Many experts believed that the story of that season's League One campaign might ultimately be shaped by the newly promoted clubs.
The prediction was not without reason.
After ten league matches, the quality of all three promoted sides had largely become clear. By that stage, people could usually tell whether a team was genuinely competitive, merely enjoying an early run of form, or destined to spend the season fighting relegation.
The Red Rebels currently sat top of the table.
After ten matches, they remained unbeaten with nine victories and one draw.
That run included difficult away fixtures against strong League One sides such as Ipswich, Portsmouth, and Sheffield United, as well as home matches against formidable opponents including Wolves and Preston.
For a newly promoted team, New Manchester United had performed with remarkable consistency.
Their defence had been particularly impressive.
When Abidal left during the summer, many observers assumed the left side of the defence would become an obvious weakness.
Instead, Mourinho's tactical adjustments had protected the area effectively.
Not only had the left flank remained defensively secure, but Evra had also been given greater freedom to demonstrate his considerable attacking ability.
New Manchester United's left side had now become one of their most dangerous attacking weapons.
Whether Robben, Cristiano Ronaldo, or Ribéry started on that wing, they usually operated as inverted wingers and moved inside.
That left space for Evra to surge forward from deep.
The young Frenchman had taken full advantage, producing a series of eye-catching performances.
His understudy, Philipp Lahm, had also impressed.
The German had demonstrated considerable ability on both sides of the defence.
Although he had not yet completely adapted to New Manchester United's defensive system, he had already moved ahead of Bosingwa and become Mourinho's preferred cover for both full-back positions.
The Red Rebels had conceded only four goals in ten league matches.
Their defence appeared every bit as strong as it had been the previous season.
When their League Cup and UEFA Cup performances were included, there could be little doubt that New Manchester United remained exceptionally difficult to break down.
Yet their attacking strength had improved at the same time.
Drogba's development was one of the clearest examples.
He had scored only four goals in ten league appearances, not an extraordinary return for a centre-forward.
However, he had already contributed seven assists.
According to Opta, Drogba was also creating an average of 3.4 goalscoring opportunities per match for his teammates.
The greatest beneficiary was unquestionably Hleb.
As New Manchester United's undisputed first-choice right winger, Hleb had developed an excellent understanding with Drogba.
His runs inside from the right were extremely dangerous.
After ten league matches, he had already scored eleven goals, placing him at the top of the division's scoring charts, while also contributing four assists.
Robben had played in only four league matches because of his recovery, but had already produced three goals and two assists.
He had looked equally dangerous.
The two wide positions had become New Manchester United's most potent attacking outlets.
That competition had forced Cristiano Ronaldo and Ribéry to seek opportunities from the bench, particularly Ronaldo.
The Portuguese youngster still played with too much unnecessary flamboyance.
Mourinho had criticised him more than once and continued encouraging him to simplify his game.
Ronaldo trusted the advice of his Portuguese manager.
His body was also still developing, so being used as a substitute for the time being was hardly a serious problem.
Another major beneficiary of Mourinho's tactical system was Kaká.
The entire structure appeared almost tailor-made for him.
He flourished between midfield and attack.
His statistics did not yet look as spectacular as Hleb's, but Ethan understood that this was largely because Kaká was still developing.
Once he matured further, his performances within this system would become even more extraordinary.
New Manchester United were flying in the league and had also reached the third round of the League Cup.
Their European campaign was progressing just as smoothly.
After defeating Željezničar over both legs, the Red Rebels advanced to the second round of the UEFA Cup proper.
Their next opponents were Austria Wien.
The Austrian side were considerably stronger and would present a much more difficult challenge.
Fortunately, the two legs were scheduled for 1 and 15 November, leaving New Manchester United roughly a month to prepare.
Mourinho had already instructed Villas-Boas to study them carefully.
The Red Rebels were not the only promoted club exceeding expectations.
Reading had also emerged as a genuine surprise package.
They currently occupied third place, behind only New Manchester United and Portsmouth.
Reading played with tremendous determination and had already developed a reputation for collecting cards, making them an unpleasant opponent for almost everyone in the division.
With promoted sides occupying first and third place, predictions that the newcomers might shape the season no longer seemed exaggerated.
Both had demonstrated genuine quality.
The Red Rebels in particular had carried the confidence of the previous season's treble into League One.
They played with a remarkable belief in their ability to control matches.
Even away against a powerful Portsmouth side, New Manchester United had dictated long periods of the game and eventually won 3-1.
Several newspapers were already describing both New Manchester United and Reading as serious promotion contenders.
...
The day after Ethan returned to Manchester, he travelled south to London with the team.
Their opponents were Millwall.
Based in south-east London, Millwall had long been known for their aggressive style of football.
They currently sat sixth in League One and possessed considerable quality.
