Modern football supporters

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Telegraph article today
Sorry for the poor copy but I did it on my phone

You will recognise a lot of posters on TFC in this piece

Welcome to modern football fandom, where every defeat is a disgrace, every poor performance a disaster and every game, good or bad, sparks a wild, frenzied reaction on social media bordering, in some cases, on the hysterical.
Quite what has happened to football fans in this country is a mystery, but a disease is running through the ranks of supporters. Many of the symptoms are getting worse and the long-term side effects are increasingly problematic.
They include Transfer Market Fever. New signings are lauded, often beyond all recognition of their achievements and accompanied by all the pomp and fanfare of a Royal wedding.
Premier League clubs are currently locked in battle, not so much on the pitch, but on their social media feeds, battling to outdo themselves with their unveiling videos, which exercise the same hype as a trailer for a Hollywood blockbuster, often with the same number
REMEMBER ALEXIS SANCHEZ PLAYING THE PIANO ON THE PITCH AT OLD TRAFFORD? THAT SHORT VIDEO GOT MORE SOCIAL MEDIA INTERACTION THAN ANY TRANSFER IN THE WORLD AND WAS BOASTED ABOUT IN THE BOARDROOM AND HELD UP AS A SIGN OF BRAND STRENGTH BY CHIEF EXECUTIVE ED WOODWARD.

Sanchez turned out to be a terrible signing, a monumental waste of money and left for Inter Milan saying he had wanted to return to Woolwich after just one training session. That comment did not come with a slickly edited video and quirky camera angles of him staring at or stroking the club badge.
Hell hath no fury like a football fan who is frustrated by a lack of new signings. Take some of Liverpool’s global fanbase, for example, who bombarded some of my colleagues on Merseyside with abuse and grave warnings about the champions impending collapse in form if they did not jolly well hurry up and open the cheque book to sign someone or other.
Forget winning the title for the first time in 30 years, the year after winning the Champions League, if Jurgen Klopp could not see that the team needed new players he was an idiot and would drag the team down. As for owners FSG, what have they ever done for Liverpool, what do they know about football? Nothing compared to James76868 from Sidcup on Twitter. And anyone who argued differently with these furious keyboard warriors was a clown, clueless or another word beginning with C.
Liverpool have since signed Spain international Thiago from Champions League winners Bayern Munich and versatile forward Diogo Jota from Wolves and all is calm. Oh, they have also won their first two Premier League games, including a chastising 2-0 defeat for Chelsea who have spent upwards of £200 million this summer trying to close the gap.
Which brings us on to the abuse fired at a manager who has the misfortune to lose a game. Gone are the days when you judged a manager at the start of a new season, while bedding in new signings or trying to change the style of play, after a few games. Two is long enough apparently.
This is called Frothing at the Mouth while Typing Syndrome. Frank Lampard, if you listened to one radio phone-in show, is under pressure after that Liverpool defeat because the club have backed him in the transfer market, and he has to deliver. Yes, he does, but that does not mean he has to win every game and it is OK to lose to the champions with 10 men, if you take a moment to reflect. A silly idea I know...
Or take a look at Manchester United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, whose team went on a tremendous run at the end of last season to qualify for the Champions League.
United were awful last weekend and lost at home to Crystal Palace [who did not win a single game when football resumed after lockdown but have won two out of two in this campaign].
Having reached the semi-finals of the Europa League, United’s players had the shortest break of any club and were playing their first game of the season. Palace were playing their second. United really were bad, but afterwards you would have thought they had just lost their third game in a row and Solskjaer was fighting for his job after a miserable end to last season.
The reactions could be loosely split into two camps. Solskjaer was never up to the job. should never have been given it and this one defeat and shoddy performance proves it unequivocally. Or, United should have signed more players, the people running the club do not know what they are doing and, if new signings are not made, this season is going to be an unmitigated disaster.
I mean, it was United first’s Premier League defeat since January 22, but yeah OK, sack the manager, the board and for goodness sake sign a new centre-back.
The debate over Woodward and Solskjaer’s suitability is not a new one and there are long-standing causes for concern with the former, but this was the opening weekend of a new season and, well, was it not all a bit over the top?
As for Jose Mourinho at Tottenham, a friend sent a message to a WhatsApp group I am a member of after Southampton took the lead on Sunday saying the Portuguese wouldn’t make Christmas as Spurs manager. Tottenham won 5-2.
It is a similar situation at West Ham and Newcastle United where every defeat leads to rabid responses labelling both managers dinosaurs, tactically inept and in need of their P45s.
Of all the managers in the Premier League, those two walk around with a constant target because huge swathes buy into the idea they are out of touch and out of date, regardless of whether they win or lose. Every defeat brings the same abuse and dire assessments.
When Newcastle were thrashed by Brighton 3-0 on Sunday, Tyneside, on the back of some good recruitment and an impressive opening weekend victory away at West Ham, went into meltdown. Some called for Bruce to be sacked, pointing to a poor run of form at the end of last season, even though Newcastle were safe from relegation far earlier under him than they had been in each of the two seasons before he arrived.
One Twitter expert offered the view that Bruce’s record of 16 wins in 48 games as Newcastle manager really was not good enough, while others waxed lyrical about Brighton boss Graham Potter’s ideas and Brighton’s clear identity under him. It is worth pointing out, not that anyone was in the mood to listen, that Brighton have won just 12 out of the 44 games Potter has been manager.
Nuance, though, is lost. Potter is doing a fine job on the south coast and his team played superbly at the weekend. Yet, strip it back, and Bruce has done marginally better at Newcastle than Potter has at Brighton.
Not according to the Twitter mob, hammering angrily on their phone keyboards because nobody wants to listen to reason in the rush to condemn and be harsher than the next armchair expert spitting venom at a flickering screen.
Perhaps it is football in lockdown that has done it. No longer able to attend the games or meet with friends and family before or after to discuss and dissect, people are venting even more on social media platforms.
We have all said stupid things about football managers and players in the heat of the moment. My brother, for example, has labelled more players unfit to wear the shirt at Leyton Orient than I’ve been to games in the last 10 years.
Yet, two weeks into the season, there does seem to be a collective losing of the plot. Forget judging managers, teams and players over a sensible period of time – 10 games used to be a common sense view - judge them now, immediately and make sure you take as an extreme or melodramatic view as possible because on social media, the more angry and furious the more attention you receive.
We used to walk away from people like that in the pub... it is all just noise, but it is getting louder and louder and is becoming excruciating to listen to.
 
