George Rodger seeks out the road best traveled in today’s route map to footballing happiness.
If football is like a religion, then it’s little wonder that people are losing their belief, their faith and ultimately, their way.
Now I am not a religious man. I am no theologian. In fact Doctor Sheldon Cooper likely has more faith than me. But I am pretty sure that the idea is not that you expect your God to make you happy and provide you with an existence that suits you expectations. Sadly though that appears to be exactly what your average Arsenal fan expects from the club.
They buy tickets, wear the latest replica shirts and maintain subscriptions to Arsenal Player. Surely that means the club has a duty to make them happy? I mean this is a big investment we fans have here. A great deal of time and money is spent supporting the club.
It’s a huge commitment on our part.
Where are the returns on our personal investments? We don’t invest like this so as some cheeky Chav from the King’s Road can snigger at us in the pub and make us feel like second-class fans.
Oh no!
We deserve much better than that after all we have done for Arsenal.
But ask yourself.
What exactly have you done for Arsenal?
By “Arsenal” I don’t mean the stadium, team or board. I mean the institution. The whole package. Everything and everyone connected to the club.
But some people blame the club for their unhappiness. For them, their unhappiness is the fault of Arsene, Stan or even, this week or maybe last week, some poor Ivorians. And they should bloody well know how they are not meeting our expectations.
Well here is the thing – it is actually your own fault.
Everyone should look to themselves. Instead of demanding that the club makes your life better, try making your own life better.
You can do this by simply enjoying the football. And helping others to enjoy it.
It must be better if, as human beings, we channel our efforts into making life happier for those people at the club rather than trying to make them miserable. If you are concentrating on bringing misery to others, booing at the ground, making banners designed to hurt people, or ‘just’ abusing other fans who only want to enjoy the team and the game, what does that say about you as a human being?
We should attempt to be positive with our efforts, and make those around us and at the club happier. Not try to bring them to their knees because we want more for ourselves. The easier we make it for the manager, players and club to do their jobs to the best of their ability, the more we will all benefit.
So why not try being responsible for the happiness of others rather than demanding that they meet your individual needs? Life is what you make of it, but presently it seems to me that some are determined to make it miserable for others.
Lets help the club – and each other – by supporting the club rather than trying to destabilize it.
Take a trip along Happy Street and choose the ‘high’ road rather than the ‘my’ road.
See where you end up; you might just surprise yourself.
You can catch George in the fast lane on Twitter @Blackburngeorge
Positively Arsenal 
Amen to that Alabama
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Interesting post George and good follow up points Mean Lean. I think computer football games also have a lot to do with the change. People play these games and think it gives tthem inside knowledge about how to do it in the real world. After all, it’s easy in the fantasy world. You buy players as easily as doing your weekly shop, you play strange tactics and formations that would never work in reality. You control the players in a way that they cannot be controlled in reality and there is no human error, players out of form, lucky/unlucky bounces or inconsistent decision making by dodgy officials. The truth is that they are weak and cannot handle the uncertainty of real life, which is made up of thousands of known and unknown variables, many of which are not in your control. It takes a level of maturity to accept what is not in your control and focus your energy on what is in your control.
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“25 “world class” assholes could win all the trophies in the world, and it just wouldn’t mean that much to me if I can’t like them.”
100% agree.
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This may seem a bit weird but supporting or following Arsenal doesn’t make me happy on a daily basis, but then it doesn’t alter my mood to the ultra-negative either. When we win its a sense of relief, when we lose, as long as we haven’t been screwed I can function without that internal niggle getting in the way. Don’t get me wrong there are moments of pure joy, 89, 93 bouncing around Wembley with a complete stranger, Smudger’s strike, the list could go on. Then we have moments of pure inspiration (henry’s lob against Man u), so these are occasions where the club and players have made me happy or silencing me with inspiration. But does the club make me happy on a daily basis, no. Thankful that its there though and will continue to be.
However I do count myself lucky to have been dragged up as a gooner.
I do however class myself as being a fan of football before being a fan of Arsenal (I will watch any game), and maybe that’s where I differ from some. (hope this makes sense).
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I’m Spartacus!
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I’m Spartacus!
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I. Yayaya
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this is what should happen when you bad mouth Arsene to a man in a red shirt
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What Alabama said. That is why I never want to see the day that Arsenal has unlimited money pumped into it or a manager like Mouronho at the club, who will alter what is known as Wenger ball. I would prefer watching the young players make a name for themselves and enjoy watching my Arsenal play the beautiful game beautifully, trophies or not.
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Good posts ML and also Passenal.
There’s a guy works down the chip shot swears he’s Spartacus.
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I read that Arsene is looking at this youngster.
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I sense that in the entirely unlikely event that Jose were to roll up at the club it would not take him very long to adopt the ethic of excellent football that runs through our club like a stick of rock
As I said yesterday while Jose has a number of unfortunate characteristics he is one formidably focused professional in a game in which two bob two season wonders abound
Admittedly Jose’s third season tends to be terminal but you get the idea
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Afobe Injured at millwal.
I can’t figure out why we send our guys to clubs like this and Bolton and hull and some such places.
Why not to Swansea or Reeding and wigen and wbrom.
Surly they will learn more and better for their health.
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New post up
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