"First of all, it's an uplifting film, and I'm delighted to be involved in making it. I hope it helps more people fall in love with football, because as far as I'm concerned, it's the greatest sport in the world."
David Beckham answered seriously when a reporter asked about his first appearance in a feature film.
"Judging by the reaction so far, a lot of major Hollywood stars want to be involved. Mr Barril, you've chosen Danny Cannon, who is known to be a football supporter, to direct the trilogy. Aren't you worried about whether he can handle so many high-profile actors?"
Matt Barril smiled and shook his head. "The first thing we considered was what kind of film we wanted to make. There's no doubt that this is an inspirational, energetic commercial film, but football is at its heart. We want supporters around the world to recognise the game they love when they watch it. Danny Cannon is the right director for that, regardless of which club he supports."
Danny Cannon had previously worked with Sylvester Stallone on Judge Dredd and had also directed episodes of the highly successful television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, earning considerable recognition for his work. More importantly for this project, he was English, understood football culture intimately, and followed the game with genuine enthusiasm.
As soon as he heard that Ethan was investing in the trilogy, Cannon had put himself forward and submitted a detailed proposal outlining how he wanted to shoot it. Barril, the other producers, and Ethan had all been impressed. Ethan also remembered Cannon as the director of the first Goal! film from his previous life, which he considered the strongest entry in the original trilogy.
Although the scripts for all three films had now been completed, production would still take considerable time. A large amount of location filming was required, particularly for training and match sequences. Training scenes were relatively easy to arrange because Newton Heath already recorded extensive footage as part of the club's sports-science and analysis work, but recreating competitive matches would be far more demanding.
Fortunately, the Football Association was willing to cooperate. From its perspective, the films would also promote English football and the Premier League internationally.
"Will the lead role go to a major Hollywood star?" another reporter asked. "We've heard Ben Affleck is interested."
Mike Jefferies immediately shook his head. "No. To make the football convincing, we don't want a major celebrity in the lead role. George Clooney and other established stars may appear, but they'll be supporting characters or cameos. For the protagonist, we want a young actor who can genuinely play football and can act. He needs to move like an athlete. We want supporters to look at him and think, 'That's a footballer,' not, 'That's an actor pretending to be one.'"
On that point, Ethan and the producers had agreed from the beginning. The football could not be compromised simply to put a famous face on the poster. This was, first and foremost, an inspirational football film. Well-known actors could help commercially, but they could not be allowed to overwhelm the story. Even George Clooney, if he appeared, would take a supporting role as Santiago's agent.
The same principle applied to the rest of the casting. Stars whose presence might distract from the main characters would either be given very limited roles or appear only briefly.
The trilogy would otherwise follow the established structure of a major Hollywood production. A significant portion of the $200 million budget had been reserved for post-production and worldwide marketing. Early interest was already strong in Europe, Asia, and even the United States, giving the producers confidence that the films could recover their investment if they were executed properly.
New Manchester United, Beckham, Redondo, Mourinho, and the club's players had all agreed to participate without taking personal fees. Any money earned directly from their appearances would instead be donated to charity, a decision that had been well received by both football supporters and film audiences.
The two most important football locations would be Newton Heath and New Manchester United's new stadium. Newton Heath could accommodate filming outside training hours with relatively little disruption. The stadium was more complicated because it was still under construction.
The production team nevertheless regarded it as one of the project's greatest visual assets. They decided that the climactic Red Devil Derby in the first film, the match that would decide the championship and establish the protagonist as a star, would be staged there.
According to the latest construction schedule, the new ground would be substantially completed by early May. Work had already begun on the commercial areas and club shops, while the four principal sponsors would each operate a flagship outlet at one of the stadium's corners. Those facilities, together with the surrounding entertainment and retail district, were planned to open alongside the stadium.
After the club's summer training camp, New Manchester United intended to stage an exhibition match to mark the opening. A special all-star side would be assembled from former players and friends of the club, including Crouch, Juninho Paulista, Olić, Abidal, Poulsen, and several others. Steve Bruce would manage the invitational team, which would face New Manchester United's current first team.
Everyone approached so far had agreed to take part. All proceeds would go to the Red Rebels Charity Foundation. It would be the first football match held at the completed stadium, and the club planned a full programme of events around it.
Among those involved would be the Kanan Band, the local Newton Heath group whose rendition of the club anthem had transformed their career. They had once been a little-known neighbourhood band, but their association with New Manchester United had brought them national attention. A major record company eventually signed them, and they had since become a successful British pop group.
Despite their growing fame, the members remained devoted New Manchester United supporters. They had promised to perform around the stadium and adjoining entertainment district for three days during the opening celebrations, with the proceeds from those appearances also going to charity.
The Goal! production team intended to film the entire occasion and later use selected footage in the film.
