It's a time for firsts. The first time, I've inked a post. The first contribution to my blog from amidst an MT class. For the first time since 1947, Chelsea has had FA success against Arsenal... It is also the first time this season, United have lost a critical draw.
Am I glad? - You may ask. The answer to that is simple, 'Yes'. But what doesn't occur to the Red Devils' fans is that I rejoice - not because I take joy in Fergie's men crashing out, not because I detest the World Club Team Champions - but plainly because I would rather have Chelsea play Cahill, Pienaar and Yakubu than Scholes, Rooney and the dreaded number 7; because I would rather have Lampard running into Neville than Ballack into Nemanja Vidic... and because I fear, more than the twice lucky Tim Howard, the all time great Van der Sar.
Clearly Dela and ManU fans (the very people who say 'Chelshit' and are not, by any standards, Chelsea haters) have clearly misunderstood my (I speak for myself as I do not clearly comprehend the happenings in Azad) intentions. Repeatedly, have I been accused by people of being a supporter of a club which 'bought' its Silverware. To them, I ask, "Would you stop liking ManU if, after Fergie's departure (yes, even he will have to leave some day), ManUnited goes through a phase of buying good players?" I have been a Blue since the days of Gianfranco Zola and Eidur Gudjonsen and not just since Drogba and Essien... and I shall remain one, no matter what they do. For they still play amazing football. For the team was always great, now - only greater. For Chelsea, Chelsea is our name.
I agree the anti - ManU sentiment is at an all-time high and is still growing but nothing can be more unfair than to shove all the blame on Chelsea fans. Two days ago - I did not wince when I saw the video in Lefty's room, for the first time, of ManU's redemption - of Ole Gunnar Solskjær and Teddy Sheringham scoring in 90 and 93 - when he said, "Football, bloody hell!" In fact it was quite to the contrary - I actually felt that they should have won more, since 1999, than just 2 Champion's League finals!
14th April, 2009: Chelsea vs Liverpool -
Kick Off - A friend (fellow 'fan') and I enter the TV room. Match starts and he gives me some stat about how Chelsea has never lost in ....
Half Time - Liverpool have scored twice and 'fan' leaves the TV room without uttering a word. I face the onslaught of a room full of Reds who tell me Chelsea was never destined to reach the Quarters.
48 minutes - 'Fan' reappears. Only now, he dons the #8 Gerrard jersey, and giving me but an over-the-shoulder glance, he joins the Red bandwagon.
A few mins hence - Drogba and Alex have scored - 'Fan' leaves.
Full time - 4 Chelsea - Liverpool 4 and Chelsea advance.
That is no fan, clearly. Neither do these people have a right to support any team, nor do their views on 'Joga Bonito' count. Such are the people who form the hater-base of a team. Not fans, please.
I am a fan. I have more important things to do than to hate teams. Chelsea plays brilliant football - some people just can't accept it. The only reason, I may not be watching every match in a TV Room is because of the lack of following here... I definitely do not like the idea of being the lone supporter against a sea of Reds, even though it gives me immense pleasure winning the draw after bearing their insults throughout the 90 minutes. Manchester United simply has a much larger fan base.
Apart from the true fans, every wannabe becomes a Man United fan because it is always the easiest team to support! But, there is always a flipside. All this also makes it the easiest team to hate. And hence, the hater-base!
Yesterday was a dismal performance from both sides, one in which ManU didn't play - it was just a bunch of reserves. Looked like Ferguson didn't want the FA Trophy anyway. The quintuple is definitely out... (and not 'out in the dumps' as some people misquote) Its still commendable that they are in with a shot for a quadruple, for which they'll hopefully play Chelsea in the finals of the Champions League.
So its probably not the best of ideas to divert one's frustration and anger after losing ONE match at some innocent bystander who said nothing controvertial, someone who definitely doesn't hate ManU! Having said that, I'm glad that our chances of winning FA have gone up several notches since yesterday night.
P.S. Maybe I must apologize on behalf of some Chelsea 'fan' who hates ManU. People support a team for different reasons - A Liverpool fan may be that just because he hates ManU... But there is a distinct possibility that he just loves Liverpool. Give him a chance, will you?
P.P.S. IPL is definitely not half as interesting this year!
I would only quote Bill Shankly here
ReplyDelete"Someone said 'football is more important than life and death to you' and I said 'Listen, it's more important than that'."
And I support Susaant when he says football shouldn't be this serious.
And I sympathize with you, Kondy. I, for one, definitely know that you love Chelsea much more than you could ever dislike other clubs.
@ Ahuja,
ReplyDeleteThank you. Ya, it shouldn't be so serious, I guess. It leaves you with a bad taste. But at the end of it all, some people realize and some don't...
Some banter is always healthy.. adds to the fun. But when people start taking it personally it becomes a problem.
ReplyDelete@ Sood,
ReplyDeleteI can't agree with you more. This isn't any healthy fight, 'vendetta' would be more the word.
We know both sides can stoop to low levels to prove their 'true' espousing, but lets keep this catfight out of the blogs, can we?
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree on 'wannabe'ness. Just because the people around you follow a game doesn't mean one has to 'truly' support or hate a club. Just believing in the 'Joga Bonito' doesn't make you any lesser!
