Are we quick to forgive footballers for their actions? It seems that often the short-termism and short-sightedness of football fans and pundits alike mean they turn a blind eye to something they exclaimed was unforgivable just a week before. It is not uncommon for fans to suggest a player should ‘never play for their club again.’ Though, after a few decent performances, all seems to be forgotten.
Similarly, do we expect a bit too much from our footballers? We should accept that they are liable to mistakes and misdemeanours, they are humans after all. Maybe fans and pundits are too rash, and get caught up in the moment without realising the pressure that footballers play under. This is understandable though. The most important thing to football fans is results. Emotional responses to wins and losses are natural. However, if we accept this, we should then accept that footballers are liable to the same emotional fluctuations.
Writing as an Arsenal fan, in this article I will consider some Arsenal-based examples of footballers who were alienated and about to be frozen out by fan bases, but then were reinstated as mistakes were forgiven and forgotten.
On Wednesday June 17, The Gooners visited the Etihad in what was both teams’ first match since the resumption of football in England. After 24 minutes, centre-back Pablo Mari sustained an ankle injury and was replaced by David Luiz. What ensued was simply a defensive horror show.
In first half stoppage time, Luiz aimed to control a long Kevin De Bruyne pass with his thigh instead of clearing the ball. It ricocheted off of him and into the path of Raheem Sterling, who finished the easy chance to make it 1-0 to City. Arsenal had defended resolutely but found themselves behind at the break.
In the 49th minute, Luiz allowed Riyad Mahrez to get goal side of him as he entered the penalty area from the right-hand side. Luiz clumsily fouled and gave away a penalty. He was sent off and De Bruyne converted the penalty - condemning Arsenal to defeat. Luiz received a WhoScored match rating of 3.8.
In that match against Man City, Luiz equalled the record for most penalties given away in a single Premier League season - four (with time to add to that tally). He also became the first player since 2015 to be sent off, concede a penalty and a make an error leading to a goal in the same Premier League game.
Similarly, do we expect a bit too much from our footballers? We should accept that they are liable to mistakes and misdemeanours, they are humans after all. Maybe fans and pundits are too rash, and get caught up in the moment without realising the pressure that footballers play under. This is understandable though. The most important thing to football fans is results. Emotional responses to wins and losses are natural. However, if we accept this, we should then accept that footballers are liable to the same emotional fluctuations.
Writing as an Arsenal fan, in this article I will consider some Arsenal-based examples of footballers who were alienated and about to be frozen out by fan bases, but then were reinstated as mistakes were forgiven and forgotten.
On Wednesday June 17, The Gooners visited the Etihad in what was both teams’ first match since the resumption of football in England. After 24 minutes, centre-back Pablo Mari sustained an ankle injury and was replaced by David Luiz. What ensued was simply a defensive horror show.
In first half stoppage time, Luiz aimed to control a long Kevin De Bruyne pass with his thigh instead of clearing the ball. It ricocheted off of him and into the path of Raheem Sterling, who finished the easy chance to make it 1-0 to City. Arsenal had defended resolutely but found themselves behind at the break.
In the 49th minute, Luiz allowed Riyad Mahrez to get goal side of him as he entered the penalty area from the right-hand side. Luiz clumsily fouled and gave away a penalty. He was sent off and De Bruyne converted the penalty - condemning Arsenal to defeat. Luiz received a WhoScored match rating of 3.8.
In that match against Man City, Luiz equalled the record for most penalties given away in a single Premier League season - four (with time to add to that tally). He also became the first player since 2015 to be sent off, concede a penalty and a make an error leading to a goal in the same Premier League game.
David Luiz joined Arsenal for £8m last summer on a 12-month contract. Arsenal had to decide whether or not to extend his contract - a decision they hadn’t made before the City game. Subsequent to his shocking performance - something Arsenal fans had become accustomed to seeing from the Brazilian - there many were calls from fans and ex-players alike for him to never play for the Gooners again.
For many Arsenal fans, who have become used to seeing soulless defending in recent years, this was the final straw for the 33-year-old. Legends Ray Parlour and Martin Keown urged Arsenal to part ways with Luiz also. Mikel Arteta too was noticeably frustrated during his post-match interview. Many believed this was the end of David Luiz.
However, on June 24, Arsenal announced that they had decided to extend Luiz’s contract by one more year, allowing him to stay until the end of the 2020/21 season. And having started a string of games in the heart of defence subsequent to serving his suspension (with some good results) it seemed as if all was forgiven and forgotten.
After that one match against City, Arsenal fans and the media were quick to jump on Luiz’s back. He was labelled a disgrace; people were questioning why Arsenal bought him in the first place (and then decided to extend his contract?!). Writing this now, there are no such calls from fans and the media, but you could guarantee that if Luiz has another shaky performance, the same sequence of events will occur. We are quick to harshly criticise footballers, and equally as quick to forget why we criticised them to begin with. Are we simply too rash to begin with, or do we forgive players far too easily?
This hasn’t been an unfamiliar sequence of events at Arsenal. On April 21, 2019, Shkodran Mustafi had what can only be described as a calamitous performance in a home game against Crystal Palace. His errors cost Arsenal the game and started a run of four winless matches for Arsenal. The loss dropped them to fifth position where they stayed for the rest of the season.
Mustafi was labelled an embarrassment, and many fans wished to never see him put on an Arsenal shirt again. His unconvincing spell at Arsenal had reached its nadir. Yet this season, Mustafi has made 27 appearances for Arsenal - missing matches only due to injury. The German has been one of Arsenal’s more convincing defenders also.
