By Tony Attwood
Some Arsenal supporters get very angry at any match that Arsenal does not win. This is true both home and away. I have often wondered why.
Of course some of the people who were at the Bournemouth game might be saying that their moaning resulted in Arsenal waking up and scoring three late goals. On that claim, if it were made, it would be hard to make a judgement because there is no evidence. Maybe it is so, but if so, one has to point out that it often doesn’t work.
But I wonder why people do get so negative about Arsenal, and indeed I wonder how these supporters would have been if they had supported the club in that long period between 1954 and 1968 when we didn’t win anything but got defeated by Swindon Town at Wembley. Or come to that if they had been around between 1893 when Arsenal entered the league, and 1930 when we won our first major trophy: the FA Cup.
We are in fifth place, having lost the same number of games as Chelsea, but for some this is a time for calling for a new manager, and a replacement of some of the team. Worse, because the news has just come in that Coquelin will be out for a month, Mr Wenger is now being blamed for not having a deep enough squad.
Such talk ignores the fact that we actually have a full 25 man squad – we are just about the only team to do so. Plus we have five additional players who are available for the first team but not counted in the numbers because of their age: Holding, Iwobi, Bellerin, Akpom, Reine-Adelaide. If one wants to be pedantic we might remove one of the “25” as he has either dropped completely out of favour or is injured (Sanogo) but otherwise everyone is part of the squad. 29 players.
We’ve now lost one to the Africa cup – and he could have taken over from Coquelin – but it is only one. Is anyone really saying we should have refused to sign any player who could be called up for Africa?
So we have fans who get very angry, and I continue to wonder, does this do them any good? Does it do the team any good? Does it do anyone any good getting this angry, and having co-ordinated anti-Wenger chant routines as they do sometimes.
I am not saying that I can feel joy, contentment, pride, optimism, enthralment, or an overall feeling of having a jolly good time when Arsenal get beaten when I’m at a game, but I don’t seem to get the negative depths that some people (like the two guys behind me at the Ems) do.
Of course it is difficult if the team loses, or plays badly, but if there is anything we can do, it surely must be to stay positive to the team and encourage them on.
The only argument I have heard to counter this is that if the supporters don’t make a fuss, then the directors will never sack Mr Wenger and we’ll be like this forever. So, they claim, their negativity is done for the right reasons.
But in reality the board are not going to sack Mr Wenger, and even if they did, there is no guarantee that the new man would achieve anything like the success Mr Wenger has had. In the last three seasons we have had two FA Cup wins, and a second place in the league. I know the people who get so angry complain that this is not enough and I am sure someone will soon come up with the notion that second is not a trophy, and the FA Cup is not a trophy, and that it would have been better to have been the laughing stock of the league as Chelsea were last season and to have risen to the top of the league as this time this season.
However I have to repeat, nothing is guaranteed. Manchester City have the money of one of the richest oil and gas states in the world behind them, and supposedly one of the greatest managers in the world, and they have lost more games than we have and scored fewer goals than we have.
We need the support to be positive in supporting the team – at the very least during the games – at least to counter the mad editing that Sky employs to give a football match sanitised into its own curious vision of reality. We need the support to encourage the team and make them feel good about playing for Arsenal.
I have now heard some supporters say that they want Alexis and Ozil to leave because that will show the board that Wenger is useless and so get someone else. Personally I think that it is more likely that the board are wondering what on earth they can do about people who pay very large amounts of money for tickets in order to make themselves incredibly morose, if not downright depressed.
My two pals who I sit either side of at the Ems have a laugh at the games. OK, not if we lose, but much of the time we have fun, we enjoy being there, we like each other’s company, and we enjoy watching football.
The guy behind me looks and sounds like he is about to have a heart attack, one screams abuse the other shouts out one or two word instructions to the players in anger if he thinks they are not doing things right, and I never hear any expression of enjoyment.
Blacksheep tells me of a lad who stands near him on the North Bank wearing his “enough is enough” t-shirt looking morose, waiting for Arsenal to lose.
What on earth is the point of that?
I wonder, out of an act of human kindness, should there not be places where such people can go to learn to be happy? Of course they might say they will be happy when Mr Wenger goes, but given that Mr Wenger is the most successful manager we have had in terms of such things as percentage of league wins, number of trophies, consistency, best ever season, not being caught out doing anything illegal etc etc, I suspect the chances are we might not be much better off. Of course we might, but the chances are slim.
Anger and related emotions like fear, sadness and jealousy tend to generate further negative emotions. They don’t let the negative feelings out but just make people feel worse and worse. It doesn’t do the individual any good, but because of that it is very hard to break out of. Indeed perhaps we should just feel sorry for the negative supporters. They are trapped.
For those of us who enjoy football, there is always a laugh to be had somewhere. For the trapped there is nothing but an ever increasing blackness.
Untold Arsenal:
Ref Review : Arsenal – WBA: the ref who turned his back on time wasting
Arsenal sign their first player of the window, and it is quite a surprise.
How the FA, PL and PGMO backtracked on the promises made by the National Review Board.
Bournemouth – Arsenal : 3-3 crazy match, great come back
New from the Arsenal History Society – all the player histories indexed. The AHS player histories tend to be more detailed than those on the official Arsenal site – especially for players from the early part of Arsenal’s history. Now we are undertaking the huge task of indexing the main articles. Players with surnames A to J have been linked to their main articles and we are continuing the task day by day.
