The evergreen city of Valencia, where sunshine shines all year round, who wouldn't fall in love with this place?
Even on a chilly autumn night, inside the stadium packed with tens of thousands, Aldrich could still feel the refreshing breeze, which lifted his spirits, making him feel energized. Standing on the sideline, directing the match with ease, there was no tension in the air, but he could enjoy the fun that this job brought him.
When seasoned stars played on the field, Aldrich simply watched from the sidelines. He didn't shout orders on how to play. This kind of active coaching usually only happened when guiding younger, less experienced players.
His calm and composed demeanor puzzled the Spanish fans in Mestalla. To them, Aldrich seemed mysterious, with a seemingly unfathomable tactical depth.
England had gone through a rough patch before, with three losses and only one win in the European Championship group stage, and two losses and one draw in the World Cup European qualifiers. The most recent match had ended in a home loss. But today, under Aldrich's leadership, England were 2-0 up against Spain away from home, and they were in control of the match!
Whether it was European fans or skeptical media, after 60 minutes of this friendly match, Aldrich had made them fall silent without ever needing to speak up.
At the 60th minute, Aldrich stood on the sideline, the assistant referee holding up the substitution board—England were making a triple substitution.
Alan Smith, Joe Cole, and Steven Gerrard were coming on, replacing Heskey, McManaman, and Scholes.
As the players walked off the pitch, Aldrich extended his right hand, and each of the substituted players walked past, giving him a quick high-five.
After the substitutions, England seemed to turn into a workhorse team.
Scholes and McManaman were the kind of players who could control the ball, dictate play. The inclusion of Smith and Gerrard was Aldrich's attempt to experiment—seeing how Smith would fare in a more advanced role and how much freedom Gerrard could be given in the attacking third. As for Joe Cole, it was more about development. He was taking up Scholes' role in midfield, and at least one player in the attacking line needed to be capable of holding onto the ball and taking on defenders.
The 60th minute felt like a turning point. Spain had regained their footing and started dominating, pressuring England's defense more frequently. On the other hand, England's attack wasn't as smooth as it had been earlier.
The tactics were still in play, but unfortunately, Joe Cole and Gerrard didn't have the ball control skills of Scholes and McManaman, so the attack often stalled just before the penalty box.
Spain returned to their pressuring, possession-based attacking football. Their number of shots on goal increased, and their smooth, intricate passing regained its vibrancy, but they still couldn't get any clear-cut scoring chances. Shots from just outside the box were easily dealt with by Seaman, whose steady saves kept England's goal safe.
No matter what, at this point, Seaman was still England's most reliable goalkeeper. At 37 years old, the veteran keeper wasn't really tested in a major way today. Much like Butt from Millwall, you couldn't see the magical save rate, but the ones he needed to stop—he stopped them all.
Smith and Gerrard contributed more in defense, but their overly aggressive style was something Aldrich didn't see as a strength.
On the field, fighting was expected, but fighting with technique was what mattered.
However, when facing defensive pressure, it was better for attacking players to actively help defend than to avoid it altogether.
Perhaps the England fans in the stadium were beginning to feel tense because Spain had started to put pressure on them, but Aldrich, in contrast, felt a sense of satisfaction.
A single wave of pressure in a direct attack was nothing to worry about. What really tested a team's defense was continuous, relentless attacking pressure coming in waves.
Today, Spain's strike partnership of Raúl and Tristán seemed lacking in chemistry. Despite several successive attacks that tore at England's defense, Spain had two good chances. However, Tristán failed to return a pass for a one-two with Raúl, opting to shoot himself. On another occasion, Tristán flicked the ball to Raúl with a header, but Raúl failed to react quickly enough and missed a golden opportunity in front of goal.
Aldrich stood at the sidelines, closely watching the defensive line of the team. One could say that England's central and defensive system was a combination of Millwall and Manchester United.
Neville, Beckham, Butt.
Southgate, Ashley Cole, Lampard.
And Ferdinand, a former Millwall player.
In terms of positioning, Manchester United players took charge of the right and center, while Millwall players handled the left.
This ensured better coordination and communication in local defensive situations, where the players could work together more seamlessly.
During moments when Spain attempted to stretch the defense with wide ball switches, Southgate directed the defense's movement. He acted as the lubricant that blended Manchester United's and Millwall's defensive systems, a leader at the back.
For now, the system seemed effective. The defensive vulnerabilities, like Butt's defensive limitations, Lampard and Ashley Cole's weaker side, and Beckham's occasional lapses in his new position, were exposed in Spain's successful penetrations.
Among these issues, aside from Butt's personal limitations, everything else had room for improvement. As long as those areas were enhanced, the overall defensive quality would significantly improve.
