the coaching staff gathered to farewell Benitez and Torlop. That night, they reminisced about their struggles and relished the joys of success. Ultimately, the drunken group spent the night in the bar.
Millwall directly reached a termination agreement with Torlop and Benitez, allowing them to leave without their new clubs having to pay for breaking contracts—savings that amounted to hardly anything in the first place.
At the same time, Tolrop brought back the knowledge and experience he gained at Millwall to implement a new management approach and development plan at Sint-Truiden. Although the facilities there are quite basic, Tolrop is full of enthusiasm. He sought to loan players from Millwall, but Aldrich was hesitant to approve these requests. He didn't want to send younger players nearing their prime to such a low level as Belgian Second Division. Players like Poulsen and Cahill, who are just 18, would have limited growth opportunities by heading there for training.
Millwall's recruitment process had become simpler.
Previously, they had to plead for players to come; now, not only had the team's level risen, but Aldrich's reputation shone brightly.
Especially for young players, Millwall's attraction even surpassed that of world-class clubs!
The reason was simple: there was virtually no space at a top club.
But Millwall was different; Aldrich promoted young talents vigorously and had a proven track record of using them effectively.
Of the 14 players who participated in Millwall's Champions League victory, most had been relatively unknown before joining, yet they emerged as European champions in Aldrich's hands!
Recruiting had become a breeze; Aldrich didn't need to go to players directly; after just a phone call, most young players were eager to join Millwall. Even if they couldn't guarantee success in Millwall's first team, training there could at least mold them into decent players.
In addition to the Millwall club itself, Moyes has also become a living advertisement for the club!
Moyes made a stunning debut after taking over at Preston mid-season.When he took over, the team was deep in the relegation zone, but by the end of the season, he had led the team to the playoff finals, ultimately leading them to victory and promotion.
While this was only a promotion from League Two to League One, the attention he garnered was substantial. Four players loaned from Millwall had performed exceedingly well and quickly attracted the notice of other clubs. This was viewed as a testament to the success of Millwall's youth training. Adding to this were the substantial profits earned from their recent player sales; Millwall's reputation for youth training was cemented, and their credibility was exceptional.
In the summer of '98, Millwall's youth team continued to recruit. Within England, they signed 17-year-old Crouch and invited 14-year-old Darren Bent, 16-year-old Jermain Defoe, 17-year-old goalkeeper Chris Kirkland for trials, and preemptively secured deals with 16-year-old Kevin Nolan, 16-year-old Matthew Taylor, and 16-year-old Lescott before Birmingham could offer them professional contracts.
Following last year's recruitment of eight promising young players, Millwall's youth team brought in seven more local talents this season.
Of course, this was Aldrich's list in his mind; in reality, they signed closer to ten English players, but most others wouldn't shine in the future, potentially never even stepping onto the pitch in the top leagues.
Millwall's reserve team had also sold off quite a few players that summer. These players weren't particularly famous but had caught the eyes of clubs in League One, generating nearly £3 million in income for Millwall.
This reflects a positive feedback loop: an average player playing alongside a majority of good players can achieve more as long as they are ambitious. Their results will at least exceed what they would have achieved playing with other mediocre players.
After completing recruitment within England, Aldrich then turned his attention to other European countries.
This year, rather than scouting personally, he had club staff handle outreach. If necessary, he would directly communicate with players over the phone.
He is currently busy preparing for the new season and the team's upcoming trip to Asia.