Also, the ones who go every week just to hurl abuse at one particular player all game. Bizarre.
Tony fans get mad at the game because they are pasionate about their club and want them to be the best.Your not a stupid man but you fail to or ignore major glaring faults with our club and just blame our lack of silverware over the last 12 years on everything exept the manager and owner.The fans ,the real fans not those who sit behind a keyboard in India,Nigeria Korea etc ,who pay a fortune and follow the team home and away, want change and if it means the manager so be it.
If we didnt have Sanchez at Arsenal we would be a mid table club.
Plainly players are allowed to relax and set their own comfort zones at this club. Play when they want, skive when they fancy it, have whole seasons off, claim injury at the slightest twinge, it’s one hell of an easy life at Wenger’s Arsenal, that’s for sure.
I wanted Vidal here because he’d be like Alexis, a self-motivator who wouldn’t give a shit about Wenger’s holiday camp attitude. Alexis gets the shit kicked out of him every game and he gets the hump if he’s prevented from turning up for more. Giroud is getting the plaudits after this latest farce but it was Alexis who decided to put his foot down and start demonstrating the supposed gap between the millionaire internationals at this club and the honest but (supposedly) limited team from Bournemouth.
It was embarrassing the way they passed around us today as if we were the mid-table fillers. Even more embarrassing (though painfully familiar) to watch Wenger shrugging his shoulders and losing his temper over being outthought by Howe.
The big question here is, with the exception of Alexis, where is the fire in these players? Why aren’t they humiliated by performances like this, the first 70 minutes anyway? You could say they showed passion in the end but all off the back of Alexis, if he hadn’t been on that pitch we wouldn’t have scored one, let alone three.
It all starts at the top, the owner who couldn’t give a shit about the game of football. Then the manager who would much rather moan about the fixture list that say fuck it, bring ’em all on! This rotten attitude hangs over the place and smothers the players. I wonder is Ozil even ill, or is he just having a Winter break on the sly? And where has Theo gone again? What about Coquelin? Can he really only give us 5 minutes of football between injuries these days? Did you see Alexis’ ankle after that cunt of an Argie tried to break it in the Copa final? The guy played the whole match and then he jumped on a plane back to training with us in no time flat.
Are we seriously, I mean fucking seriously, dithering around over re-signing this guy? The way things stand he’s the only bloke in the whole place, from top to bottom, we can depend on. Give him the fucking money already. Jesus!
Who are we going to get to replace him? Another softie who likes the comfortable life? We’re like a rest home for players between clubs.
Plainly players are allowed to relax and set their own comfort zones at this club. Play when they want, skive when they fancy it, have whole seasons off, claim injury at the slightest twinge, it’s one hell of an easy life at Wenger’s Arsenal, that’s for sure.
Nick and Tony – QED!
Nik, it will interest you to know that without the money coming in from countries like Nigeria etc. “your” league with all its shiny stadiums and excitement will never be the same.
It definitely is now a global brand take it or leave it.
You are so arrogant to claim to be in the dressing room by suggesting it’s all easy in “Arsene’s arsenal”-what a daft claim by a spoilt “supporter”.
After all you have to have the passion to “pay the fortune” and I bet you some foreigners will spend more than you ever dreamt had they had the geographical opportunity.
I bet nik was a leicester fan last season
A lot of fans are not as grounded as you Tony. Many fans only remember the glory days of winning the Prem or double every other year and for us all, those days cannot come back soon enough. We compete in a league where all teams going for the title bar Tottenham arguably have more resources than us- I’m not sure about Liverpool. How many £25m and above players have Chelsea, Man Utd, City and Liverpool signed in the last 3 years? probably an average of 4 each summer. Most have a number of these players on the bench, transfer listed or out the door already, which tells you more about those teams than the signings. We may finally have arrived at that table but you could still count our high value signings on the fingers of one hand. But if we had been punching above our weight, you could argue that we no longer are. Besides the truly elite players are now available for double our budget or our entire transfer kitty. I suppose what every fan wants is progression and a sense we are going in the right direction. The FA Cup wins signalled that and in an ordinary season, finishing second last season would also signal that. Alas finishing second was down to the comical Spuds capitulation and in a season of no real contenders, we didn’t stand up tall.
Andrew,
Indeed.
It’s an Aberration to expect any club to win all their matches even Barca, Real or Mayern can’t.
@Nik. you are wrong.being at the stands doesn’t make you more of a gooner to Indians, Nigerians or Koreans.
Nik you are one of those supporters that sees everything one way, his way, and a simplistic way at that, Arsene this, Owners that…
Dammy we finished second because we amassed more points than everyone else other than Leicester, it doesn’t matter when you drop the points…
And when we were winning the league we were punching above our weight, finishing too 4 is about right, the higher the better against some teams which still have a help of a lot more financial pull than us, our £25m+ players are invariably out biggest assests, £25m barely gets you on the bench at the rest of the usual top 4…
Another one than always makes me laugh is some of my friends uproar when we don’t sign someone we have been “linked” with (Draxler)…
And the melt down that follows signing someone unkown or too cheap (Holding/Brammal)…
You point out the lack of places available in our squad, or the fact that we have possibly the most consistent LB in the league, and if he was to play more an England international as his understudy already, so the signing of the unknown will go into the U23 so what’s the worry, and get told you are a Wenger soundbite…
The stress these people cause themselves…
Nik
I know some of the distance fans can be a bit of a pain, but they do contribute quite a bit in terms of marketing & TV subscriptions etc. so I would say they do have the right to an opinion and this is an opinion blog after all.