It’s not just football fans, it’s everything. Thanks to social media everyone has an opinion and there are only two possible answers to every public post, which almost always rapidly descends into shouty exchanges. I restrict myself to a couple of forums like this, but steer well clear of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
 
I can't claim to hate modern supporters since I find the idea of hating someone from beyond a screen quite worthless.

But I definitely get the feeling that some of these so called fans online need another hobby in addition to football. Something to take their mind of it and provide them a bit of a healthier life.
 
The media play their part though, writing cliclkbait articles with cliclkbait titles. They know controversy sells!

TalkSport is just one big wind-up, its how it makes money.

Some fans do get carried away with victories as well in particular Gooners. Win and they're back and it's St Totteringham shite again and all that bollocks. Then they lose and it's all Kroenke Out and tears before bedtime.

Try not to be too down when your team loses and don't get carried away when they win. Ultimately there's nothing you can do about it either way.
 
A journalist writing a piece on the issues of modern football is hilarious.

They are the twats that were the catalyst for most of it.

Probably more sour grapes as they aren't defining the narrative anymore
 
A journalist writing a piece on the issues of modern football is hilarious.

They are the twats that were the catalyst for most of it.

Probably more sour grapes as they aren't defining the narrative anymore
You probably need to read the article, how you can claim that journalists are responsible for the psyche of a nation is a long reach, to say the least.
Your last sentence make little or no sense, given the context of the article, IMHO
 
Telegraph article today
Sorry for the poor copy but I did it on my phone

You will recognise a lot of posters on TFC in this piece

Welcome to modern football fandom, where every defeat is a disgrace, every poor performance a disaster and every game, good or bad, sparks a wild, frenzied reaction on social media bordering, in some cases, on the hysterical.
Quite what has happened to football fans in this country is a mystery, but a disease is running through the ranks of supporters. Many of the symptoms are getting worse and the long-term side effects are increasingly problematic.
They include Transfer Market Fever. New signings are lauded, often beyond all recognition of their achievements and accompanied by all the pomp and fanfare of a Royal wedding.
Premier League clubs are currently locked in battle, not so much on the pitch, but on their social media feeds, battling to outdo themselves with their unveiling videos, which exercise the same hype as a trailer for a Hollywood blockbuster, often with the same number
REMEMBER ALEXIS SANCHEZ PLAYING THE PIANO ON THE PITCH AT OLD TRAFFORD? THAT SHORT VIDEO GOT MORE SOCIAL MEDIA INTERACTION THAN ANY TRANSFER IN THE WORLD AND WAS BOASTED ABOUT IN THE BOARDROOM AND HELD UP AS A SIGN OF BRAND STRENGTH BY CHIEF EXECUTIVE ED WOODWARD.

Sanchez turned out to be a terrible signing, a monumental waste of money and left for Inter Milan saying he had wanted to return to Woolwich after just one training session. That comment did not come with a slickly edited video and quirky camera angles of him staring at or stroking the club badge.
Hell hath no fury like a football fan who is frustrated by a lack of new signings. Take some of Liverpool’s global fanbase, for example, who bombarded some of my colleagues on Merseyside with abuse and grave warnings about the champions impending collapse in form if they did not jolly well hurry up and open the cheque book to sign someone or other.
Forget winning the title for the first time in 30 years, the year after winning the Champions League, if Jurgen Klopp could not see that the team needed new players he was an idiot and would drag the team down. As for owners FSG, what have they ever done for Liverpool, what do they know about football? Nothing compared to James76868 from Sidcup on Twitter. And anyone who argued differently with these furious keyboard warriors was a clown, clueless or another word beginning with C.
Liverpool have since signed Spain international Thiago from Champions League winners Bayern Munich and versatile forward Diogo Jota from Wolves and all is calm. Oh, they have also won their first two Premier League games, including a chastising 2-0 defeat for Chelsea who have spent upwards of £200 million this summer trying to close the gap.
Which brings us on to the abuse fired at a manager who has the misfortune to lose a game. Gone are the days when you judged a manager at the start of a new season, while bedding in new signings or trying to change the style of play, after a few games. Two is long enough apparently.
