Arsenal FC – the wholesale betrayal of a legacy (19/2)

[Gooneroonie]

The last thing we need is divisions within our fans and you need to show a little more understanding of where this fella is coming from. His support over the years deserves that. And he has a valid argument.


I know you feel very safe and secure dishing it out on your keyboard, but you should treat peeps with same respect you would face to face.

Oh, and I get out plenty thanks... probably a lot more than you judging by the time you have spent on here...

[dennis_10]

I SAW PEE ON TERRACES.

Spurs away 1987. The League Cup semi, second leg, Sunday afternoon, Park Lane away fans end.

Remember how the toilets were on your right as you came in? so you basically peed as you entered, or forever held your piece.

I had the misfortune to stand next to "Fat Micky", a bit of a charactr and a right grob known to a few less than salubrious characters.

Five mins before kick off he tells me he needs a piss.

Being a fat dirty slob, he pees all over the leg of his mate next to him.

I got out of the way.

His "mate" is a weird weak character who complains but still is his friend.

Then "Fat Micky" grabs my Arsenal banner, and wips his leg with it, saturating it in piss.

I get into an argument but seeing as Micky is ten stone heavier than me I refrain from hitting him.

Never stood near him again though. Moved well away at the semi replay later that week!

Used to be a lot of pee rolling down terraces at Wembley too for England games...one Brazil game in late eighties there was floods of it.

hahaha!! THAT IS GROSS!

[I Hate Hleb]

LISTEN PAL, IF HE DIDN'T WANT ANY CRITICISM, HE SHOULDN'T HAVE SENT THE FECKING ARTICLE IN!! OR WAS IT JUST SYMPATHY HE WAS AFTER? AND DON'T BE MISTAKEN, I WOULD SAY THAT TO HIS FACE!!

FOR THE RECORD I DID WRITE THE FOLLOWING: IF THE AUTHOR IS BEING TRUTHFUL I'M GENUINELY SORRY THAT HE HAS COME TO THAT DECISION. BUT I PERSONALLY FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THIS DISILLUSIONMENT WITH FOOTBALL ONLY REALLY HIT HIM ON SATURDAY

AS FOR ME SPENDING TOO MUCH TIME ON HERE: OOH, THAT REALLY HURT!! FOR YOUR INFORMATION I AM FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO WORK FROM HOME SO CAN AFFORD TO SPEND PLENTY OF TIME ON HERE. YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT?

[Gooneroonie]

Touche.

All I am saying is there are more and more older (and younger) fans getting disillusioned with the current state of affairs and we need to take these on board. He is not the first, and won't be the last to walk away from The Arsenal. And that is a real shame...

[I Hate Hleb]

ON THAT LAST POINT WE ARE IN TOTAL AGREEMENT.

[Gooneroonie]

Top Man - apologies if it appeared I was on my period earlier, although this club means so much to me that sometimes I get over-protective of what I consider 'true values'

the whole scudamore thing recently, as well as an increase in season ticket prices and certain players not giving their all / realising exactly how much games against utd / y**s matter to the fans has made me more likely to agree with those disillusioned about current state of affairs.

Anyway, up the gunners!

[Vic Crescit]

You don't have to agree with every word the fella writes to see where he's coming from.

I fell in love with Arsenal when I was 11. Love at first sight. Hook line and sinker. Every single thing about that game is engraved in my mind to this day. And, so, so many memories since. Anderlecht 1970, the 1971 double, the 1979 Cup Final, THAT night at Anfield 1989, Copenhagen 1994, the wonderful, wonderful 1998 Double, then doing it all over again in 2002, the Invincibles.

And, of course Leeds 1968, Swindon 1969, Leeds 1972, Ipswich 1978, West Ham and Valencia 1980, Copenhagen 2000, and a LOT, LOT of dire League campaigns, pooh grounds and Mad Max locals (getting bricked walking away from Ayresome Park is a particular memory, especially as we'd just been stuffed out of sight by the Smoggies in the Cup).

There's an awful lot that was bad about the Good Old Days. Mad bastards with Stanley knives, death-trap (literally) grounds, crap pitches, crap players.

But we're in dire danger of losing what is so special about football - it's everybody's game, but increasingly not. I don't expect players to bleed red and white. I do expect them to respect the punters and the club. They all earn bloody good money and good luck to them. I'd like to too, unfortunately I'm a talentless bastard so I have to put up with ordinary wages.