Tony you sure do get your quota of moaners on this site and there mostly regulars . It’s entertaining though always makes me laugh .
To be fair most of Untolds articles are a moan about something , seems to me both parties WOB and AKB like a good old moan . Me I can’t be bothered there are far more important things in life to worry about .
Hmmn. I think if Arsenal can lift the PL title this season, all the hates against Le Prof by a section of the Arsenal supporters and the disappointments of not having the PL title in the last 12 seasons will disappear into the thin air. And every football supporter who is supporting Arsenal will be happy and will be more happy if Arsenal also add the Ucl title to their win as well.
FA Cup? Fine and good if Arsenal win it again for a record number of times. But the Arsenal fans will not be totally happy if it’s happened to be the only trophy won at the end of this season by Arsenal without winning the PL title before lifting the FA Cup trophy.
To win the 2 titles will be an ecstasy season’s success for Arsenal but the fans wouldn’t mind if it’s only the PL title Arsenal won at the end of this season because that’s the most priced domestic title the whole Arsenal fans have been waiting for the Gunners to win again after winning it for such a long time.
For his potential, Le Prof has recently signed a young LB from a non League club to understudy Monreal & Gibbs in the LB position. Nonetheless, Le Prof has in his press conference of today ruled out any new player signing for his 1st team squad for any position on the field during this winter window. And has said he waiting for offers for both his RB duo of Jenko & Debuchy to ship them out. Maybe after shipping the out, what? To buy a new senior RB from FC Porto? That will be welcome if he does that. Because after shipping 2 out, a better cover at our RB who can enhance quality performance there has to come in to give Bellerin a fight for a starting role.
Okay Welbeck could appear at PNE to play in the FA Cup so also is Sanogo who has not been heard of for long. Akpom also is there to put his recovery and match fitness at stake for appearance for Arsenal at PNE on Saturday. So our forward-line is looking to be enhanced in options in the second half of this season.
However, what of our midfield which has suffered 3 absentees leaving the trio of Xhaka, Chamberlain & Ramsey to be holding fort till one or two of the absentees is back from the Afcon and the sidelines. But the duo of Ramsey & Chamberlain are not consistent in appearance for Arsenal. And because of their inconsistencies in appearance in Arsenal games, a dangerous vacuum at our midfield maybe lurking around the corner to unleashed it’s danger on us during the early part of the 2nd half of our season campaign to cause us points to be dropped if Le Prof ignores this potential danger to not forestall it which could scuttle our title charge by his refusing to sign a new top quality attacking midfielder for Arsenal before the PL campaign resumed after the FA Cup matches are played.
Shoot
You must be an odd individual.
According to you there are more important things in life to worry about than moaning and you can’t be bothered to moan but you enjoy coming to a site where the articles are written by moaners and most of the commenters are moaners!
How very strange!!
NIK – if it weren’t for Wenger. Arsenal would be a mid table championship team. Wenger has brought this club to the top table with a brilliant understanding of economics & football. Sadly you only understand unbridled greed with nothing upstairs to make a few bob. Silverware is not the ultimate as Leicester will find out. Consistent stability in a dog eat dog world of football is not as easy as typing a litany.
There are most definitely more important things in life to worry about . I do enjoy a laugh and some on here supply that in abundance
Nik, I appreciate how hard you try to be moronic – it can’t be easy to be you. Just take things easy. Nigerians, Indians, et al are the least of your problems. I advise you check yourself into a mental health institution (or go see resident psychiatrist, Dr Brickfields Gunners) before you die of self-inflicted high blood pressure.
Leon, thanks but no thanks. Don’t condescend to us. As is, the average Nigerian is smarter than you can ever aspire to be. If you don’t believe it, check the graduate records of the top 20 schools in the world over time – Nigerians set/beat records for fun. I know this because I am proudly one.
Nik,
If you feel that bad about our manager why don’t you organise an “in or out” vote for the the 60,000 that turn up for all our home games to decide which is the way to go. Majority vote wins! Probably by the biggest percentage vote of time will disappoint you.
Menace your pissed with leicester becaus,e money then becomes one less excuse you can use as to why in over 12 years we havent won the premiership.Still you can always blame the referees.Anything to deflect from what the majority of football fans can see as to what is holding us back.Why is it that we never see a blog on here abouit tactics,substitutions,motivation and possible transfers etc the real nitty gritty as to what makes teams great.Is it because it will show our manager up?
And as for Leon most of our followers watch the games on dodgy streams from afar on their p.c’s.Hardly adding to the funds of Arsenal.It just gripes when the majority on here moan constantlt about our game and our cheating referees when the majority havent even stepped foot in the UK never mind the Emirates.
Gideon no thanks .Hes about as funny as you are.And Menace Arsenal were a top team before Wenger arrived and will be a top team after he leaves.Believe it or not there are other managers out there younger,hungrier tactically better than what we have.As Klopp and Conte have shown already.