Time passed, and Spain still couldn't score. As the home team, their formation kept pushing further forward.
Enrique's cross from the wing was blocked by Beckham's body, and Neville surged forward to win the falling ball. Enrique clattered into Neville from behind, committing a foul.
Before Neville could get up, Beckham had already placed the ball on the ground and launched a long pass forward.
It was an odd scene at the front.
England's striker Smith was not at the front; instead, it was Joe Cole, holding the ball between the two center-backs with his back to them.
He passed it back to Smith, who was positioned further behind, then moved sideways to create space, took the ball, and swiftly turned before executing a long through pass.
As Beckham launched the pass, Gerrard, who had been running forward, timed his run to perfection and successfully beat the offside trap. Another one-on-one chance!
Gerrard's ball control was solid. While his pace might not be exceptional, Joe Cole's through ball found him behind the defenders. Gerrard had already launched into his sprint, reaching full speed during the offside trap, while the defenders lagged behind, unable to catch up.
Aldrich was curious to see if Gerrard could keep his composure in a one-on-one situation, whether he could finish with the required technique. However, Spain didn't let Aldrich's hopes come true. Casillas rushed out. As Gerrard took the ball forward into the penalty area, it looked like he might have taken too heavy a touch, but Casillas brought him down.
The referee immediately pointed to the penalty spot. The Mestalla erupted with boos. The Spanish fans were convinced that Gerrard had lost control of the ball and had exaggerated the fall—definitely a dive!
Aldrich stood with his hands on his hips, his enthusiasm clearly fading. The penalty was clear-cut, no question about it. Even though Gerrard had taken a heavy touch, Casillas hadn't touched the ball. If Gerrard hadn't been brought down, he would have had an open goal to shoot at.
While scoring another goal in a friendly didn't carry much significance, Aldrich couldn't help but think that if Gerrard had been calmer and more composed, the ball would have already been in the net by now.
In the national team's training sessions that Aldrich had planned, penalty kicks were a mandatory practice.
This was to compensate for tactical weaknesses. In international competitions, it was not uncommon to end up in a penalty shootout against top defensive teams, so practicing penalties seemed much more valuable than focusing on other standard club drills.
Beckham, the vice-captain, stood by the penalty spot. With just 4 minutes remaining in regular time, this penalty was nothing more than adding salt to Spain's wound.
Beckham made no mistake and scored the penalty.
"3-0! Who would have thought this would be the final score? The pessimistic predictions before the match were clearly misplaced. England leads Spain 3-0 on their own turf!"
Camacho's face was downcast as he occasionally glanced at Aldrich. This was their first encounter, and it seemed unlikely they'd have many more in the future. Camacho had paid the price for his overconfidence and perhaps wishful thinking in experimenting with tactics. While a friendly match might not carry much weight, it would surely stir up a media storm, and his honeymoon period with the Spanish media seemed to be coming to an end.
When the final whistle blew, Aldrich made his way to Camacho, shook his hand, then turned and walked toward the players' tunnel, only to be stopped by a swarm of reporters.
"Mr. Hall, this is your first official match as England's head coach. England, not favored by many, has won 3-0 away to Spain. Are you satisfied with the team's performance? What impact will this result have on England's upcoming World Cup qualifiers?"
Aldrich looked around distractedly, replying absentmindedly, "As I mentioned before we left, this is just a friendly match. The result isn't all that important. I regret that the Spanish national team didn't seem to take this match against England seriously. We fielded our strongest team, but they didn't. My players and I placed great importance on the quality of this friendly match, and as a result, my players gave their all, and that's why we won. But as for the World Cup qualifiers, that's a different story. Today's victory will help us regain some confidence, but it's too soon to draw any conclusions."
"We noticed that England employed a completely new tactical approach today. Is this the change you've brought to the national team?"
"Of course, every coach has their own style. If I hadn't brought something new to England, especially in terms of tactics, I wouldn't be the national team coach. I'm glad the players have accepted my tactical ideas and executed them on the pitch. We've established a good working relationship, and the start has been promising, but this is only the beginning. There's still a long road ahead."
Aldrich answered a few more questions briefly before ending the interview and leaving.
The entire England squad was excited after the match, feeling that it was a resounding victory. Players exchanged high-fives and hugs, celebrating together. Even Beckham, playing a more defensive role, took off his shirt to swap with his opponent and showed off his muscles.
This friendly against Spain helped England regain some confidence after their disappointing performances in the European Championship and World Cup qualifiers. Every player's eyes sparkled with hope for the future. The figure they all looked to after the match, without saying a word, was Aldrich, the source of their newfound confidence.
Although England's new tactical approach was at times subdued during the match, the power of their counterattacks left them in awe.
Next up, the World Cup qualifiers!