@ Jetty,
ReplyDeleteIf there is a fight, I'll not take part in it. I've merely stated facts as they are. And yes, 'wannabe'ness is clearly the order of the day. I don't think Football will be half as much fun by just BELIEVING in Joga Bonito. But clearly, this is madness!
No, my dear idiots. It should get this serious- it is the fervour (the passion?) that makes football the greatest game in the world.
ReplyDelete@Kondy
As much as I hate your bald head, you are one of the saner C$KA London fans I've known, probably the sanest. Neither the post nor my status message were directed at you. There are others in this part of the insti who aren't the all-knowing true-blues you speak of. It was the Joeys and the Dhyanis of the world that the post was meant for. Now stop whining about your pitiful excuse for a football club and get back to formatting the mag.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete@ Dela,
ReplyDeleteNot directed at me, u say? Then, I wonder why the status message was an badly exaggerated form of my own! Coincidence, huh... Maybe.
I'll let those Joeys and Dhyanis (whoever they are) fend for themselves here... And I'll let you know that this 'pitiful excuse' is the greatest club in the present day world.
Your support for Chelsea as a true football fan is quite appreciable Kondy... it shows you aren't gullible enough to be swayed by the multitude of United fans surrounding you.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck to your team; the FA Cup seems to be their only hope for silverware this season. But wait and watch... the devils are down, but not out.
@ The Gaylord,
ReplyDeleteNo, u get me wrong there. I'm not JUST holding on to my blue faith... The Blues are too awesome to ignore! Anyway, one cup in the bag... Another one is very possible. But for the third we need Fergie to slip up like he did yesterday.
I totally agree with you Kondy.... The Blues are too awesome to ignore!! Same goes with Man U as well, no doubting that. That is why they are the best and have the largest fan-base in the world. Its not that I hate Man U more than I love Chelsea, its just that it pains me to see large hordes of uninformed people rooting for the club which is the easiest to support....Man U in this case. These guys just ignore the quality of football being played by the other teams and think that only Man U can play while others are there just to make an appearance. And sometimes when this kind of behaviour is displayed by the regular, knowledgeable fans, then it becomes totally unbearable, forcing the non-Man U supporters to turn into ManU-haters.
ReplyDelete@ Desi,
ReplyDeleteI understand that the uninformed noobs of this world chose ManuU as its the most spoken abt club in the world... Real coming only a distant second.
As the name of this post goes, however, 'I stand by the faith.' But I don't believe that other club fans must become ManUnited haters... It's like giving them undue importance :D
Anyway, peace!
Well well well
ReplyDeleteSeems that there are diamonds in the mud after all.
Atta boy, Kondy.
Regarding why any gullible idiot jumps on to the ManU bandwagon, remember that it's both a prize and a price to pay for being one of the most iconic clubs in the world. Other clubs have passed through this phase- Liverpool in the late 70s-early 80s, Madrid in the 50s as well as 90s and Barca/Milan of late too. But what must not be forgotten is that even between 1968 and 1985- between the Busby and Fergie eras, United were still the most supported club in the world, despite not being on a winning spree.
In fact, a sight which I loathe myself is of a two-footer sporting a United jersey- the idiot probably doesn't even know the first thing about football and considers himself worthy to don 'that' jersey. It was only after 10 years of loyal unwavering support that I considered myself worthy.
And it's not just United, but practically every football club hates the post-Abramovich Chel$ki fan. Come to think of it, Chel$ki was Chelsea before RA.
Now I wrest my case.
@ Lefty,
ReplyDeleteWhen n00bs jump into the ManU bandwagon, its a prize for them (as its the easiest to back) and a price-to-pay for you die-hard ManU fans who have to share the same colour as the uninformed.
As for Abrahamowic, maybe he isn't the fairest player of them all, but then what would you call Real? What would you call even AC, Inter and Barca? All have a considerable amount of bought talent... In fact, United is one of the very few remaining clubs still focusing on development.
Lets remember here that Chelsea has been the last EPL team to rise to this stature. So, give them some time, will you?
I, for one, don't believe 'n00bs' deserve such a magnitude of hatred from you 'true' fans. More often than not (90%, I would say) people are attracted to the high-fliers - the team which dominates the headlines in the papers, on TV and the like. For the past few years Man Utd has been the obvious choice, and if this fact attracts more people ('n00bs') towards the game, I would be happy.
ReplyDeleteSome form of contempt towards a club is sure to arise from the continuous mind-games played by the managers themselves, or the tension created in a clash of rivals (Remember the Arsenal vs. Man Utd matches 4-5 years back). I agree its a completely different matter when new fans hate other clubs/their fans just for being considered 'true fans', but hey - this is not going to change, and one has to accept the fact.
A healthy rivalry is good, though.. But how can one bring oneself to respect, say, Man Utd, when one of their players ends your unbeaten streak by diving? Hatred is born at such moments.
You know things are not right when the single statement "I hate Manchester United" (which is mostly true, btw), will make enemies out of some friends (obviously), and at the same time fetch me many friends as well.
ReplyDelete@ Sessien,
ReplyDeleteI agree about the 'follow the leader' ideology... But what I'm saying is - When u have no idea about football and the teams and u arbitrarily pick up a team to support, then u hav no right to comment about others, let alone yours!
Its all a question of disliking a team because of love for another, or supporting one team because one hates the other.
@ Ahuja,
Right now, "I hate Chelsea" will bring you more friends than anything else... Every ManU and Liv fan will chime in!