Last night on twitter I was furious. I was passionate. I was frustrated. We had just drawn 0-0 at home to the Manchester United and at the final whistles, there were a chorus of boo’s.As the team walked off, sitting second in the league, 1 point off top, those around me were getting on the players back, demanding the head of the manager. Overreacting.
I kind of understood fans reactions. We have not played brilliantly for the last few games. 1 win in 4 is not the form of Champions. 0-0 against the worst Manchester United side in the Premier League era. They were their for the taking. However, booing? Leave it out. We are 2nd in the league.
Could we have made another substitution? Perhaps. But who? Podolski? Bendtner? Sanogo? Would they have been more effective than Giroud, Ozil & Cazorla? Who knows. And yes, in the final 5 minutes, we could have gone for it a bit more, but when faced with an attacking line up of Rooney, Van Persie and Januzaj, we became cautious. We had learnt from our defeat to Dortmund at home where we pushed forward for the winner, only to lose the game. A point is better than no points. That point could be very important at the end of the season.
Arsenal have lost just once in 2014. The press have labelled us as some sort of club in crisis, and I feel some of our fans have begun to believe this. We are second in the league. Still in the FA Cup & still in the Champions League. That is certainly not the sign of a crisis club. A crisis club is in Manchester, From Champions to seventh. A crisis club is in Middlesex. Spending £100m, only to sack the manager. Arsenal are certainly not a club in crisis.
Crisis Noun 1. A time of intense difficulty or danger.
If we finish trophyless and third this season, it would not be a massive failure. It would not have been a poor season. Manchester City spend £100m more on wages a season than Arsenal. Chelsea £50m more. In a game where money is king, these two are leaders. The fact that we are currently sandwiched between the 2 in second place is testament to the team. Our squad is not as big. And that comes down to wage bill size. Their spending power is scary. So lets not get on the teams back if we finish 3rd, as it will not be a failure.
As for Mesut Ozil. People again seem to be eating up the press criticism and getting on his back. Way to go Arsenal fans. We demand the club spend money on world class talent. We spend money on world class talent. And than we harass him. Why would any other world class player want to join Arsenal if, after a couple of poor games, the fans get on his back. And he has not even been that poor, look at the stats.
A flop is Erik Lamela. £30m, has played just 9 games in the league, has yet to score and only has 1 assist to his name. Or Marouane Fellaini. £27.5m, played just 11 games in all competitions, and has more red cards then goals or assists. Or how about Roberto Soldado? £26m and as many goals from open play as Bendtner…Ozil certainly is not a flop. Stop believing the press. Stop giving them fuel for the fire.
Arsenal fans acted spoilt last night. I am currently reading Rebels for the Cause. It is a brilliant book based on the alternative history of Arsenal. And what is interesting? It seems we at Arsenal always like a moan. The same problems now – ticket prices, moving stadium, players earning too much – have existed throughout our history. Yet we are still here. Fans tend to forget their history. They forget the barren spell of the 70s & 80s, 18 years between titles, 16 years between trophies. They look at the Graham era through rose tinted glasses. Yet even when Graham was winning trophies, fans did not take to him and his style of play. His man management of Anders Limpar, Paul Davis, Rocky.
During the early Wenger years, Arsenal fans became spoilt. Successful attractive football. And that showed through last night. The booing was no more than a spoilt child who wanted another cookie. It was like moaning that you were sleeping with Kelly Brook when what you wanted was Mila Kunis. It is childish.
Last night, people accused me of not understanding football. Even of not being an Arsenal fan. I am sorry if me not liking fan’s booing a team sitting second offends you. That’s a lie, I am not sorry. Back your side, through thick and thin. If you boo when the team sit in second place, your type of ‘support’ is really not needed. If not being an Arsenal fan is backing the side no matter what, going home and away and Europe, then yes, I am not an Arsenal fan. Now show me your credentials…
Booing the team in my opinion is a disgraceful act. I have seen individuals (Eboue) get booed, and I have seen the entire team getting booed after a poor performance. But booing when we sit second? That is shameful. We are not Chelsea, we are not Tottenham, who both boo at the slightest hint of anything poor. We are The Arsenal. We are supposed to be a classy club. Show some class. Stop being spoilt.
