Chapter 811 – Young Talents
Across the Premier League, aside from Chelsea's heavy spending, most clubs tightened their belts. Manchester United, with almost no movement in the transfer market, were among the few taking a minimalistic approach.
In an effort to break United's stranglehold on the league title, Manchester City completed two major signings this summer: £41,000,000 for Dutch center-back Nathan Aké from Bournemouth, and £30,000,000 for prodigious forward Ferran Torres from Valencia.
Liverpool spent £45,000,000 to sign Portuguese winger Diogo Jota from Wolverhampton Wanderers, and another £12,000,000 on Greek defender Kostas Tsimikas.
On September 1, Arsenal officially announced the signing of Brazilian center-back Gabriel Magalhães from Lille for a reported €26,000,000, and also completed a free transfer for former Chelsea veteran Willian. In addition, Mikel Arteta still hoped to bring in Barcelona's Brazilian midfielder Philippe Coutinho.
Tottenham Hotspur made Giovani Lo Celso's loan permanent, then spent £15,000,000 each on Wolves defender Matt Doherty and Southampton midfielder Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, and signed Edinson Cavani on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain.
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According to the schedule, the new Premier League season would begin on the first weekend in mid-September, with the Community Shield — the curtain-raiser — set for early September.
However, because Manchester United had played the Champions League final and would have fewer than three weeks' rest, the Community Shield between league champions Manchester United and runners-up Liverpool was postponed, with the exact date depending on the two teams' calendars — very likely to be arranged for January of next year.
Under these circumstances, United's first official match of the season would be the Premier League opener on the evening of September 14.
This meant there would be no conventional pre-season camp. The team would assemble on September 11 and go straight into competition.
Of course, this applied not only to United. Clubs like Manchester City and Chelsea, who had reached the quarterfinals of the Champions League and Europa League, had only the briefest pre-season; they would inevitably be less prepared than teams not involved in European knockout stages.
For United, the good news was the squad's stability — there were no major new arrivals to integrate.
That was one of the reasons United ultimately decided against a big-money signing this summer.
However, Bruno's first match of the season came even before the Premier League opened.
With September underway, international football ushered in the first international window of 2020. Portugal would play two UEFA Nations League matches — hosting Croatia and then away to Sweden.
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This edition of the Nations League had undergone changes. League A expanded to 16 teams, consisting of the 12 teams from the previous League A plus the four group winners from the previous League B. They were split into four groups of four for double round-robin play, with the four group winners advancing to single-elimination semifinals.
As defending champions, Portugal were drawn into a group of death with World Cup runners-up France, strong contenders Croatia, and resurgent Sweden — every match a heavyweight clash.
Before the opener, Cristiano Ronaldo sat on 99 international goals, one shy of his century. However, due to a toe infection, he missed the squad, though he was in the stands supporting his teammates and frequently drawing the cameras.
With Ronaldo absent, Bruno wore the captain's armband for Portugal.
Even without Ronaldo, Portugal were dominant and repeatedly threatened Croatia early. Luck, however, wasn't on their side — João Cancelo, Raphaël Guerreiro, João Félix, and Diogo Jota all struck the woodwork in succession.
In the 41st minute, Bruno played a diagonal pass; João Cancelo collected on the right edge outside the box, turned inside, and from just above the D unleashed a curler into the top-left corner. Portugal 1–0 Croatia.
Slow motion showed the Croatian keeper got a touch but couldn't keep it out.
After the break, Portugal remained in control, pinning Croatia back.
In the 58th minute, Guerreiro hit a pinpoint long ball from deep; Diogo Jota burst into the box to finish, making it 2–0 and sealing the win.
In the 70th minute, Portugal scored again — Bruno fed the top of the box, Félix snapped a right-footed strike toward the left side of the goal; Dominik Livaković got a hand to it, but the ball bounced and spun into the net. Portugal 3–0 Croatia. The €126,000,000 man roared in celebration.
In stoppage time, the 1st minute saw Ante Rebić thread a pass through and Bruno Petković finish from the left side of the box to pull one back for Croatia.
