I’m going to start this post by making a bit of a broad statement, so I hope you’ll bear with me.
There are two types of supporter.
You may look at where Liverpool Football Club is today, right now, and you will see a club that’s in transition. Where you think that transition is going probably depends on – to use a tired cliché - whether you’re a glass half full or glass half empty sort of individual. Winning stuff is what football is about, and since at the moment we’re not in a position to be challenging for the league, the cups is where it’s at. You may think that the cups should be the number one priority, and therefore you may think that sacrificing league position in order to (hopefully) secure the double isn’t the end of the world. Or maybe you think that whilst the cup runs are great, but that maybe we’ve ill-advisedly taken our eye off the ball in the league as a result. You might think that cup wins are the best way for us to push forward, or you might think that finishing in the top four should be the absolute priority. I’m sure a lot of you will know where I stand on that particular issue, but I digress.
To be positive for a moment, winning the Carling Cup has guaranteed us a place in Europe next season, which will be an opportunity to give the squad some more experience of playing mid-week across Europe and give the youngsters some more playing time. It will also help our UEFA coefficient. That is a load off our mind, and whilst I know that there is some debate amongst fans of this club and football supporters in general as to the merits and drawbacks of participation in the Europa League, but I happen to think that a club like Liverpool should be in Europe year in, year out. It’s another trophy to contest. Dortmund was brilliant, one of the best days in my 21 years of supporting this club and I would give my left arm for another day like that.
Ooh, do you see what I did there? I mentioned my age, which rather neatly brings me to the central point of this post. Smooth.
Many of us will have concerns about the situation that we find ourselves in. We’ll have worries about the transfer policy, valid criticisms of the staff from the owners down to the players. As supporters, we crave success, and as supporters of this particular club, success is in our blood. Some on here are fortunate to have lived through the league titles, some on here weren’t old enough to buy a pint when we went to Istanbul. Some on here will want to discuss things, like you would in the pub after the game, with like-minded people. Some on here will shout and scream for heads to roll. Some will be uneasy with criticism, maybe even have an aversion to it.
When I say that there are two types of supporter, I’m talking about mentality. Because, do you know what? Age doesn’t come into it.
I’ll go the game and I’ll listen to teenage lads spouting awful, awful shite. It’s cringeworthy, I know it is, and of course there is a valid argument that Murdoch has had an adverse affect on football and the mindset of those who follow it. You listen to the fuckwits on Soccer Saturday and the people on 606 and, fuck, it’s undeniable. Football in 2012 is a fickle old business, dictated by money and image rights and those shiny Champions League fixtures. But I’ll go the game and I’ll also hear blokes the same age as my dad and they’ll be spouting shite as well. It’s not how old you are, it’s the way you think about things.
The problem on here is that people always, always go to fucking extremes. There’ll be tits calling for Mourinho, and there’ll be people that attempt to shut down debate at every opportunity. I’m sorry, but they’re both as bad as each other. I often wonder if some people actually realise how incredibly rude they’re being, how annoying and frankly rather offensive it is to have your opinion brushed aside based on where you’re from or indeed how old you are, and whether they’d talk to people like that in real life.
It’s alright for the older generation to berate the younger generation for being desperate for success, wanting it all now, when they lived through the success. Istanbul was the best night of my life, and I’d say that’s the case for most Liverpool fans my age. Is it really such a surprise that after being given that taste, that sweet, intoxicating glimpse into everything this club has ever been and everything it could be, that we want more?