Keenos
She Wore A Yellow Ribbon 
we are tired of Giroud striking 😦 .. Is like a an empty place in the match !! Wenger has to open his eyes and give podolski or bendtner a chance , bcz if he don’t he would regret it at the end !
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Good and sensible article. Remember you have had injuries & players out (as have we); your squad isn’t as good as City’s or Chelsea’s, Giroud in particular looks like he needs a rest. Re Ozil – maybe his old managers saw that he couldn’t play every game and perhaps he should be subbed a bit more to keep his impact levels high. Don’t agree with Fellaini being a flop – hasn’t played enough games yet to be labelled as such.
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spot on mate. we have the worst fans at match days especially at the emirates. the away fans are admirable. remember our fans at anfield? thats how it should be, win or loose, be behind the players period.
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Please mate, spare me your “back your team no matter what” rubbish. If you want to stick your head in the sand, go ahead. Most fans though are wising up to the fact that we are seeing – yet again – the start of the now annual collapse. EVERYONE could see this coming and what did the messiah do about it? Sweet feck all. Nothing. Nada. Unless you call buying an injured veteran strengthening the team.
Fans were not booing the players – they were booing Wenger. And rightly so. Our team is now infected with this man’s losing mentality. Don’t believe me? Look at our record against Chelsea, Man Utd and Man City over the last 5-6 years and tell me I’m wrong.
It was laughable last night, watching 5 central midfielders tripping over each other while nobody was out wide in the acres of space. Meanwhile, Giroud spent the whole game with his back to goal, and then when he does get a solid chance he fluffs it. All huff and puff with no cutting edge at all. Yet all the time we have “the best finisher at the club” (Wenger’s words) in Podolski warming the bench for the full 90.
Wenger out.
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Wenger out? You are the biggest fool alive! We’ve been at the top of the table almost all season, we are just one point below and yet you have the guts to say Wenger out? You are a fucking disgrace! “Annual collapse?” you clearly having been watching the same league. for the past 3 or 4 seasons we have improved dramatically from January upwards, so what are u on about? I bet u are some silly 18 yr old who’s never been to a match.
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No Bodurin you are the disgrace for not realising what you yourself have said. At some point in the last 6 years we have had that period of the season where we collapse. Sometimes it’s February, sometimes November and once the start of the season (8-2 anyone). It happens every year to our squad and yet surprisingly never to United (until now under Moyes anyway), chelsea, or city. The fact our form has improved in the second half of the last few seasons is because it was soo bad in the first. Otherwise wouldn’t we have won something in the last 8/9 years?
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What disappoints me most is how some Arsenal fans eat up everything the negative and biased media spews abut our club and then turn this negativity to the players, staff and other fans. It’s just depressing when the ‘hate’ is from so called gooners
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What amazes me with you Wenger Appologists is how you always blame the media for the Wenger Out Brigades opinions, infact it is obvious that these problems of not being able to beat the top four and soon Liverpool as well, eminates from the manager not sufficiently investing in the squad, the problem is you cant see through your blind loyalty, Arsenal fc not Arsene fc
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Great article. You lost me on the Mila Kundis comment though. I don’t rate her at all.
😉
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Well said bro .You are a real gunner,if every single arsenal fan is like you, appreciative and supportive irrespective of results ,Emirates stadium wld have being a better place. At least im happy we still have intelligent people around. Thanks a mil bro,u make my day.
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Bendtner has two league goals, just as Lamella does. Just for your info.
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really disapointd wid d draw…but booing was unnecessary..actualy atmosphere @ emirates yestday was not gud..now v hav 2 get behind d team..COME ON ARSENAL
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Crisis Noun 1. A time of intense difficulty or danger.