@ Nik
As a fellow season ticket holder (and one who has experienced far worse years than any seen under AW), I’d really love it if you could provide just one shred of evidence about the “majority” you claim to represent. Come on, it can’t be that difficult for someone who appears to have an in depth knowledge of absolutely everything that happens behind closed doors.
Looking for news, I ran across this snippet from Sky:
> The six candidates were chosen by our expert panel, which included Sky Sports pundits Peter Beagrie and Paul Merson, Mike Riley – general manager of the Professional Game Match Officials Board, and Malcolm Clarke, chairman of the Football Supporters’ Federation.
> And it is Jansson, who has come out on top thanks to your votes, which have been verified by an independent party.
What on Earth is Mike Riley doing choosing shortlist names for a Professional Footballers’ Association survey? Who is this independent party, Mike Dean?
Mike Riley 😈 is not a player, but his actions and decisions affect the livelihood and careers of players.
Nik!!!standing in agarage doesn’t make you a mechanic
Common guys. Cool down on your xenophobic comments.
What wrong have Indians and Nigerians done?
If your argument fails then blame the foreigners.
We are all Arsenal fans. Some of the greatest players that Arsenal has ever had have been foreigners. David O’Leary, Patrick Viera, Overmars, Kanu, Thierry Henry, Patrick Viera, Overmars, Fabregas, etc. etc.
We have have great British players too such as Tony Adams, David Seaman, Lee Dixon, David Rocastle, etc. etc.
Arsenal is a universal club. No matter where you come from or what color skin you have or the color of your hair and eyes.
Arsenal is for English fans, Nigerian fans, Scottish fans, Indian fans, French fans, South African fans, American fans, Dutch fans, Mexican fans, etc. etc. etc.
It’s sad when people post xenophobic comments and then the person who is acting as “the voice of reason” actually backs him up whilst showing as though he wants to correct the xenophobe by saying “Yes, foreigners are a pain but ….”
Let’s all be one in our support for our club.
In the 50s and 60s and 70s we used to have the same type xenophobic nonsense spoken about Irish people.
They were not allowed a fair deal or to have a voice.
Today, we are now blaming Nigerian and Indian fans. Why them?
Why not blame the Australian fans, the American fans, etc.
Could it be that Nigerians and Indian fans have a different skin color?
We are all Arsenal fans. Let’s be united in our support of our great club.
Zuruvi
You’ll notice if you look more carefully that I said ‘distance supporters”, which is all inclusive.
You’ve made a similar (unfounded) accusation before haven’t you?
Being able to attend a game at the Ems does NOT mean you are a better fan.
Many Arsenal fans would love the privilege of attending games at the Ems. The stadium is unfortunately not big enough to carry all Arsenal fans that want to attend a match or buy season tickets.
There are fans who fly in from Anerica, Nigeria, Australia, India, Ghana, France, Belgium, South Africa, Zimbabwe, etc. to watch a game at the Ems. These are serious fans. But we also have hundreds or thousands of fans based in England (many of whom could be English) who own season tickets but don’t bother turning up for games. Does this mean English fans are horrible people? Definitely not.
We are all good Arsenal fans. We love our club regardless of whether we are English, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, Nigerian, Indian, Chinese, Zimbabwean, Egyptian, Mexican or whatever.
Arsenal is a club for all.
Leon, yes you did say distance supporters are a pain.
But the context was that you appeared to be justifying someone who was attacking Indians and Nigerians.
Whenever I notice xenophobic comments or insinuations I comnent and try to emphasise that we are all equal. We are all Arsenal fans.
There’s nothing “unfounded” about singling out Nigerians and Indians.
And then someone gives credence to this nonsense by “agreeing” that distant supporters are a pain.
Ogbeni nik farabale( Mr nik calm down).mr wenger,made arsenal a global brand since joining the club,how many non UK players and supporters does arsenal have pre wenger years.little or none,arsenal was an inconsistent top club b4 wenger,but wenger brought in dynamic football,dynamic international player,attractive world standard stadium,enough financial backbone,paved the way for non UK managers ala mourinho nd d rest as he was d first foreign manager in d league to achieve an appreciable amount of success,nd for foreign fans,i know a number of Nigerians that re season ticket holders,and the huge amount of TV right bn given to arsenal nd other pl clubs gets, a big chunk of dt money comes from Nigerian fans paying to watch nd not on livestream but live TV, directly from sky tru supersport.so it is now OUR ARSENAL and no longer your arsenal, nd no amount of brexit can change that. However arsenal players can do more nd fight more for d sake of d manager that believes in their talent against all odds.
Zuruvi
Does me wanting a change of manager make me any less of a suopporter of Arsenal Football club than you?Does me being a season ticket not allow me to want what is best for my club which is to do its upmost best to win trophys.Call me whatever you want but the truth is that most posters here are from foreign countries and when they call the English Premier league and our referees it somewhat grates on me.Where were you pulling the race card when MENACE was calling out our english nothern white referees???Probably turning a blind eye .I wonder why??
Leon, which unfounded comment do you accuse me of making?
I am prepared to apologise if I have said something that is NOT factual.
In my posts, I have always tried to emphasise that all Arsenal fans are equal regardless of where you are, what your job is, the color of your eyes, or whether you are rich enough or lucky enough to have a season ticket.