Whilst I don't buy everything the bloke is writing you don't have to think that whilst some things have got better, the game is where we want it to be. The prices are outrageous (and likely to go up next season from what I hear), there's no grown up choice to sit it stand like there is in Germany, too many players (not all by any means, but too many) want the big money but don't want to put in the effort to earn it (some of the worst offenders being British, incidentally), games moved at a whim to suit TV, I could go on and on.

For what it's worth Saturday's performance was nothing short of disgraceful for my money. I can stomach losing, one thing I'm not happy about is fans and players alike seem incapable of losing with a good grace these days, they didn't always in the past either. I DO expect maximum effort and I'm FAR from convinced we got that against the Mancs. Or against Spuds in the Carling for that matter.

That's simply taking the piss out of me and all those who splash out around £100 to get to OT and get in.

As for the 39th game, where do I start? NO, NO, NO.


Whilst I'm not where this bloke is yet, I feel some of what he feels.

Don't treat me like a mug, is my message. I don't like it. I invested a considerable amount of time and effort in lobbying Islington Council, Comrade Ken and the Government to get planning permission for the Grove. So did a lot of other Gooners. I can't speak for others who did but I was happy to do it. I don't ask for anything in return, expect not to be treated as turnstile fodder, welcome only as long as I keep on emptying out my pockets for every last penny I've got.

Oh, and Usmanov is back on the plot with a vengence. That's REALLY cheered me up. Oh yes.

[Seven Kings Gooner 1]

Sure we can all relate to many of feelings expressed but what has happened is this man no longer loves Arsenal, plain and simple.
I could never feel that way and I have tried to be more relaxed about watching games but it is always the same, a dry mouth, twisted feeling in the gut that is only released after the game and there is nothing I can do about it. My father a hero of mine, served in the merchant navy went on the Russian Convoy runs, shut himself in the bathroom for the last 10 minutes of Anfield 89 and only came out when Thomas scored, he could not stand to see one of the love's of his life lose/hurt. I have realized that I don't really like football I only like Arsenal winning and my father was the same and so are my sons. However the football Arsenal now play means one of the love's of my life is suddenly more beautiful more expensive and is very high maintenance and again there is nothing I can do about it!

[Bring Back Pires]

When was the last time you watched a home game getting soaking wet for 90 minutes?.Yeah great fun

Were you the winning bidder for Steve McLaren's umbrella on eBay?

[Chinchinnati]

The original article for me sums it up when it references Bill Shankly's famous "football is just about life and death, its more important than that"; would anyone be able to turn around to Bill Shankly and say "sorry Bill, can't support Liverpool anymore as two rich Yanks who now nothing about football are running the club?".

I am in my late 30s and have been going to Arsenal for about 30 years; yes it's different now, yes I miss Highbury, but Arsenal, wherever they play, whatever colour shirts they wear, whoever is in the first XI, whoever is running them (well or badly), they are in my blood.

They make me laugh, ecstatically happy, miserably sad and distraught, nervous, worried and just plain over the moon............how many other things in the world do that?

If you have the disease called "Arsenal" I have, you will understand; I think the original poster just has a bad case of amnesia........

[Vic Crescit]

I think where you stand on this debate doesn't depend on whether you love Arsenal or not. An earlier poster talked about not sowing seeds of dissent in the ranks.

All my favourite Arsenal moments are when team, management and supporters are as one.

Being in love with something or someone implies some mutual respect. Unconditional love is a wonderful thing. If the love isn't returned it becomes a business proposition however.

That's how I feel I'm treated by modern football management at the moment, with no respect. It isn't only Arsenal. Its all over. Unlike another poster I don't only love Arsenal I'm in love with the game too. I'll watch it whenever and whenever I can.

One doesn't need to think that everything was great in the old days to be disilusioned now. Clearly many things were FAR from great, on and off the field, at Arsenal or in the game in general.

That doesn't stop me being completely hacked off with sky-high prices, games moved at a whim for television or to suit Old Bill, lunacies like Gam£ 39, and performances like we've seen at Old Trafford and the Lane in the domestic Cups this season.

I love so much of what Arsene has done since he arrived. I have respect for the current board. Doesn't mean I for one am not VERY hacked off.

Now then. Milan. Every part of the anatomy crossed for the performance I know we're capable of, even with all the injuries and loss form.