Well we are in a time of intense difficulty or danger,it’s also known as February ,a time when Arsenal begin to fade away from contention in all competitions as our wafer thin, badly managed,and overpaid squad of also rans collapse in a heap as the balloon filled with Wenger hot air collapses in a heap ! I am not a so called gooner I have supported this club with passion for 45 years . It is those the run the club that fail to give me the ONLY thing I expect of an Arsenal team ,Honest endeavour !
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i wish every arsenal fan would read this article!
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Spot on article! Most fans don’t understand loyalty. Loyalty is not supporting the bad. Loyalty is praising good and honestly criticising the bad, all for growth. If all fans are like you. Arsenal will soon go to relegation. For crying out loud!, for goodness sake, its unfair, its injustice to the whole team, to fans, to podoski and others on the bench that giroud lasted 90mins. It totally unfair. He just keeps flipping the ball and can’t direct a simple header. Koscienly did better with his header. Boo wenger and boo sense into his head. Let him send his country man back home. We need our arsenal we need our joy, we need our pride back! Simple
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You can sit and applaud all you like but for the amount we pay to sit there and watch a team of uninterested, half hearted players jogging around while Wenger points from the sidelines just telling his midfield to pass it backwards all the time then I think we have a right to be very upset with last night. Just get out of second gear and have a go, don’t accept a draw. The lack of movement, leadership and effort last night was amazing – for a team supposedly going for the title it was pretty disgraceful. You might say that its a point against Man Utd but that is the worst Man Utd team I have seen in decades and everybody seems capable of scoring against them other than us. So disappointing. So why the hell can’t fans show that rather than just sit and clap off a team who had no desire to win. Booing might not be the way about it but if I was a player on that pitch and was applauded off after that performance then maybe I would think it was acceptable to walk around and always play it backwards, canter around or play incredibly predictable football- its not acceptable. So go ahead and slate me all you like but there were too many people in that team last night who were just standing around and not earning their crust and when the final 5 minutes came and Wenger was still pointing to Arteta to keep playing it backwards and Per kept knocking it to Kos and back again – GET SOME DESIRE!!!!
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the problem for my ARSENAL is Wenger
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I am liking the loving u are showing mate and I applaud your loyalty, but freedom of speech is allowed and personal opinions are inevitable. wenger is a stubborn man and at the moment he is living by the sword. his summer spending gave me cause for concern, where he chased a top striker or two all summer, but settled for a midfielder. then the winter window came, everyman and his dog could see what we needed, nothing had changed we still needed a top striker. but yet again he failed, even with last minute bids for kalou, cisse and klose.
imo he has been very lucky with injuries, in that 4 of his main back 5 have been fit for most of the season. had szcesney, sagna, koscielny and mertesacker suffered or still do suffer injuries we will be in trouble.
one final thing I don’t buy this our squad isn’t as big as Chelsea and man citys. we have 28 players in our first team squad that is more than both Chelsea and man city. the difference is quality not quantity. in addition to the 28 we have another 27 professionals on the books again that is more than man city and Chelsea.
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I agree it is quality not quantity. Look at Citys strikers. All of 4 them get over 100k a week. We don’t pay any of ours of 70k. Same with midfielders. Wonder how much garcia, or navas are on compared to arteta or gnabry
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All this booing and criticism were caused by AW bcos of lack flexibility,lack of quality in depth and lack of summer spending
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Keenos you have clearly missed the point. It’s was booing directed at the manager for his inability to develop with modern practise. He has failed to understand that football has moved past his methods and he is being sooooo stubborn by refusing to adapt. This is what made Fergie soo successful as he embraced modern tech, training and the need for change.
It was also frustration that if your average fan can see that not listening to your medical team causes injury, having a large squad you clearly don’t trust is at least malpractice and the club’s complete failure in the last two transfer windows, when we clearly need at least a cb, dm, winger & (most importantly) world class striker despite have more money than ever before thanks to the new commercials from puma, Emirates and TV revenue.