I have also emphasized that politics should not be included in football matters. I have said that the World Cup should be awarded to all corners of the world. I have said very few countries (if any) have clean hands politically speaking. So politics shouldn’t be the main criteria for denying a country the privilege of hosting this prestigious tournament. Some countries practice slavery, some countries practice racism, some countries invade other countries, some countries keep prisoners without trial, etc. etc.. Football should not get twisted into politics.
We are all football lovers from all over the world.
hello Nik
nice to see a true British voice on this thread. It is annoying all these foreigners posting their opinions about Arsenal – our ENGLISH club with English owners, English players, English staff, and English fans.
I’m a ST holder and it makes me furious every week when Tony and I travel to the game alongside FOREIGNERS (some of them maybe even NIGERIANS) then eat and drink in a pub run by SPANIARDS who employ LATVIANS and a GEORDIE [er..I think that’s ENGLISH – ed], before being frisked by security who could be from ANYWHERE [is that a foreign country? – Ed]
I want my club to do its best too, I think Wenger has done wonders for Arsenal and in my 40 years of visiting the Arsenal I’ve never seen as good a quality football or level of success as I’ve enjoyed under him. But perhaps you remember the 30s (like Tony 😉 ) and ‘better’ times. If not may I kindly suggest you start your own blog. After all if you do indeed represent the views of the majority of Arsenal fans the I imagine you will far outstrip Untold’s readership within a very short period of time.
Good luck with that. In the meantime take your narrow minded xenophobic ideas elsewhere
nik,
are you counting arsenal out of the title race?
Nic, you are free to want Arsene Wenger to be fired. That’s not the problem.
The issue is that in order to push your idea forward you attacked Indians and Nigerians. That’s not right.
The Indians did not appoint Arsene Wenger.
The Nigerians did not appoint Arsene Wenger.
Nic, if you pass racist or pseudo-racist comments, I will ask you to respect all Arsenal fans. I will ask for all of us to have racial and national harmony.
I did not see the MENACE posting which you said is racist. But if he did post comments that racist undertones I would say my comments apply to him too. We are all equal. We should treat each other as equals in our position as Arsenal fans. I don’t think Tony Adams who spent his entire career at Arsenal is a better fan of Arsenal than you (Nic). I do not think Nic is a better fan than Emmanuel Ebuoe or Joe Bloggs. We are all equal as fans. We all love Arsenal, you, me, Nigerians, Indians, Australians, Londoners, Welsh, etc.
I think Nik makes some very good points and these should be considered.
This site seems to like arguments being backed up by evidence so could someone come on here and give me some evidence why Arsenal might win the league this season? I really don’t see it, I just see a continuation of the last 13 years where the club does well but ultimately cannot sustain a challenge. The manager must be questioned as to why that iis. If not then you are not really supporting the club, you are just being brainwashed by the clubs PR machine.
Since November there has been no evidence of being able to challenge for the top honours
Spurs – home go 1-0 up but they fight back for a draw
Man Utd – yet again we fail to beat them in the league – draw
Everton away – 1-0 up lose 2-1
Man City away – 1-0 up lose 2-1
Bournemouth away – fight back for a draw but why were we 3-0 down???
Now I appreciate you can’t win every match but those 5 games in the past 2 months we dropped 12 points and if you do that then you don’t win trophies.
I am no glory hunter, I was there when we lost to York City in the FA cup, been to matches at Highbury when there were less than 20,000 in attendance but what I do know is that the current side is stagnating at best and something needs to be done to turn things around because it really is not happening at the moment
Nic, if you read my various comments over the months you will notice that I like Arsene Wenger but I do not think he is always right.
When Wenger makes a mistake I mention it. I am sometimes attacked by my fellow Gunners who have a different opinion. But we always discuss without passing racist or pseudo-racist comments.
I believe FIFA is a corrupt organization. I believe the FA is probably more corrupt than FIFA because the FA presides over English football where matches are routinely “rigged” by referees. FIFA does not rig football matches.
Gays and Lesbians do not feel free to participate in football under the FA. Blacks and Ethnic Minorities are not adequately represented in the FA structures or as football managers. Arsenal (my club) too frequently gets unfair decisions that “don’t even out in the season” as is supposed to happen.
Women in football are not adequately recognized by the FA.
So whilst FIFA is corrupt in awarding World Cups, the FA is corrupt in managing the actual games of football.
Zuruvi i havent attacked anyone and i know we have foreign supporters of arsenal and some do go to games and support the team.It seems though quite a lot though dont but find it ok to slag everything about our game off.Im a fan of the tampa rays baseball team and watch the odd game on the pc when i can but i wouldnt dream of calling the supporters who go to games their referees and call their league bent on a Tanpa rays website.
Zuruvi
It wasn’t too long ago, when I mentioned that someone had a third world attitude to homosexuality & you took exception and part of your issue was that it sounded racist.
.in another news Alex iwobi African youth player of the year and asisat oshoala of the arsenal ladies African woman player of the year.caf award
Nik ,”And as for Leon most of our followers watch the games on dodgy streams from afar on their p.c’s.Hardly adding to the funds of Arsenal”.
You are really a dumb little man as that statement confirm. At least the “foreigners” do know something about your country and it shows you know nothing about others’-that’s dull of you.
The fact that Nigeria is being mentioned alone gives me some certain joy couple with the amazing comeback,which might have had some scums using it as a point of “mental strength” only if it wasn’t Arsenal. Hence,I won’t allow some faint hearted “supporter” take that away from me.
