by Tony Attwood
Most clubs and their owners talk a decent fight when they are forced to, but of course not all of them have the 100% baacking of their fans AND the national media. Liverpool generally are the big exception – they have undying support from Liverpudlians and those who have chosen to follow from elsewhere, and support from the media. This ensures they get lots of extra money coming their way – transfer income is higher because the players on offer have had the Liverpool experience, and the media ceaselessly show Liverpool games live. That in turn sells lots of extra memorabilia at ever higher prices.
So Liverpool can buy whomever they want, and last summer they did. And it was a disaster. It’s like the rich kid buying all the toys and then finding he doesn’t want any of them. But worse than that – those in the club couldn’t believe it had gone wrong, because this was Liverpool and this doesn’t happen to Liverpool.
Yet it had worked in the past, so it was also the model that Chelsea seemed to want to follow, but somehow they cocked up the process too, perhaps feeling that everything could be achieved in the blink of an eye. The Club World Cup winners making transfer mistakes, just like the eternal champions. Who would have thought it! Even worse, it seems the media didn’t really have a clue that Liverpool were getting it wrong and so somehow treated their fall from grace as a temporary affair that would soon be righted.
Certainly, there was a lot of mucking about with the team a year ago, and yes, of course, the sudden death of a colleague affects everyone in many different ways. Such an event is awful, but it happens in all sorts of organisations, and larger organisations that are utterly dependent on the mental well-being of the employees should have a team in place to deal with all unexpected incidents. Of course, player deaths happen thankfully very rarely, but life-changing injuries and loss of form due ot psychological issues happen more often, and the support team is supposed to be there to deal with all of that.
Arrogance has often been a word associated with Liverpool, and maybe they won the league so easily last season they thought that they could spend like Barcelona or Real Mad – meaning buy the most expensive players and if some don’t work out well, who cares? They were certain to win the league again, and that thought was extended by the fact that Chelsea, not Arsenal, were seen as the biggest rivals. And Chelsea didn’t worry anyone much because clubs run by people who don’t know much about football always screw up. As evidence, I offer Tottenham Ho.
So there was a situation last summer in which Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester United were seen as being run by people who simply didn’t know how to build a team, while Arsenal were dismissed because, well all the media said Arsenal were not up to much, what with coming second three seasons running and some fans demanding Arteta be sacked for not having a winning mentality. Liverpool had it all pretty much to themselves and when Chelsea started doing that “sack the manager” thing, the certainty of a good season for Liverpool was extended.
But there was something else going on as well: support. While a few Arsenal supporters said that after five and a half seasons, Arteta should go, most didn’t. And because the media didn’t take Arsenal seriously, so neither did the other big clubs. Which is why when Arsenal started winning a lot, the rest didn’t seem to mind. The media was already preparing the “Arsenal cheating” theories, but somehow the refs didn’t notice.
Surely it couldn’t have been because of our referee previews, showing just how biased some refs can be which made some of them change track? Obviously, we will never know but it is a nice little suggestion to bring up over the final pint.
And certainly, as Arsenal fans grew into the feeling this could be quite a good season, so uncertainty spread elsewhere. As for ManC they looked like a team that couldn’t believe that the referees were not doing what ManC required. After all, they always had done in the past.
Arrogance is a dangerous emotion to have in football. It is ok when you win, win and win again, but any other time it can make both players and supporters look and feel stupid – and while players can go home and count their cash, supporters reflect on just how much supporting this team is costing them. Fans can turn, and when they do, clubs need to beware. Arsenal fans have never turned on Arteta because the man who came before him was so awful in the way he spent transfer funds; his appointment has been seen as a warning ever since. By and large we are still feeling good.
What a load of rubbish. So the great mistake Liverpool made wa….
—- The rest of this post was removed, first because the sender did not porivde a valid email address, and second because it consisted mostly of name calling.
It is interesting however just how many people who disagree with the views expressed on this site do in fact go in for name calling rather than putting forward reasoned points that we can debate.
