Not long after...
The local police from Southampton finally showed up at the hotel.
"Mr. Alexander, is it?" the officer in charge asked. He was a large man.
"I am," Alexander nodded, remaining calm and polite.
But Alexander's calm was a signal. A young, mustached man on his team immediately went into a (planned) frenzy.
"Officers!" he yelled. "It took you 20 minutes to get here after we called! Do you have any explanation for that?"
The police officers all fell silent, just staring at the young man.
"What?" the mustached man roared, "Are you trying to threaten me with those looks? I'll have you know, I am a citizen of the United States! Your slow response and this silent treatment... do you think I'm afraid to file a complaint against your whole police station and your local government?"
All the police officers suddenly looked very grim.
"What, does that make you uncomfortable?" the mustached man continued. "Well, those hooligans outside have been surrounding our hotel for an hour, shouting and cursing at us! Do you think we're comfortable?"
"Now, we are leaving. Please get rid of those troublemakers immediately, or we will use legal means to sue you!"
The police officers were angry, but they didn't dare talk back. They knew the man was right. Their slow response was a huge mistake.
The officer in charge gritted his teeth. "I apologize to you, sir. My officers will now clear the troublemakers and give you a police escort to the Southampton Football Club."
"Hmph. That's more like it," the mustached man said, acting very arrogant.
...
"Good job," Alexander whispered to the mustached man as they got in the car. The whole team exchanged smiles. They all felt much better after that.
They arrived safely at the Southampton club. And, just as they expected, the club rejected their offer to buy the team again.
But... Alexander and his team didn't mind at all.
For the next few days, they kept going back, every single day, to "negotiate."
Finally, the news of this "fight" spread from Southampton to the entire United Kingdom.
"Bullshit!"
"Go to hell, Yankee!"
"Our football clubs must not be sold to Americans!"
"Stop the American money from invading our sacred sport!"
"Zane Blackwood? If that darn guy comes to England, I'll twist his head off!"
"America is a football-desert! They know nothing about our sport!"
Fans and newspapers all over England—in London, Manchester, everywhere—were lashing out. They were all against Zane.
"Zane Blackwood wants to buy Southampton? Dream on!" the fan groups roared.
Did Zane mind?
He didn't mind at all!
In fact, he flew directly to London and held a big press conference!
...
At the Press Conference...
"Mr. Blackwood!" a reporter from The Times asked, "Since the club and all the fans are against you, will you still insist on buying Southampton?"
All the other reporters leaned in, waiting for the answer.
Zane stood at the podium, looked at all of them, and said loudly and clearly:
"I declare: I am abandoning the acquisition of Southampton Football Club!"
This answer shocked all the reporters.
"Are you sure, sir? You're really giving up?" The Times reporter asked, his voice full of surprise. They all thought this young, rich American would keep fighting. How could he just... give up?
The fan representatives at the press conference, however, went wild!
"VICTORY!"
"This is our victory!"
"Yes! As long as we stand together, we can beat any American money!"
"Southampton still belongs to us!"
A bunch of British fans at the scene started shouting and celebrating.
But...
Zane's next words made them all freeze... and then made them furious.
"I am announcing that I'm giving up on Southampton," Zane said, his voice booming, "because I have changed my target."
He paused, a small, charming smile on his face.
"From now on, I will officially begin the acquisition of the Manchester United club!"
Manchester United!!!
The entire room exploded!
If you ask which team is the greatest in British history, people might argue.
But if you ask which is the greatest team in the past 20 years... it is Manchester United!
"NO!"
"You... you devil! Manchester United will never be sold to you!"
A large, angry fan in the crowd actually took off his boot and threw it at Zane on the stage!
The fans were furious. The reporters were shocked. They never expected Zane to do this.
With Zane's one announcement, the entire UK was about to explode. The anger over Southampton was nothing compared to the anger over Manchester United!
A few years ago, when Mr. Murdoch (Zane's new "friend") had tried to buy Manchester United, the fans had protested so much that the English Football Association had to step in and stop him.
The British fans hate it when rich foreigners try to buy their teams.
And Zane had just threatened to buy the biggest, most beloved team of all.
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