No Leon. I think you are mistaken.
Definitely not me.
I think you may have confused me with someone else.
I don’t remember ever discussing homosexuality.
My view remains that all fans are equal. I have even chastised the FA for reigning over a football environment that doesn’t tolerate gays and lesbians.
It is not easy for homosexuals to freely play football in England. It is not even easy to be openly gay as a football administrator.
Check my historical comments. I have always been promoting inclusivity and equality.
That was me, Leon. It just sounded a bit racist that’s all. Zuruvi can be cleared :). And yes of course gays and lesbians should be allowed to live their lives.
And there’s some here who have a problem with that btw. Sadly.
Sorry, sorry Zuruvi & Arvind.
I think I’ll leave the thread now before I completely swallow my foot.?
Ok Leon. Apology accepted.
It certainly wasn’t me talking about homosexuality in what you say was a “Third World attitude.”
Sorry Nik, I have repeatedly called you Nic.
I’m really sorry for misspelling your name.
Nik,
most of us ‘real fans’ (as you call us) don’t want to change the manager.
That’s only a very small (but very vocal) minority that want a different manager, as shown by the pathetic demonstrations last season.
That’s because we can see from other clubs how often getting a new manager whilst not having enormous transfer funds available for them, usually means real failure.
Not the ‘nearly but not quite successful’ failure we’ve had in recent years but the ‘this is the 3rd manager this season and we’re still fighting to get out of the relegation zone’ level of failure.
Oh yes the ‘real fans’ want change, I guess over 50,000 people last season at the Emirates are not ‘real fans’.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3567401/Arsenal-fans-protest-narrow-Norwich-win-vastly-underwhelming-significantly-people-backed-Arsene-Wenger.html
@Nik, life is to short to moan about Wenger In or Wenger Out, the man is here and he’s in charge, so suck it up and just concentrate on enjoying the football, isn’t watching football the main purpose in following a club not how many trophies the club won or not?
Anyway, most of the commentators on here whether they are local or foreign love Arsenal FC, so please don’t discriminate. I think without the Nigerian, Indian, Koreans and so on the EPL will be like the Scottish League, small. The foreign fans might not go home and away matches but they indirectly pouring £billions into the EPL which help the clubs financially, so please stop this xenophobic garbage please.
Great article and some great comments . I rarely fail to get a laugh or two on here , especially when humour , biting wit , satire and sarcasm were truly intended .
Conversely there are even more laughs to be had when the poster tries to ‘be funny’ on this site . And how well and eloquently the regulars take ‘them,’ on !
SO kudos , blacksheep63 @ 05/01/2017 at 8:49 pm – for that great comment .
And , Gideone @ 05/01/2017 at 6:42 pm , I am not a psychiatrist , but you could call me a Psychologist , of sorts . I do enjoy studying the psychos and morons who come here , and do sincerely try give them the proper treatment they deserve !
The right treatment ?
There was once a farmer who had a horse and a goat…..
One day, the horse became very ill and he called the veterinarian, who said: “Well, your horse has a virus. He must take this medicine for three days. I’ll come back on the 3rd day and if he’s not better, we’re going to have to put him to sleep.”
Nearby, the goat listened closely to their conversation.
The next day, the Vet gave him the medicine and left.
The goat approached the horse and said:
“Be strong, friend. Get up or else they’re going to put you to sleep!”
On the second day, the doc again gave him the medicine and left.
The goat came back and said: – “Come on buddy, get up or else you’re going to die! Come on, I’ll help you get up”.
” Let’s go! One, two, three…” , but the poor horse wouldn’t get up!
On the third day, the Vet gave one look at the horse and said:
“Unfortunately, we’re going to have to put him down tomorrow. Otherwise, the virus might spread and infect the other horses.”
After they left, the goat approached the horse and said: “Listen pal, it’s now or never! Get up, come on! Have courage! Come on! Get up! Get up! That’s it, slowly! Great! Come on, one, two, three… Good, good. Now faster, come on…… Fantastic! Run, run more!
Yes! Yay! Yes! You did it, you’re a champion!!!”
All of a sudden, the owner came back to the farm, saw the horse running on the field and began shouting: “It’s a miracle! My horse is cured.
We must have a GRAND CELEBRATION ..
Let’s COOK the Goat!!!!”
Corporate Lesson: ‘Whatever you do, always mark a Cc to your boss’.
‘ Five out of six people agree that Russian Roulette is safe.’
The Investment –
A rich foreigner falls in love with a local girl and decides to meet her father.
Foreigner : ” Your daughter is beautiful and I love her. If you let me marry her , I will give you gold equal to her weight.”
Father : ” I need time.”
Foreigner : ” To think? ”
Father : ” No , no…to increase her weight !”
Investments always gives you better Returns if you hold for longer Term .
It’s beautiful to read all the comments, they celebrate individuality which is the only thing that keeps the world(people) really moving.
Sad though that all this individuality causes strife and ends up in racism disputes.
I am now a racist as well as a zenophobe ..Im sure there a bad joke somewhere in all that lot brickfields.
