Ethan heard about Ferguson's dispute again after New Manchester United returned from Vienna.
The Red Rebels had won the second leg 2-0, completing a comfortable aggregate victory and securing their place in the last thirty-two of the UEFA Cup.
The players returned to Manchester in excellent spirits.
At the airport, however, they were immediately surrounded by reporters and supporters.
One journalist took the opportunity to ask Ethan about the growing dispute between Ferguson and Manchester United shareholder John Magnier over the ownership of Rock of Gibraltar.
"What do you think about the Rock of Gibraltar affair?"
Ethan smiled and shook his head.
"You should ask Peter Kenyon that question. He's Manchester United's chief executive.
"This is New Manchester United."
With that, Ethan pushed through the surrounding reporters and climbed into one of the club cars.
Rock of Gibraltar had retired at the height of his racing career, but the dispute over the horse's ownership would eventually develop into a bitter conflict between Ferguson and Magnier.
The repercussions would hang over Manchester United for years.
That period would also coincide with several major upheavals at Old Trafford, including the departures of Beckham and Keane, along with Peter Kenyon's eventual move to Chelsea.
Ethan had no intention of becoming involved.
Those were Manchester United's internal affairs.
There were few things more foolish than interfering in another club's private disputes when nobody had asked for your involvement.
New Manchester United already gave him more than enough to worry about.
Why would he go looking for somebody else's problems?
...
The UEFA Cup's last thirty-two would include eight clubs dropping down from the Champions League after finishing third in their groups.
Among them were major names such as Lazio and Liverpool.
By this stage of the competition, there were very few weak teams left.
Ipswich had already been eliminated earlier in the tournament.
That left four English clubs in the last thirty-two.
Liverpool, Leeds United, and Fulham all came from the Premier League.
New Manchester United were the exception.
The Red Rebels were not merely the only English club outside the top flight still competing.
They were the only remaining side in the entire round playing outside their country's highest division.
That fact alone made their progress remarkable.
Their victory over Austria Wien had already demonstrated that they belonged at this level.
The draw for the last thirty-two took place three days after the second leg.
New Manchester United were paired with Real Betis.
It was a difficult draw.
Betis were an established La Liga side and currently sat eighth in Spain.
They possessed considerable technical quality and were more than capable of punishing mistakes.
The player Ethan remembered most clearly was Joaquín.
The young winger was enjoying a rapid rise and had already been hailed in Spain as the heir to Figo.
Ethan remembered that Joaquín had once dreamed of joining Real Madrid, although that move would never materialise.
For now, however, he remained one of Betis's greatest attacking threats.
The first leg would be played in Spain on 29 November.
Before then, New Manchester United had two league fixtures, neither of which created serious scheduling problems.
With roughly a week between matches, Mourinho was able to keep the team relatively fresh.
The Red Rebels won both league games.
Then all attention turned towards Betis.
Mourinho treated the European tie with enormous seriousness.
In a two-legged knockout contest, a single poor performance could destroy months of work.
Villas-Boas travelled to Spain two weeks in advance to begin gathering information.
The detailed statistical reports supplied by Opta also became increasingly valuable.
Playing away against a technically gifted Spanish side, Mourinho made his intentions clear.
New Manchester United would defend compactly, frustrate Betis, and attack the spaces they left behind.
It was classic counter-attacking football.
Betis were accustomed to La Liga, where matches often allowed more space and greater freedom in possession.
Against the Red Rebels, that became a problem.
Every time they committed numbers forward, they left gaps behind them.
Their usual threat from the wings was also largely neutralised.
Essien and Evra combined brilliantly against Joaquín.
The young Spaniard, so dangerous in La Liga, was denied the opportunity to demonstrate why people were calling him the new Figo.
At the other end, New Manchester United waited patiently.
Their opportunity finally arrived in the second half.
Betis lost their defensive shape during a transition.
Hleb attacked from the right, drove into the penalty area, and sent the ball across to Drogba.
The striker met it powerfully.
Goal.
0-1.
Betis had not expected New Manchester United to score first.
For several minutes, the home side looked genuinely unsettled.
Then they attacked with increasing desperation.
Wave after wave came towards the Red Rebels' penalty area.
But New Manchester United's defence refused to break.
Evra, Terry, Curtis, and Kolo Touré formed an exceptionally solid back four.
Juninho and Essien protected them from midfield.
Behind everyone stood Čech.
More importantly, the Red Rebels defended as a complete team.
Their pressure began with the forwards.
By the time Betis carried the ball into the final thirty-five metres, the available space had almost completely disappeared.
It was becoming a familiar problem for opponents.
Finding a route through New Manchester United's defensive structure was extraordinarily difficult.
Once the Red Rebels had taken an away lead, Mourinho became even more conservative.
The team dropped deeper and denied Betis the space they wanted.