Their most important player was Tim Cahill, who would later join Everton and become one of David Moyes's most valued players.
Anyone familiar with football management games would recognise Cahill immediately.
His most remarkable strength was his ability in the air.
Despite not being particularly tall, his timing, leap, and heading made him extraordinarily dangerous inside the penalty area.
A computer game was obviously not reality, but Ethan had still mentioned Cahill's aerial ability to Mourinho.
The Portuguese manager merely gave him a confident smile.
That was enough.
Mourinho clearly knew about the threat and had already prepared for it.
Everyone had heard stories about Millwall's hooligan element.
New Manchester United had already encountered clubs with difficult reputations, including Queens Park Rangers.
Even so, the players were surprised when the team coach turned onto Bolina Road and approached The Den.
Cars were packed along the narrow streets.
Groups of supporters stood everywhere.
Many had painted their faces in Millwall's blue and white colours, while others wore deliberately outrageous hairstyles.
Some held beer bottles.
Others carried objects that looked far less innocent, including baseball bats and heavy chains.
Several casually tapped them against parked cars as the New Manchester United coach passed, creating an unmistakable atmosphere of intimidation.
"Are those supporters... or hooligans?" Robben asked.
He had never encountered anything quite like it and could not completely hide his unease.
Terry, who had grown up in London, smiled and looked fearlessly through the window at the strange crowd outside.
"Before they start drinking, they're supporters.
"Afterwards, who knows?"
"I heard they sometimes invade the pitch and start trouble."
"That's usually when they play West Ham," Curtis replied reassuringly.
"We're the Red Rebels. Don't frighten yourself before the match even starts, or they've already won."
"Curtis is right," Juninho added with a smile.
"There's nothing to worry about.
"We can win here.
"We came through non-league football and the lower divisions. What haven't we seen already?"
The others immediately agreed.
Evra, one of the players who had climbed through the divisions with the club, began entertaining the newer arrivals with stories from New Manchester United's early years.
He described hostile grounds, terrible pitches, brutal tackles, and all the difficulties the Red Rebels had faced during their successive promotions.
Compared with some of those experiences, he refused to believe Millwall could intimidate them.
Mourinho selected his strongest available side.
Drogba started up front.
Robben and Hleb occupied the wings, with Kaká behind the striker.
Juninho and Senna formed the midfield pair.
Evra, Terry, Curtis, and Kolo Touré made up the defence, with Čech in goal.
Kaká had been named League One Player of the Month for September, while Mourinho collected the Manager of the Month award.
It meant New Manchester United had swept the monthly awards for two consecutive months.
Hleb had won Player of the Month in August, with Mourinho also receiving the managerial award that month.
The Red Rebels' excellent form had clearly concerned Millwall.
During his pre-match interview, the Millwall manager acknowledged that New Manchester United possessed an extremely dangerous attack.
He said his team would concentrate on defensive counter-attacking football and use every possible method to restrict the Red Rebels' four attacking players.
Anyone familiar with Millwall could guess that those "methods" might not always be gentle.
...
Millwall generally favoured a conventional 4-4-2 with a flat midfield, and they used the same system against New Manchester United.
Tim Cahill started centrally.
He was the heart of Millwall's side.
His attacking contribution was obvious, but he also worked extremely hard defensively.
Ethan sat among the travelling supporters and studied Millwall's players below.
Apart from Cahill, none of the names were particularly familiar to him.
That suggested the squad did not contain many players destined for greater things.
Even so, Ethan refused to underestimate them.
His eyes occasionally drifted towards the Millwall supporters in the neighbouring sections.
Metal fencing separated the groups, but Ethan was not entirely convinced that would guarantee safety if serious trouble began.
For New Manchester United's first match at Old Trafford, Ethan had personally arranged additional police coverage.
Each officer had cost roughly £250, and a hundred had been deployed around the stadium, supported by stewards and private security.
That had been possible because the Red Rebels could afford it.
Millwall's financial situation was considerably weaker.
They could hardly pay for a massive police presence at every home match.
Most of the work therefore fell to ordinary stewards and part-time security staff.
Experienced football hooligans were difficult enough for trained police officers to control.
A handful of temporary stewards would hardly intimidate them.
If trouble genuinely started, The Den could quickly become their stage.
The number of Red Rebels supporters who had travelled to London was noticeably lower than usual.
The Den's reputation had clearly discouraged some.
Even so, more than a thousand had made the journey and occupied the away section around Ethan.
Millwall had originally offered Ethan a modest directors' box.
He declined.
He preferred watching matches alongside New Manchester United's supporters.
Still, even Ethan occasionally cast a cautious glance towards the nearby home crowd.
With that uneasy atmosphere hanging over the ground, the referee finally blew his whistle.
The match began.
(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.)