The truth is that once again we are out of the title race in January which is earlier than normal for us and the dozen or so cult followers on here that think everyone is to blame for our lack of silverware exept the owner and the manager.A manager who was once great has grown old with old ideas and tactics which are now outdated.The Game has changed ,the way its played has changed,the tactics have changed and you have to change with it.Unfortunately he has not.The owner is as much to blame beacuse whilst he is making the club profitable and richer with top 4 finishes he is happy with him.Our club should be about winning silverware ,Premier Leagues and Champions Leagues not a money making business.I feel the end of this season will be a defining time as to where Arsenal are going .Arsene Wenger will need to take a hard look at himself then and ask the question has he taken Arsenal as far as he can????
Honesty in every aspect of life and actions should be the watchword.
On the 2nd tee of the golf course with his wife, the husband says, “Twenty years ago I had a brief affair, it meant nothing. I hope you can forgive me.”
His wife was hurt, but said, “Dearest, those days are long gone. What we have now is far more valuable. I forgive you.”
They embraced and kissed.
On the 17th tee, the husband was starting his back swing when the wife blurted out, “I’m sorry darling, I’ve been so conscience-stricken since you told me of your affair. Since we’re being honest with each other, I have something to tell you also. Thirty-two years ago I had a sex change operation, I was a man before I met you. I hope you can forgive me”
The husband froze at the top of his back swing, and then threw a fit!
He slammed the driver into the ground, kicked the ball into the woods, stormed off the tee, pushed the golf cart over on its side, broke the rest of his clubs one by one, then started on hers.
He screamed and ranted, “You liar! You cheat! You despicable deceiver! How could you? I trusted you with all my heart and soul…and all these years you’ve been playing off the ladies tees!”
In golf, some things are sacred, almost sacrosanct.
Hello Nik,
You simply came on this blog to moan just right after Tony asked in his article why do some AFC supporters only enjoy doing so? It is your right to do that to your heart’s content for as long as you want. But don’t try to belittle the contributions of others to the cause of AFC while moaning.
It is your ‘truth’ that Arsenal is ‘out of contention for the PL title in January’ the real facts do not bear that out. You may be angry that foreigners are calling referees in PL matches ‘bent’ because you chose your own truth as they are English and therefore cannot be ‘bent’. Really? Have you been keeping up with the referee review postings on this blog site?
Arsene is not a perfect manager but he is there until the end of the season at a minimum; why don’t you accept that as a real truth? Refocus your lenses and see what your English referees are doing to AFC over the course of the league season you can then come back and tell us whether you are proud of what they have been doing to AFC since game 50 over a decade ago.
Bent refereeing is bent refereeing no matter who by whether English or not. Until you accept that refereeing standards in the EPL leave much room for improvement your moaning will only get worse against AFC in which, case I urge you to heed Tony’s advise on what you should do to get over being so negative about the club you claim to support.
Nik
05/01/2017 at 8:32 pm
When I called out the PGMOL referees I was being descriptive not racist. Each adjective was to segregate the ‘select’ few that officiate in the EPL.
I understand that there are issues with description & quite honestly some of it is utter bollocks.
Your attitude against Wenger is not acceptable to me but it is your prerogative. Leon has issues but let me explain that I have supported Arsenal from 1967 & have regularly stood in the North bank while I could. I became a season ticket holder for a year & we went undefeated. I then took up the season ticket again 10 years ago. I spend the winter in the warmth of southern climate but I follow Arsenal more than ever as I see all the away matches live on TV in unGodly hours. I am surrounded by Man U fans & a host of others who I have a lot of banter with. My stance on the PGMOL is not without evidence. I thought I was the only one seeing the bias, cheating & absolute disdain with which these self appointed Gods treat the beautiful game. Then I came across Untold Arsenal & the rest is history.
Untold Arsenal is special because of it basic stance at the top of the page. I like that & support it with a passion.
Bit lost as to why fans do not have a local team to support and identify with. In the case of Nigeria surely there are numerous teams to watch live. Supporting a club from another country and never attending games is fine but really is a case of it being your second team. I say this has someone who was born nearer to Arsenal than any other club and have attended many games which included trips abroad. Like NIK I am concerned about the direction Arsenal are moving in and the game is moving so fast these days they are in danger of slipping out of the coveted top four which may prove difficult to reenter. Someone mentioned the Irish of the 50s and 60s and a good deal of them would be found on the terraces at Highbury. I was one of them.
@ Nik
There you go again, “The truth is that once again we are out of the title race in January”. You didn’t respond to my earlier request for evidence for your spurious claims so let me give you an example of how it’s done.
Chelsea lead the Premiership with 49 points. Arsenal have 41 points. There is a gap of 8 points. There are 18 games left. The FACT is we could finish 46 points ahead of Chelsea. No, I’m not suggesting it is likely but I am suggesting that an 8 point gap is hardly insurmountable when we’re only half way through the season!)
People like you are immensely frustrating because you will not use facts, just statements which are, at best, meaningless. For example, you make extraordinary claims like “lack of silverware” when we’ve won two cups in the last three years.
Exactly how do you expect anyone to take you seriously? If you really think you have a valid argument at least do yourself justice and use some hard evidence. People might still disagree with you but you might get some respect for putting together a credible argument.