Anyway we’ve been going for something like 15 years now and the rules have never changed. We just ask people to be polite, and put forward reasoned arguments with evidence.
I hate Piers Morgan with a passion he’s such a knob and a complete embarrassment to the club.
For once, however, I agree with him 100%. How the hell did Bruno Fernades beat Declan to the Player of the Year Award by the Football Writers?
Of course, silly me. They are football writers; they work in the media; the same football media who criticise Arsenal at every turn. Sickening nonetheless.
Off topic a bit, but I’ve been reading so much nonsense on line and in the media that suggests if Arsenal do win the title, it will be more down to the collapse of others as opposed to anything Arsenal have achieved themselves. So, me being me I thought I’d see if there was any credibility in this premise:
24/25
1st Liverpool 84pts
2nd Arsenal 74pts
3rd Man City 71pts
4th A. Villa 66pts
25/26 This is assuming we all win our final matches which looks possible:
1st Arsenal 85pts
2nd Man City 83pts
3rd Man Utd 73 pts
4th Liverpool 67 pts
5th A. Villa 67pts
So, we have from season 24/25 to 25/26:
Arsenal 1st with a massive increase of 11 points
Man City 2nd with a massive increase of 12 points
Man Utd 3rd with an enormous increase of 31 points
Liverpool 4th with a massive drop of 17 points
Aston Villa 5th with an increase of 1 point
So, of the teams in the top 4 last season, the ONLY team to drop off is Liverpool. All the others, Arsenal, Man City, and and A Villa, have all increased their points tally. Arsenal AND Man City by quite considerable amounts.
In other words, IF Arsenal do get over the line it will clearly be of their own volition as opposed to the failings of others.
Now lets look at Liverpool last season, who faced no such accusation regarding ‘others’ falling away and gifting THEM the title.
23/24
1st Man City 91pts
2nd Arsenal 89pts
3rd Liverpool 82pts
4th A Villa 68pts
Again 24/25
1st Liverpool 84pts
2nd Arsenal 74pts
3rd Man City 71pts
4th A. Villa 66pts
So between 23/24 and 24/25:
Man City drop 20 points YES 20 POINTS
Arsenal drop 25 points YES 25 POINTS
A Villa drop 2 points
Liverpool on the other hand only increased their 3rd place finish total of 82pts in 23/24 by 2 to 84pts in 24/25
If ever there was a team that won the title because of the failings of others as opposed to what they actually achieved, it was |Liverpool last season!!!
Yet, there wasn’t a single murmur about Liverpool being ‘gifted’ the title. Or the rest of the league being so poor.
In other words, it’s all just the same old same old. Anything to knock us when we lose, and undermine us when we win.
Rant over.
Apparently , Arsenal fans are ‘ enraged’ and ‘furious’. Why?you may ask , well, it would appear some scurrilous wag of the media variety has seen 3 separate occasions in the Manky115 v Brentford match where the Bees were denied penalties and a sending off. It would seem that the Manky115 employees aka the
P.ro G.erryM.anderers O.rg have devised another way to keep us glued to match results .
None of us will be that surprised to see today’s match fixer officials continue with their ‘dark arts’.
Nitram,
check your maths. From your chart it looks like Arsenal dropped 15 points from ’24 to ’25, not 25. City did drop 20, OMG that’s bad.
Gooner72
Thanks for pointing out my mathematical incompetence. My Maths CSE grade 5 in it’s full glory!!!
But even so, a 20 point drop for Manc115 and a 15 point drop for us, still suggests that it was Liverpool who won the title thanks to the regression of others, as opposed to us, if indeed we do, which is a narrative I have heard being pushed on multiple occasions.
On the other hand Liverpool increasing their points from 82 to 84 hardly suggested a resurgent Liverpool did it, and this season has shown that to be the case.
Where as this season, and assuming victories in all our remaining games, Arsenal will of increased their points by 11. Manc115 by 12 and even Man utd back in the top 4 improving nigh on 30 points.
I didn’t hear a single suggestion that Liverpool won the title last year simply because Arsenal and Manc115 Man Utd and even Chelsea, were so poor.