After all the above and more I have not mentioned, then I think everyone in the ground has a right to boo considering this season should have been the one where we took advantage of a terrible United and the rest in transition.
(P.s we don’t expect Arsene to spend 50m on one player but we also know he could if he wanted to and if you can (suarez) without putting the club at risk (which we all know they can) then why wouldn’t you. Football clubs are there to try and win competitions which in turn leads to more revenue anyway, not hoard money to inflate share prices)
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This article is far from spot on!
Arsene Wenger has conditioned the minds players and fans alike into believing in something that will never be attainable under the current leadership of Arsenal. I find it unfortunate that many fans seem unwise to the propaganda of the Arsenal machine.
They will have you believe that Ozil was the biggest catch of the century and, when Balotelli joins in the summer, that he is an angel deserving a chance to prove himself once again.
Seriously, do you really believe that? Ozil to Arsenal was like David Beckham to Real Madrid. A money making ploy to enhance profile and in turn raise the profits while making many believe that Arsenal really are serious about football?
Next, Puma’s record deal of £30 million a year? Hmmmm, Isn’t Balotelli sponsored by Puma?
I wouldn’t be surprised if Kim Källström was part of the whole “Puma” business package? Why else would you take on someone with a fractured back at such a critical time?
This is nothing more than Arsenal as a business convincing everyone to “buy” into it!!!
Winning is just not quite a priority. A new 3 year contract at £25 million a year (£75.000.000) and another 3% raise in ticket prices is high priority for Arsene and Arsenal!!!
You still think we applaud the leadership of Arsenal?
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Thank you for your article. It is nice to know that there are others who love Arsenal, and do not beleive they are owed something for being a gunner. We do not want to become another club fuelled by short term answers to short term needs.
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Seriously are you implying that people who rightly complain about are complete embarrassment of transfers (buying a player with fractured back because you acted to late to buy anyone else) are not real supporters??????????
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Most “passionate” fans do love Arsenal, they hate greedy money driven profiteers who take them for a ride!
I guess you don’t have (Pay for) a season ticket?
When you pay the highest price, you are owed something in return (Respect, Value and above all loyalty back from the club).
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You are absolutely right. These fans are stupid. Arsenal are in a very strong position. Yesterday, despite the draw, I was happy because we played as a team. Manchester United with their RVP, Mata, Rooney, Valencia and Janujaj were powerless. We are going to go from strength to strenght. The loss of Gibb, Ramsey and Walcott has been massive for the team these recent weeks. I sincerely think, we’ll beat the hell out of Liverpool and Bayern Munich. We are a top team and Wenger though his recent failures, I’m convinced Wenger is the greatest manager in the world. Long live to Arsenal.
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Convinced by what? 9 years almost without a trophy. Buying no one when we needed to strengthen except a man who can’t play due to injury which he knew about, but couldn’t not sign as he waited till too late to do anything else. Running Ramsey into the ground and then rushing him back from injury which has put him out for longer? Ruining Giroud through not have any striker he can trust to rotate. Having no tactical awareness to actually prepare for how other teams will play against you? Ignoring everyone in the club who is a paid specialist to advise you because you want to trust your gut feeling?
Oh yes he’s the best manager in the world (just in case somehow someone doesn’t get it, that last line was sarcasm)
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Richard, you are either taking the piss or a complete moron. “Beat the hell” out of Bayern!!!!!