This is called Frothing at the Mouth while Typing Syndrome. Frank Lampard, if you listened to one radio phone-in show, is under pressure after that Liverpool defeat because the club have backed him in the transfer market, and he has to deliver. Yes, he does, but that does not mean he has to win every game and it is OK to lose to the champions with 10 men, if you take a moment to reflect. A silly idea I know...
Or take a look at Manchester United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, whose team went on a tremendous run at the end of last season to qualify for the Champions League.
United were awful last weekend and lost at home to Crystal Palace [who did not win a single game when football resumed after lockdown but have won two out of two in this campaign].
Having reached the semi-finals of the Europa League, United’s players had the shortest break of any club and were playing their first game of the season. Palace were playing their second. United really were bad, but afterwards you would have thought they had just lost their third game in a row and Solskjaer was fighting for his job after a miserable end to last season.
The reactions could be loosely split into two camps. Solskjaer was never up to the job. should never have been given it and this one defeat and shoddy performance proves it unequivocally. Or, United should have signed more players, the people running the club do not know what they are doing and, if new signings are not made, this season is going to be an unmitigated disaster.
I mean, it was United first’s Premier League defeat since January 22, but yeah OK, sack the manager, the board and for goodness sake sign a new centre-back.
The debate over Woodward and Solskjaer’s suitability is not a new one and there are long-standing causes for concern with the former, but this was the opening weekend of a new season and, well, was it not all a bit over the top?
As for Jose Mourinho at Tottenham, a friend sent a message to a WhatsApp group I am a member of after Southampton took the lead on Sunday saying the Portuguese wouldn’t make Christmas as Spurs manager. Tottenham won 5-2.
It is a similar situation at West Ham and Newcastle United where every defeat leads to rabid responses labelling both managers dinosaurs, tactically inept and in need of their P45s.
Of all the managers in the Premier League, those two walk around with a constant target because huge swathes buy into the idea they are out of touch and out of date, regardless of whether they win or lose. Every defeat brings the same abuse and dire assessments.
When Newcastle were thrashed by Brighton 3-0 on Sunday, Tyneside, on the back of some good recruitment and an impressive opening weekend victory away at West Ham, went into meltdown. Some called for Bruce to be sacked, pointing to a poor run of form at the end of last season, even though Newcastle were safe from relegation far earlier under him than they had been in each of the two seasons before he arrived.
One Twitter expert offered the view that Bruce’s record of 16 wins in 48 games as Newcastle manager really was not good enough, while others waxed lyrical about Brighton boss Graham Potter’s ideas and Brighton’s clear identity under him. It is worth pointing out, not that anyone was in the mood to listen, that Brighton have won just 12 out of the 44 games Potter has been manager.
Nuance, though, is lost. Potter is doing a fine job on the south coast and his team played superbly at the weekend. Yet, strip it back, and Bruce has done marginally better at Newcastle than Potter has at Brighton.
Not according to the Twitter mob, hammering angrily on their phone keyboards because nobody wants to listen to reason in the rush to condemn and be harsher than the next armchair expert spitting venom at a flickering screen.
Perhaps it is football in lockdown that has done it. No longer able to attend the games or meet with friends and family before or after to discuss and dissect, people are venting even more on social media platforms.
We have all said stupid things about football managers and players in the heat of the moment. My brother, for example, has labelled more players unfit to wear the shirt at Leyton Orient than I’ve been to games in the last 10 years.
Yet, two weeks into the season, there does seem to be a collective losing of the plot. Forget judging managers, teams and players over a sensible period of time – 10 games used to be a common sense view - judge them now, immediately and make sure you take as an extreme or melodramatic view as possible because on social media, the more angry and furious the more attention you receive.
We used to walk away from people like that in the pub... it is all just noise, but it is getting louder and louder and is becoming excruciating to listen to.
Modern Football Spurs Fans in a nut shell:

"Fucking great signings, we've signed first teamers that will improve us and could get us back in the top 4"

View after ONE FUCKING GAME!!!!!!

"They're shit."
 
Modern Football Spurs Fans in a nut shell:

"Fucking great signings, we've signed first teamers that will improve us and could get us back in the top 4"

View after ONE FUCKING GAME!!!!!!

"They're shit."

Easy to call out new supporters.

Most of the moany cunts you see at the ground are 40/50 somethings
 
The single most negative Spurs fan I know sat near me in the Paxton - moaned his way through an unbeaten season at home! He was a proper old boy and could wager he's never been on a computer. Not a 'modern' fan. He must have just forgotten all perspective. Seems like there was less moaning when were genuine underachievers finishing seasons below Charlton and West Ham as standard.

That said social media and forums just amplify everything. There is no knowledge, loyalty or sanity test required to make a comment sadly. Any announcement by the club on a social media channel is followed by endless inane comments; its embarrassing but happens to all top clubs. I know what they are and ignore them but this is perceived and often reported as a representation of mainstream views.
 
Is age a factor here? A young fan in his twenties might have followed less than ten campaigns closely. He hurtles from one match to the next. Everything is heightened. It's a rush of ups and downs.

I can count my seasons of serious fandom into the mid-upper forties. There's a perspective that's missing in the youngsters. The years of hurt. The false dawns. The utter insult that was Gooner Graham's years. You develop calluses, following this damned club. You learn patience.
 
Is age a factor here? A young fan in his twenties might have followed less than ten campaigns closely. He hurtles from one match to the next. Everything is heightened. It's a rush of ups and downs.

I can count my seasons of serious fandom into the mid-upper forties. There's a perspective that's missing in the youngsters. The years of hurt. The false dawns. The utter insult that was Gooner Graham's years. You develop calluses, following this damned club. You learn patience.
Epic post!
 
The internet has a way of amplifying the voices of dickheads

This isn't necessarily an issue of modernity but rather giving morons a platform which they never would have had before.
 
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