Bobome and Menace
If you want to take comfort that the referees are at fault for us failing to win the Premier League for 12 years and for us failing to get past the second round of the champions league then so be it.The fact of the matter is that there is something within our DNA that make Arsenal choke and capitulate when the going gets tough.Wenger in nearly every interview he gives,quotes mental strengt when in fact his teams in the last decade have shown very little of this trait epitomised in the last 3 months of the title race last year.That wasnt down to oil money,referees injuries and aliens Some on here even blamed the supporters at the games.Why is it that at the beginning of each season pundits ,ex pros ex players the press and anyone with an ounce of a football brain can predict what will happen with arsenal when they are under real pressure.That all boils down to our manager who is weak.That is partly because he is the only manager in the 92 professional clubs that play in England that is not under any pressure to succeed.He decides when its time to leave and can carry on picking up his 9 million a year win or lose.Pep Guardiola one of the best managers in world football is under more pressure at city and hes won everthing worth winning twice over.
Good old Menace, never misses a chance to reference me negatively.
Akpome, you must remember Joe Haverty quite fondly. I think he played in the first Arsenal game I ever saw.
I don’t understand why Nik is coming in for criticism for saying we have dropped out of the title race. The simple truth is we have never been in it!
I gave plenty of evidence earlier on this thread why this is the case.
To be a true supporter you sometimes need to question things.
Putting your head in the sand and hoping that things might improve marks you out as of the less informed, casual fans
Goonermikey
An 8 point lead might not be insurmountable to some teams but to Arsenal its a dream.We are a club that folds like a deck of cards when weve had similar points lead on many occasions .Can you point to any trends in the last decade where we have closed a similar gap..No you cant.Maybe Liverpool or City who are better managed,motivated and hungrier than us maybe but for us another season of failure is upon us.
Bring on the top 4 trophy or runners up trophy.That would make most of your season.
@Brickfields Gunners, 06/01/2017 at 4:34 am
Oops! I always knew you have an aptitude for ‘psy-‘something but please, don’t sell yourself short. If the PGMO can be in charge of football in UK (and it evens out in the end as they tell us) then you are more than qualified to oversee the treatment of Nik’s malaise (arsenalprogressophobia) with whichever ‘psy-‘ you apply. I think he’ll even out in the end 😉
@ Gideone – 06/01/2017 at 11:57 pm – Sometimes the old methods do work when people panic . I personally like this form of ‘treatment’ meted to the crazy lady. Apparently there were a lot of agreement seeing from the long queue of people wanting to give a piece themselves.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNkpIDBtC2c
This only my personal opinion and also it may not be legal in many countries !
Wow, just saw this while doing some reading:
‘Everton’s 2-1 win over Arsenal at Goodison Park ended the visitors’ incredible run of more than 10 years without losing on a Tuesday in the Premier League.’
If only the refs were more competent and didn’t give that phantom corner, the streak would not have ended.
Leon @ 3.16 pm
I certainly remember Joe Haverty – fastest thing on 2 legs at the time.
Do you remember Mel Charles, John Charles’ brother?
The second match I went to at Highbury, he was given the ball for a penalty to get him ‘off the mark’ so to speak – he missed it!
For me, as an Arsenal supporter for more than 50 years, losing calamitously is as much a part of it as winning gloriously.
I like this blog as one does tend to get a better level of discussion than most others, without the constant negativity. Having said that, I rarely contribute as I don’t have much to say.
But your Haverty reference made me sit up.
Nice one!
@ Nik
There you go again. It’s pointless even trying to help you. It’s just statements with you. I give up……………and so should you
Ando
I vaguely remember Charles. My understanding was that our manager (Swindon I suppose) bought him on the strength of being John’s brother.
I was only able to go to a few of those 1950’s matches as I was a seaman from the age of seventeen, but always enjoyed the event, if not the results.
I had mates who were Spurs supporters and it was not unusual to go to matches together. Couldn’t do that now.
Re negativity on this blog. It’s encouraged from the top.
I’m grateful for the positivity of this blog and the way it “supports” the club and seeks to look beyond the one dimensional negativity spouted by the media and some “supporters” who aren’t prepared to look beyond the opinions of people who are more concerned with their own ego than facts. Many thanks Tony, Walter et al. Keep up the fantastic work.
Positive words from Preston North End manager on AW and Arsenal.
“When you look at Arsenal and when they are on their game they are as good as anybody in the world.
“The way they pass the ball, the forward runners, they play quick, incisive football and they have shown that over the years now.”
“If we do get to the Premier League one day it won’t be through throwing stupid money at it. That’s the one thing we will never do, and that why I will always look up to a manager like Arsène Wenger. He is a footballing man who has always had the same philosophy. You cannot knock what he has done for his football club over the years. He probably doesn’t need another grilling from me after the game but I’m sure he’ll still call in to sample our scampi, chicken and pies.”
Sound like a good man. Let hope for an entertaining match.
WHAT DO YOU PRACTICE ?
What do you practice? Whatever you practice, you’ll get good at. If you practice complaining, you’ll get very good at it. You will be able to complain about everything.
When your friends are looking at the big harvest moon, everyone in awe of the beautiful evening, you’ll be able to say: “Yes, but it’s so dark!”
So what do you practice in your life? If you practice peace, you’ll get very good at it.
If you practice joy or happiness, you’ll get very good at it.
If you practice knowing yourself, you’ll get very good at it.
You will know who you are. When you begin to know yourself, you begin to realize what a gift you are, and the value of every breath that you are being given.
-Prem Rawat