Can I have some of your drugs please mate, I am a lifelong Arsenal fan who went to my first match back in 1970 and with all the will in the world I cannot see us “Beating the hell” out of Bayern with the team and especially, the manager, that we have atm. A lot has been said about Giroud and his performance last night, personally I thought that considering the (lack of) support that he had for most of the game, that he put on a decent show, he certainly put more effort into the game than a lot of his team-mates and herein is one of the problems with wenger. Giroud ran himself into the ground and there was a point with about 15 mins to go, where after yet another lung bursting run from front to back and back again, he was stood in the centre of the pitch, hands on knees, looking absolutely fucked and play went around him. What did wenger do????? Left him out there to knacker himself out even further whilst Podolski, bentder & co, all sat on the bench thinking “What the fuck have we got to do to get a game here?”. Is that the action of the “Greatest manager in the world”? If you truly think so then I think that you should go back to the comfort of your padded cell matey 🙂
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those who bued are those who love arsenal. Is like a father seing his son going astray, he does every thing to make him know he has a problem. For me there is no diference finishing second and fourth. What we need is the title i.e first position. Arsenal is a big club to stay without title for the past eight years. This is why true fans are angry for this opportunity to pass us by. I think wenger is the right man, but the problem is he thinks he is perfect. He does not want to learn his mistakes. Every gunner agree with me that we needed another forward to give giroud competition. What did wenger do? He ended up signing unjured midfielder. It is now backfiring against us. The problem with our current squad is giroud, bcos he cant take his chance. Wenger failed us in the january transfer window. This is the reason every true guner should be angry. We cant let this season pass us by.
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Top top article, spot on. Last night was the last game I go to at The Emirates………….had enough of our shit fans, don’t enjoy it like I used to. There is a better atmosphere in my living room! Ozil for me was or best player last night, he needs pace ahead of him, he is also mentally too quick at times………..COYG!!!
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When the going gets tough, that’s when you need to show character as a fan.
This kind of weak mentality from some supporters just shows them up.
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I agree. I reckon man utd with mata now included and van piss taker and rooney fit. that they will take points of the teams above them.
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Fans calling fans is just stupid. Come on, we’re brother and sisters. Some of us are just more passionate that others and express it differently, that’s all..
My only question is this. “Will you feel the same at the end of the month if Arsenal are out of the CL, FA cup and falling down the league table, below the likes of Spurs”?
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Yes, I partly agree with you, that all considered we are doing quite well, perhaps even punching above our weight. But all of this depends upon what our expectations are. If you consider that a regular top four finish satisfies your expectations of success then the club is achieving everything you want from it. Clearly, the board is satisfied with this, as it is offering a lucrative new contract to a manager that has not won a (meaningful) trophy for ……..? years. I doubt if any other tops clubs would have done this. Arsenal F.C has to decide if it really wants to make a serious challenge for major honours and it seems that all the indications are that it doesn’t and I believe that it is extremely unlikely that the club will win any more silverware with AW.
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chelsea and mancity have both invested 1 billion just to win. we invested half a billion in infrastructure to try to keep up with them. you cant just say the board is only interested in top 4 as obviously they want the biggest rtns to pay down the debt of stadium. finishing higher in the lg and champs lg add more for the club. what u think that they would not like to get prize money and tv money for doing well in competitions? can you not understand the link between revenue and infrastructure or should we take a gamble like and spend a billion try to break the billionaires boys club?
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Maybe people were booing because they paid £80 and got zero value for money,. I’d be pissed off if I’d paid that for the most passionless Arsenal-United match in recent years. When fans wallets are bleed then you better expect booing.
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And at least the fans that booed stayed till the end of the game. What kind of support is it to leave before the final whistle!
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Booing our team #afc in their barren match against man u was shameful and totally uncalled for. We need faith, we need belief and we must demonstrate this by constantly showing support and having kind words for our players. I believe that the season is still very much open and with the possible return from injury of our seasons star performer Rambo, #afc can still stamp its authority and dominance on the field of play and the league title after all said and done….
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I don’t remember there being booing at Highbury and there were times we played a lot worse then, maybe rose tinted glasses. Must be the influx of the new style of fan the result of over pricing and chasing the Yankeee and Asian dollar.
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Pingback: We are the Arsenal, we boo when we want | She Wore A Yellow Ribbon
Okay everything was sensible until the end. Chelsea cheers for players like Drogba who have left the club. Chelsea is classy, Arsenal fans boo at van persie who left the club. Arsenal fans are a disgrace to soccer, Chelsea’s manager mourinho fines players who flop. Be classy or go follow a different sport
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