The fixtures in May were crucial.
Swansea City, Leyton Orient, and Bradford City were Manchester City's first three opponents. Richard paid particular attention to these matches, even setting aside his ever-growing workload to focus on them.
Three games that would determine whether O'Neill—his tactics, leadership, and reputation for "material management"—had truly been worth it.
Richard met with O'Neill before the match against Swansea City.
"To be honest, playing a pressing style isn't really my type..." O'Neill said, pausing. Then he looked directly at Richard. "But I have to admit, I've gotten addicted to this kind of football."
A chill ran down his spine every time his players won the ball high up the pitch and the crowd let out a collective "woaaaah"—a sound more suited to a theatre than a football stadium.
"Wycombe was never like this," he added, his voice laced with emotion.