The choice of New Manchester United as the trilogy's principal club surprised some people outside Manchester, but it was not difficult to understand. The Red Rebels' supporters had already developed a reputation throughout the Premier League for creating one of the division's strongest atmospheres, comparable with the most passionate grounds in England.
Sharing Old Trafford had forced the club to charge higher ticket prices than it once had, but attendances remained excellent. With results improving so dramatically this season, league matches were regularly drawing crowds of more than 50,000, while the hospitality boxes and corporate seating were consistently sold out.
Between the atmosphere, Ethan's involvement in the project, and the global attention surrounding the club, New Manchester United had become an obvious choice. As several newspapers noted, the film already possessed an enormous amount of publicity before a single major scene had been shot.
While the media continued discussing Goal!, the players finally received something they badly needed: a break.
After the twenty-second league round, there was a gap in New Manchester United's Premier League schedule from January 17 to January 31, with the domestic calendar occupied by League Cup semi-finals and the fourth round of the FA Cup.
New Manchester United had used reserve and academy-heavy teams throughout the League Cup and had done well enough to reach the quarter-finals. There, they travelled to Aston Villa. Because the tie fell between other demanding fixtures, Mourinho again relied heavily on fringe players and youngsters. They performed respectably but were eventually eliminated.
Ethan had been in Argentina finalising Agüero's transfer when the result came through. At the time, he had been disappointed. Looking at the fixture list now, however, elimination seemed almost fortunate.
The squad's physical condition had been approaching a dangerous point. De Rossi, Palacio, Kaká, Beckham, and several others had all been flagged by The Lab for heavy accumulated workloads.
Two relatively quiet weeks therefore came as a relief to everyone.
With an away league match at Portsmouth approaching, followed by Arsenal's visit to Old Trafford on February 7, Mourinho gave several senior players short breaks so that they could recover both physically and mentally. It was a familiar approach among Premier League clubs during the most demanding part of winter, particularly when a rare opening appeared in the calendar.
On January 25, New Manchester United hosted West Ham United in the fourth round of the FA Cup. West Ham had been relegated from the Premier League the previous season, and Mourinho again selected a side dominated by reserves and younger players.
Ishmael started up front, with Ribéry on the left and Messi on the right. Fàbregas played centrally ahead of Michael Johnson and John Obi Mikel. The back four consisted of Philipp Lahm, Vidić, Chiellini, and Maicon, with Almunia in goal.
The young side produced an excellent performance. Ribéry and Messi caused West Ham constant problems on the flanks, while Fàbregas, Johnson, and Mikel controlled the centre of the pitch and dictated the tempo. West Ham spent much of the match chasing possession and eventually left Old Trafford beaten 3-1, their consolation goal arriving only near the end.
Everyone associated with the academy was delighted.
Mourinho was less enthusiastic.
Reaching the fifth round meant another fixture in February, and the calendar was already becoming crowded. New Manchester United had to defend their position in the Premier League, prepare for the return of European football, and now continue in the FA Cup as well.
Three competitions, with very little room between matches.
Soon afterwards, the draw for the UEFA Cup Round of 32 was confirmed.
New Manchester United received an opponent that was neither ideal nor disastrous.
PSV Eindhoven.
Elsewhere, many of the competition's biggest names avoided one another. Barcelona, Valencia, Roma, AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Juventus, Liverpool, and several other high-profile clubs were all handed ties they were widely expected to win.
That immediately led many newspapers to predict that most of the favourites would reach the last sixteen. New Manchester United's tie was treated differently.
A surprising number of pundits favoured PSV.
Their reasoning was straightforward. PSV's domestic schedule was less demanding than New Manchester United's, while Mourinho's side were fighting an exhausting title race in England and competing on several fronts.
PSV general manager Frank Arnesen was particularly confident after the draw.
"As far as I'm concerned, we have an excellent chance of reaching the next round," he told reporters. "New Manchester United may have won the UEFA Cup last season, but they're still inexperienced at this level. Their priority should probably be the Premier League."
He pointed to New Manchester United's recent 1-0 victory at Portsmouth as evidence.
"They struggled to beat a newly promoted side fighting near the bottom of the table. That should tell them something. However well they've done so far, they're still in their first Premier League season."
Normally, Mourinho would have responded immediately.
This time he did not.
The Portsmouth match really had been difficult. The home side were fighting desperately for survival and had made New Manchester United work for every yard. Only a late intervention from Beckham had secured the 1-0 victory and preserved the club's lead at the top of the table.
There was little point pretending otherwise.
More importantly, several pieces of good news were arriving at once.
Mourinho's touchline suspension had ended.
Terry's domestic ban had finally expired.
And Drogba, Essien, Kolo Touré, and Yaya Touré were returning from African international duty.
For the first time in weeks, Mourinho could look at his squad and feel that it was becoming whole again.
Just in time for Arsenal.
(To be continued.)
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◇ 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.)