The final half-hour became an exercise in frustration for the Spaniards.
They dominated possession.
They pushed forward repeatedly.
Yet they could not find the decisive opening.
New Manchester United absorbed the pressure with remarkable discipline and protected their lead until the final whistle.
0-1.
A precious away victory.
And, just as importantly, an away goal to take back to Manchester.
Elsewhere, the other English clubs found life considerably more difficult.
Liverpool were held to a 0-0 draw away to Vitesse.
Leeds United drew 1-1 at home against Málaga, another Spanish side who sat below Betis domestically.
Fulham lost 2-1 away to Hertha Berlin.
Three Premier League clubs had struggled.
Only New Manchester United, the League One outsiders, had returned home with a victory.
Naturally, the English press loved the story.
...
There was little time to enjoy the praise.
December brought a brutal schedule.
Previously postponed league matches had to be rearranged, while the League Cup and UEFA Cup continued at the same time.
For almost the entire month, New Manchester United faced two matches every week.
They were still fighting on three fronts.
Something had to give.
Mourinho discussed the situation with Ethan.
After considering the squad's workload and priorities, they reached the same conclusion.
The League Cup would be sacrificed.
The UEFA Cup offered New Manchester United an opportunity to establish themselves across Europe.
The league remained essential because promotion was the club's primary objective.
The League Cup, by comparison, offered little.
Many Premier League clubs already treated it as their lowest priority.
If it did not provide qualification for Europe, Ethan suspected some clubs would happily see the competition disappear altogether.
Even with New Manchester United's squad depth, Mourinho knew that trying to pursue every trophy could become self-destructive.
December was difficult enough.
The winter schedule beyond it would be worse.
With their priorities established, Mourinho selected a heavily rotated side for the League Cup quarter-final.
Even Bosingwa, despite his recent disagreement with the manager, was given an opportunity.
Kolo Touré had established himself firmly at right-back that season.
His strength, stamina, and durability made him extremely reliable.
Lahm usually deputised whenever Mourinho chose to rest him.
This time, however, Lahm started on the left in place of Evra.
Bosingwa played at right-back.
Chiellini and Vidić formed the central defensive partnership.
De Rossi, Yaya Touré, and Essien made up a three-man midfield.
Villa started up front, with Ribéry and Palacio on the wings.
Almunia was in goal.
The media quickly labelled it New Manchester United's second team.
They faced Everton at Goodison Park.
Despite the changes, the Red Rebels competed extremely well.
They played with courage, caused David Moyes's side plenty of problems, and never looked overwhelmed by their Premier League opponents.
But they could not find a goal.
Everton eventually won through a spectacular long-range strike from the young Wayne Rooney.
It was enough to eliminate New Manchester United from the League Cup.
Mourinho was hardly devastated.
The defeat removed one competition from an already overloaded schedule.
More importantly, the performance of the rotated side reinforced the impression that the Red Rebels possessed genuine depth.
The match also attracted increased international attention because Everton fielded several players with strong followings abroad, while New Manchester United's rapidly growing reputation made the fixture easier to market beyond Britain.
Even in defeat, the Red Rebels gained something commercially.
Then came the second leg against Real Betis.
...
At Old Trafford, New Manchester United produced one of their most complete European performances yet.
They won 2-0.
From beginning to end, the Red Rebels controlled the tempo.
Juninho was magnificent at the base of midfield.
His positioning, distribution, and defensive work were almost flawless.
He also created both goals.
Before the match, several pundits had argued that Betis should attack aggressively, draw New Manchester United out of their defensive structure, and rely on superior Spanish technique to expose them.
Reality proved very different.
The Red Rebels moved the ball faster.
Their off-the-ball movement was sharper.
And when it came to individual duels, New Manchester United held the advantage almost everywhere.
Drogba, Cristiano Ronaldo, Hleb, and Kaká repeatedly overwhelmed Betis's defenders.
It was not simply a victory.
It was a comprehensive defeat for the Spanish side.
Any critics who had claimed New Manchester United were fortunate merely to reach the last thirty-two were forced into silence.
The Red Rebels had eliminated an established La Liga club with authority.
The English press celebrated the result enthusiastically.
Several newspapers argued that a League One side had shown greater ambition and resilience in Europe than many Premier League clubs.
Their point was strengthened by the other results.
Liverpool advanced.
Leeds United and Fulham did not.
Of the four English clubs in the last thirty-two, only Liverpool and New Manchester United reached the next round.
Then came another piece of good news.
The draw for the last sixteen paired the Red Rebels with Slavia Prague.
The Czech side had reached this stage after overcoming relatively modest opposition from Serbia and Greece.
Compared with the other clubs remaining in the competition, Slavia were widely regarded as one of the most favourable opponents available.
New Manchester United could hardly have asked for a better draw.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)