Thoughts of a Despairing Gooner (Part I)

Like many Arsenal fans at the moment, I feel I need to get something off my chest. I will apologise now if this is walking on frequently trodden ground, I haven't had any time to read some of the numerous Arsenal related blogs and sites over the last few days.

This is not 100% directly related to the Villa game, though for me that game is both a nutshell of Arsenal's season and the straw that broke the camels back. Before I go any further though, having been sat next to them I'd just like to congratulate the Villa away support. They were the noisiest bunch of away fans I've heard at the Emirates in years, even outdoing the Blackpool fans on the opening day. They made more noise in the opening five minutes than the Utd fans did all game when they visited two weeks ago. They never stopped and quite frankly put us to shame, and whilst the Emirates is quiet on annoyingly regular occasions, it's not often I feel that drastic about it compared to the away support. The game itself as mentioned was a nutshell: some nice football, some crap defending, two dodgy refereeing decisions, disallowed goals and hitting the post for the 23rd/24th/79th time this season, I don't think further in-depth analysis is required.

My gripe is not presently with the team (that will come later when the season has truly finished) but with large sections of the support. I am not an "Arsene Knows Best" (AKB) or one of the "Wenger Must Go" crowd, sitting firmly on the fence on that at the present time. What is currently beyond my comprehension is the attitude of (seemingly increasingly large numbers of fans) that we have a god given right to be at the very top of the table every season or to win trophies. If anyone knows their AFC history there have been numerous 10 year+ gaps without us winning things and during all that time we have never stayed at the top end of the table as we have in the last few years. People seem to forget increasingly quickly what times were like pre Wenger (and to a lesser extent George Graham), the odd trophy or cup final every few years if we were lucky.

The "I told you so" attitude of a lot of fans in the last few weeks has quite frankly been shameful. To be honest, most of us with half a football brain could see our capitulation coming a country mile away but a lot of our fans seem to be revelling in our (even worse than usual) end of season collapse. I was brought up to support your team through the good times and bad, and lets face it, while it has been a frustrating season, we still support one of the best clubs in Europe, not a team where getting mid table every year represents a good season or a team struggling against relegation. There are fans of 80 odd other league clubs and god knows how many non-league clubs that would give various limbs and body parts to sit where we have the last few years and that is a comment levelled against us (fairly) by fans of many other clubs this season. The fair weather attitude of some in the last couple of months reminds me of some Man Utd fans at their Mid 90's peak, the second we started to threaten their domination they switched sides. Some people need a very large dose of perspective.

As much as anything else, I despair that it is people like this that are raising the next generation of Arsenal fans; A team must be supported at all times, even if said team contains players like Denilson. I will not raise my children (if i have any) to give up on their team because they're 3rd or 4th in the league, whatever team or sport it is. Even if the team comes last, you still support the team. I'd even wager that there's been more harmony amongst the West Ham fans than certain parts of the Arsenal support this season, and look whats happened to them. People in society give up on things too easily nowadays and that is reflective in the attitudes of some of these fans. And as for fans physically fighting each other at recent games? Pardon the expression but GIVE ME A FUCKING BREAK. We are THE ARSENAL, not the classless lot from down the Seven Sisters Road. We are above such things, or at least I thought we were. This is something that must not be repeated next season, or ever after.

In addition to that, I've heard numerous reports of some supporters really badly verbally abusing other fans at games recently and people like that don't deserve their membership or season tickets (these are probably also the people who don't turn up half the time because they think they've been slighted by the team). Some people won't be happy unless the club splashes lots of money on players and that's fine by me, I'd love to see Parker, Samba, Benzema and a few others at the Emirates. Others won't be happy unless Wenger goes and I'd reserve judgement on that. But if these things were to happen and there was still no success, who exactly then would get the blame? Its high time people stopped complaining and started supporting. I'm sorry but I do not subscribe to the argument that "I've paid my money and I can do what I want". If you seriously want to pay up to 90 quid a time or a grand plus for a season ticket and you spend all your time complaining/heckling/booing, the only person whos losing out is you. If anyone really feels that hard done by, don't renew your season ticket / membership or attend games and make way for someone who actually wants to be there.

That is not a knock against people who feel they are being priced out of attending matches; Undoubtedly the club is not helping matters with the price increase or by doing rediculous things like announcing the attendance as the amount of tickets sold (including season tickets) like they did on Sunday, that being what prompted the "6%, you're having a laugh" chant (one of the best chants I've heard all season). People want success if they're going to forced to stump up more money and I have no issue with that argument. But doing nothing but tearing the club down time and again isn't going to achieve anything and won't get you anywhere. It's also not going to help the handful of world class players we've got want to stay at the club and could be the catalyst for us going backwards next season instead of going up that next rung to success that we all so badly want again. Players like Nasri aren't going to want to stay somewhere they are being abused and even the loyalty of players like Robin Van Persie (who over the last 6 weeks or so has truly grown into a captain of Arsenal in my eyes and a lot of other peoples with his actions on and off the pitch) surely will have limits. It also won't entice new quality players if when they speak to the existing lot about what its like they get the feedback that "the away fans are great but everyone else is s***".

I'm not saying people shouldn't criticise because there's been plenty of grounds for it this season, but not to the point of criticising and doing nothing else; there have been some things associated with fans of this club this year that I never would have expected from fellow Arsenal supporters. It's been a frustrating year, but lets come back to this next year with cooler heads and to actually support the team.

As for the "we should sell X Y and Z" and "we should sign A B and C", that can wait until next time. Apart from Denilson :)

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