The day after the Notts County team flew back to England, they immediately began preparing for training. David had hoped for a few days of rest before the warm-up match against Manchester City, but something he had anticipated—though not entirely unexpected—disrupted his plans.
The Pozzo family had arrived.
David had previously rejected their attempts to acquire Notts County, aware that the Pozzo family was waiting for the club to face a financial crisis so they could swoop in and seize it on the cheap. However, after a summer of investments and unexpected success, Notts County was thriving—far from the financial ruin the Pozzos had hoped for.
David could only wonder where all the money in the transfer market was coming from. Even the Pozzo family, who had deep pockets, couldn't match the financial might that Notts County was suddenly showing. From the Pozzo family's perspective, David's approach of aggressively buying players might have seemed reckless, but the success on the field was undeniable.
Despite their reluctance, the Pozzo family now knew Notts County was no longer a viable investment. So, they turned their attention to another club in Nottingham—Manchesterfield.
Although they shared the same league, Manchesterfield was a far less established club, having spent most of its history in the lower divisions. Last season, they narrowly avoided relegation. If the Pozzos had a better option, they would have passed on this struggling team, but now, with few other choices, they saw it as their best opportunity.
David was soon informed that the Pozzo family had reached an agreement to acquire Manchesterfield. The club's previous owner took a check for £600,000 and retired, passing the club on to the Italian owners.
Manchesterfield's fans, for the most part, greeted the news indifferently. The idea of an Italian family taking control didn't faze them. In fact, many fans saw it as the start of a potential revival. The Pozzo family, known for their ownership of Serie A's Udinese, had a track record of successfully managing clubs. With the right investment, they believed Manchesterfield could rise from the depths of the second division and even secure promotion.
True to their word, the first order of business for the Pozzo family was to invest in the club's debt, followed by an overhaul of the training facilities. But their next move was far more controversial.
Manchesterfield and Udinese reached a comprehensive partnership, which involved player exchanges, youth training collaboration, and loaning players from Udinese's reserve and youth teams. In total, 14 Udinese players joined Manchesterfield on loan.
This move sent shockwaves through the English second division. Under FA rules, each club in England is allowed only five loan players. However, since these players were loaned from an overseas club within the EU, they weren't subject to the same restrictions. The Pozzo family had exploited this loophole to flood the team with quality players, many of whom had already played together at Udinese.
Though the FA couldn't directly blame the Pozzos for exploiting the rule, it sparked an outcry from other clubs in the division. If this continued, some feared, Manchesterfield could dominate and secure promotion with little competition, even bypassing the need for player integration since most of these loaned players were already familiar with one another.
David watched the situation unfold with a sense of grim satisfaction. He had been deeply insulted by the Pozzos' previous attempts to acquire Notts County, their dismissive attitude, and their lowball offer. He'd expected the Pozzo family to take revenge on Notts County at some point, but he hadn't anticipated it would come so soon.
The Pozzos weren't just a business rival; Manchesterfield, until now a peripheral team, had become a direct threat. What had once been a quiet rivalry between Notts County and Nottingham Forest now had a new, equally fierce opponent—the team in their own city.
David weighed his options. Notts County, he was confident, would have no trouble earning one of the top spots for automatic promotion to League One. He didn't think any other teams in the second division would pose a serious threat. But Manchesterfield's sudden rise, fueled by the Pozzo family's deep pockets and ambitious plans, could still cause headaches for the other promotion hopefuls.
David knew, however, that it would be ideal for Manchesterfield to miss out on promotion entirely. As it stood, the promotion system in League Two allowed the top two teams to move up directly, while the third to sixth-ranked teams would compete in playoffs. Notts County had every chance to secure a top-two finish, leaving the Pozzos to hope for a playoff spot at best.
Meanwhile, Manchesterfield's unexpected strength had created a dangerous undercurrent in the league. Teams like Redding, who had reached the playoffs last season, along with Stoke City, Wigan, and Bournemouth—who had all performed well—would now have to deal with the Pozzo-powered Manchesterfield.
Brighton, freshly promoted to the Premier League, had also invested heavily over the summer and was seen as a potential dark horse. The competition was stiff, and David hoped that others could keep Manchesterfield in check.
Amidst all this, David's focus was also on hiring a new CEO for Notts County. Despite receiving some promising candidates from a headhunting firm, he quickly realized that while they had achieved success in other industries, they lacked the essential football knowledge he needed. It left him wondering whether he would need to look elsewhere, even if that meant poaching from other clubs.
On the pitch, Notts County lost again to Manchester City in a warm-up match. Although the defeat raised some eyebrows, David wasn't overly concerned. He knew that the team still needed time to adjust to their tactics and systems. He had no doubt that once everything clicked, the team would be in top form.
David could see it clearly: Notts County was on the rise, and nothing—not even the Pozzo family's vast resources—was going to stop them.