This season to be an Manchester united supporter! It’s tough. It’s
so tough that fans are turning against each
other as we try to decipher what exactly is
wrong with the club.
Fan 1: Surely united's character or lack of it
in big games must be a reflection of their
manager. Enough said!
Fan 2: You want to support a winning team,
go to Bayern. Or Real. Or Barca. united is
full of idiots, me included. If you can't take a
defeat on the chin, you my friend are a
plastic paper fan.
Fan 1: If being a plastic paper fan for you
means no criticism then I'm glad to be one.
The conversation went on for a little while as
to who was the real fan so I am compelled
to explain because, at the end of the day,
they all love Manchester united
I think Fan 1 in the conversation is just that –
a fan.
A “fan” according to the dictionary is “an
ardent admirer”, in this case of a football
team. This person loves the club because
what happens at the club pleases him, or
her. The love runs deep to the point where
even if the club does something he or she
doesn’t like, the loyalty remains.
A fan wants his club to do well and openly
analyses and criticises the problems at the
club. The fan, unlike the fanatic, isn’t blinded
by what happens and longs for success. In
the case of the conversation, the
fan recognises that what is drawing Manchester united
down is manager David Moyes.
He sees that the manager doesn’t instill in
the players belief that they can conquer big
clubs. Why else would you explain why
united have been on the receiving end of
massive losses to clubs like Liverpool, Man
City and Chelsea this season.
Does criticising the club you love make you
less of a fan? In my view it doesn’t.
Fan 2 in the conversation is what I
would describe as a “fanatic!”
A “fanatic”, according to the dictionary, is “a
person whose enthusiasm or zeal for
something is extreme or beyond normal
limits.”
While a fanatic also wants his club to do
well, there is always an excuse or rather
acceptance when things don’t go well. A
fanatic will never blame anyone in particular.
That is why the fanatic tells the fan in the
conversation to defect if it’s a winning team
that they are after.
Then we have “supporters” of football clubs.
Finding one definition of this word in terms
of football was hard but generally these
people are a mixture of fans and fanatics,
but who also spend money regularly on the
running of the club. They often pay
membership fees but definitely buy season
tickets. Some supporters are referred to as
“ultras” and one English journalist lists these
four traits as those of ultras:
·
never stop singing or chanting during a
match, no matter what the result
·
never sit down during a match
·
attend as many games as possible (home
and away), regardless of cost or
distance
loyalty to the stand in which the
group is
located
While supporters border on fanatics they do
have a vested financial interest in the club so
they do criticise when needed. They have to
because they have a lot to lose when the
club isn’t winning.
Please note that, while I have lost faith in
David Moyes, the players aren’t blameless
because they aren’t children to be baby-fed
every step of the way. I do feel we need a
leader at Manchester United who will guide the team to
success.
I consider myself a fan because I love
Manchester united, but I criticise it when
things go awry. I worry about fanatics
because I think every bad incident needs to
be questioned.
I respect the supporters but geographically it
makes it’s impossible for fans in Africa to
buy season tickets and attend matches
regularly.
Just for kicks, though, ask yourself today
whether you are a fan, a fanatic or a
supporter? The bottom-line for each of these
characteristics, is that we all love the club
NOTE: I AM FOR MOYES OUT.
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