In the 4th minute of stoppage, Portugal swung in a right-sided corner; at the spot, Pepe nodded across to the left, where André Silva slid in to score. Portugal 4–1 Croatia.
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The stats told the story — Portugal's dominance was overwhelming. Despite captain Cristiano Ronaldo missing out with a toe infection, his teammates delivered a resounding victory.
Since the Nations League began, Portugal remained unbeaten in the competition, with a record of 5 wins and 2 draws at that point.
The 4–1 scoreline was Portugal's largest margin of victory in the Nations League.
Three days later, Portugal traveled to the Scandinavian Peninsula to face Sweden away.
Cristiano Ronaldo returned to the starting lineup and was superb.
In the 39th minute, Bruno's long pass from the right side of midfield found Ronaldo, who surged into the right side of the box and fired home his 100th goal for Portugal.
In the 44th minute, Albin Ekdal/Svensson (Svensson) committed a malicious foul on Bruno at the top of the D, earning a second yellow and a red. The hosts would play the rest of the match with 10 men.
Portugal won a dangerous free-kick just outside the box; Ronaldo's strike arced into the top-left corner. Portugal led 2–0.
Five minutes into the second half, Bruno unleashed a right-sided long-range effort from outside the box, beating Swedish keeper Robin Olsen. 3–0 — game over.
Ten minutes later, Portugal returned with another wave. Gonçalo Guedes backheeled from the left, Guerreiro crossed from the right, and Bruno arrived in the middle to poke with the outside of his boot. The ball kissed the underside of the bar and dropped in. Portugal 4–0.
In the 71st minute, Félix fed the middle, Ronaldo curled from the left edge of the area into the far corner, lifting it over the keeper's head for his hat-trick — Portugal up by five.
Full time: Portugal 5–0 Sweden. Two wins from two, top of the group.
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After the matches, Bruno immediately took a private flight back to Manchester to prepare for the Premier League opener on Monday.
Back in Manchester, Bruno received good news: Old Trafford's reconstruction had completed its main works after 20 months of closed construction and had entered the final phase.
According to the timetable, all stadium projects would be completed in December. Manchester United would select a date in January 2021 to return to Old Trafford for matches.
While the pandemic had severely impacted the world, it hadn't affected construction of United's home.
Of course, there were still three to four months before United's return to Old Trafford.
United's first league match of the new season would be away to Burnley.
There was a new face on United's matchday list, though not unfamiliar to Bruno — last season's Sheffield United first-choice goalkeeper Dean Henderson.
The United academy product had shone with Sheffield United, playing 36 Premier League matches with 13 clean sheets, helping the newly promoted side post the fourth-best defensive record in the league with 39 goals conceded; of those, only 31 were against Henderson. He was the chief architect of Sheffield United's remarkable 8th-place finish.
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At season's end, Manchester United recalled Dean Henderson.
However, as Bruno had heard, the young academy goalkeeper did not wish to stay at United — he preferred another loan, or even a permanent move.
The reason was simple: the competition at goalkeeper was fierce. David de Gea remained Spain's starting keeper, and the backup at United was Argentina's No. 1, Sergio Romero.
With two elite keepers ahead of him, Henderson's chances would be limited.
Moreover, given his excellent form at Sheffield United, suitors were not in short supply.
First, Sheffield United wanted him back on loan — or permanently, if the price was right.
Second, Chelsea — another Premier League giant — were keen to sign him. With Kepa Arrizabalaga's poor form last season, Frank Lampard wanted a top goalkeeper to replace the Spaniard. Henderson's breakout made him a prime target.
Once the summer window opened, Chelsea submitted a bid to United — a staggering £50,000,000 — for the 23-year-old goalkeeper.
United rejected the initial offer, but didn't slam the door on negotiations. Chelsea returned with an improved bid, and by that point, the two clubs were still in talks.
In a casual chat with United CEO Giaretta, Bruno expressed his hope that the club would let Henderson leave. He wanted the young talent to gain better first-team opportunities, rather than waste away on United's bench.
(END CHAPTER)
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