There aren’t many Arsenal fans who plan on attending a Partick Thistle cup tie against Falkirk on a squally Tuesday night. I wasn’t one of them until a friend I was visiting in Glasgow suggested it. The Jags lost 1-0 and by the reaction of the crowd it wasn’t a surprising outcome. Around the hour mark two subs were made, which was followed by booing and thick Glaswegian messages of disapproval, such as: “YE BUNCH O’ OVERPAID BASTARDS!” Despite the odd burst of ‘come on the Jags’ whenever a corner was won the home support was out to see their team lose from the start. It was almost as if they were seeking the depression. Ultimately it didn’t help the team and this led me back to when Arsenal experimented with booing Emmanuel Eboue after a poor show against Wigan in December 2008.
Booing the home team has become quite common throughout the football league in England. I can’t say if it’s always been that way, although the black and white videos of supporters wearing bowler hats and waving rolled up newspapers suggests a loud tut was the heaviest things used to get in the good old days. Sometimes it’s done without much malice or simply because fans find it funny, especially when it’s John Terry. Bramall Lane was the first venue to witness booing this season after Sheffield United lost 3-0 to QPR, so sealing the sacking of Kevin Blackwell. The England players were booed during the World Cup in South Africa. Then, before the Hungary game, talk was more about whether England fans had the right to boo the national team on their homecoming and less about Fabio Capello’s new squad.
The Emirates is generally an amicable household and so I use ‘experimenting’ to describe what happened with Eboue. Like a well-to-do kid being forced into trying a cigarette by the wrong crowd, it too seemed there was guilt hanging over the Emirates that day. The fans had taken a puff of booing and felt bad about it. What would mum and dad think? Were the Gooners to become hooked on booing after just one toke? Well no, because it wasn’t long before Eboue was touted as a fan’s favourite after some excellent displays and the relationship was dully repaired. Arsenal fans had quickly stubbed out what is considered by many as the ultimate sacrilege in football: booing one of your own.
The time has come for Arsenal to deliver though. This is a nervy time for the club to meet success and no doubt the fans will be on edge too. More than ever the Premiership is rich in competition and many clubs spending heavily on players are vying for right of passage to the Premier League crown. So if the club can’t reach the expectations once again it’s worrying to think that Arsenal’s faithful could easily try something harder than a cigarette. It would be painful to see booing become the permanent drug of choice at the Emirates. But sitting at Partick, watching the players being ripped apart inside out from the terraces makes you realise that fans can be more important than the players. Even Frankie Boyle couldn’t resist throwing his arms around a few rows in front. No doubt, the Partick players couldn’t wait to get home.
Blackpool’s fans were a credit last Saturday despite losing 6-0. This could easily be the kind of loyalty which repays the club with league safety come the end of the season. Arsenal could do well to mirror the sea-siders and while we shouldn’t confuse warranted criticism and healthy frustration with running down the team, it is valuable to realise what ardent support can do. Yes the players should perform with or without the fans patriotism. From what I’ve seen though, nobody should end up like Partick fans on Tuesday night. When a Thistle defender cleared the ball into the skies one fan shouted “KICK IT HIGHER MAN”. Cynicism had all but replaced the singing inside Firhill Stadium which was absent from start to finish.
More than ever, I anticipate this season will be as much about the Arsenal fans as it will be about the team. This means packed stadiums. The one disappointment to the opening home fixture was seeing so many empty seats that would be filled if Arsenal were playing Manchester United. I’m of the opinion that it’s not always about the price of a ticket but sometimes an issue of not going to a game that is all but a formality, such as Blackpool was. Maybe I’m wrong, but could the prospect of a straightforward home win be a turn off for some fans? Are we in an age winning isn’t enough, it needs to be equally as exciting? Maybe to some a predictable 6-0 win over Blackpool just isn’t so.
For those who do show it’s OK to bellow out. Why the embarrassment to chant back at the Blackpool fans, or any other small club who impeded on the Emirates? Don’t feel sorry. Don’t think to let them have their moment. Stuff ‘em, whoever they are, because from greasy ammunitions workers borrowing a kit from Nottingham Forest, to one of the most recognisable faces in football, Arsenal have earned the right. So long as the fans find their voice and Arshavin and co. keep off England’s equivalent to Scotch pies and scoobie snacks (Partick player’s panting and puffing gave away their heretical diet) hopefully the only bunch of overpaid bastards come the end of the season will be those at Manchester City. De ye ken, pal?
THE ARSENAL
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