After that Palace match, Mustafi was maligned by the red half of North London. No one seems to have any issues with him now. Players play at a high level for a reason and most of them earn their keep. Bad performances are a given when you are expected to play at such a high, intense level so frequently. It is mentally and physically demanding. Although it is easy to blame players after match-costing performances, we should hold back such forceful criticisms and appreciate the expectations on these players. The fact that we do forgive them for the seemingly unforgivable further proves how harsh we are to begin with.
For many Arsenal fans, who have become used to seeing soulless defending in recent years, this was the final straw for the 33-year-old. Legends Ray Parlour and Martin Keown urged Arsenal to part ways with Luiz also. Mikel Arteta too was noticeably frustrated during his post-match interview. Many believed this was the end of David Luiz.
However, on June 24, Arsenal announced that they had decided to extend Luiz’s contract by one more year, allowing him to stay until the end of the 2020/21 season. And having started a string of games in the heart of defence subsequent to serving his suspension (with some good results) it seemed as if all was forgiven and forgotten.
After that one match against City, Arsenal fans and the media were quick to jump on Luiz’s back. He was labelled a disgrace; people were questioning why Arsenal bought him in the first place (and then decided to extend his contract?!). Writing this now, there are no such calls from fans and the media, but you could guarantee that if Luiz has another shaky performance, the same sequence of events will occur. We are quick to harshly criticise footballers, and equally as quick to forget why we criticised them to begin with. Are we simply too rash to begin with, or do we forgive players far too easily?
This hasn’t been an unfamiliar sequence of events at Arsenal. On April 21, 2019, Shkodran Mustafi had what can only be described as a calamitous performance in a home game against Crystal Palace. His errors cost Arsenal the game and started a run of four winless matches for Arsenal. The loss dropped them to fifth position where they stayed for the rest of the season.
Mustafi was labelled an embarrassment, and many fans wished to never see him put on an Arsenal shirt again. His unconvincing spell at Arsenal had reached its nadir. Yet this season, Mustafi has made 27 appearances for Arsenal - missing matches only due to injury. The German has been one of Arsenal’s more convincing defenders also.
After that Palace match, Mustafi was maligned by the red half of North London. No one seems to have any issues with him now. Players play at a high level for a reason and most of them earn their keep. Bad performances are a given when you are expected to play at such a high, intense level so frequently. It is mentally and physically demanding. Although it is easy to blame players after match-costing performances, we should hold back such forceful criticisms and appreciate the expectations on these players. The fact that we do forgive them for the seemingly unforgivable further proves how harsh we are to begin with.
This season, Granit Xhaka was stripped of the Arsenal captaincy and dropped following a run in with fans during a 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace last October. It was thought that his time at the club was up, but just seven months later, the midfielder was handed the armband again in Arsenal’s win against Norwich on July 1.
Luiz, Mustafi and Xhaka are all now very comfortable at Arsenal. This at times would have been inconceivable. Isn’t it odd that Mustafi is nailed-on at centre-half at the moment for Arsenal, when his careless performance against Palace last season cost his side Champions League football? Does Granit Xhaka deserve to be given another chance as captain after how he treated the fans? Should David Luiz have been given another contract?
At the time, these ordeals seemed career-defining. Soon after, it was as if nothing happened. It seems in football that fans and pundits are only interested in the previous game and the next game. Xhaka has strung together some good performances following football’s resumption, so all is forgotten. If Arsenal are winning and if their players are playing well, past ordeals seem to be irrelevant. We as fans are so fixated on whether our teams are performing well, that we forget about all else. After all, if Granit Xhaka led Arsenal to an FA Cup victory this season, who would care about last October’s events?
Luiz, Mustafi and Xhaka are all now very comfortable at Arsenal. This at times would have been inconceivable. Isn’t it odd that Mustafi is nailed-on at centre-half at the moment for Arsenal, when his careless performance against Palace last season cost his side Champions League football? Does Granit Xhaka deserve to be given another chance as captain after how he treated the fans? Should David Luiz have been given another contract?
At the time, these ordeals seemed career-defining. Soon after, it was as if nothing happened. It seems in football that fans and pundits are only interested in the previous game and the next game. Xhaka has strung together some good performances following football’s resumption, so all is forgotten. If Arsenal are winning and if their players are playing well, past ordeals seem to be irrelevant. We as fans are so fixated on whether our teams are performing well, that we forget about all else. After all, if Granit Xhaka led Arsenal to an FA Cup victory this season, who would care about last October’s events?
But perhaps we are too harsh on these players to begin with. Week-in, week-out, they are expected to perform at the highest level under immense amounts of pressure. With so much riding on every game, players must feel intensely pressured a lot of the time. For millions of fans across the world, football is everything, results are everything. If you win, you’re happy and if you lose, you are not. If you win you praise your players and if you lose you find a scapegoat. It takes just one loss of temper or one lapse in concentration - things all humans are susceptible too - to be vilified by fans and the media. We should accept that football players are humans too, and that mistakes are natural. There is little appreciation for the incredibly high-level that these players play at.
Is this cycle of hatred, alienation, reinstatement and forgiveness healthy? We are all emotional animals, motivated by results, so these occurrences are somewhat natural. However, an appreciation of just how difficult it is for footballers to meet our high standards week in and week out would allow us to do away with this cycle.
Is this cycle of hatred, alienation, reinstatement and forgiveness healthy? We are all emotional animals, motivated by results, so these occurrences are somewhat natural. However, an appreciation of just how difficult it is for footballers to meet our high standards week in and week out would allow us to do away with this cycle.
Written by - Ben Rowe
Edited by - 3-At-The-Back
Edited by - 3-At-The-Back