FourFourTwo UK – September 2019

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GOODBYE,RAFA

I’mwritingtoexpressmyutter

disbeliefthatNewcastlehaveparted

companywithRafaBenitez.

Thisis a manwhostayedloyalto

theMagpieswhentheywere

relegatedin2016.A manwhohelped

themcomestraightbackupthenext

season.A manwhokepta very

mediocreteaminthePremierLeague

notonce,buttwice;finishingin10th

and13thplacerespectively.A man

whowaslovedbytheGeordiefaithful

andwholovedthemback.

Butperhapsmostimportantly,this

wasa manwhohada visionfor

Newcastle,a plantotaketheteam

forwardtothenextlevelratherthan

merelyfightingtoavoidrelegation

everyseason.Sadly,theNewcastle

hierarchydidnotsharethisvision.

Intheend,though,thereis onlyone

realloserandthat’sthelong-

sufferingNewcastlefaithful.Good

luck,Rafa– I hopewe’llseeyouinthe

PremierLeagueagainsoon!

JanetRisler,Ontario,Canada

THECULTOFTHE

INDIVIDUAL

Myyoungsonis a ManchesterUnited

fan...orsohesays!I alwayshoped

he’dbea ManchesterUnitedfan–

ourlocalclub– evenif theyaren’t

themostexcitingteamtowatchat

themoment.

I findthatheis excitedtowatch

plentyofothergamesjustbecauseof

theplayersinvolved.Gamesareno

longerdescribedasa Juventusmatch

anymore,butrathera ‘Ronaldo’

match.Asanold-fashionedfootball

FourFourTwoUK

FourFourTwo

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THE VIEW FROM THE STAnDS

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4 

STAR

LETTER

FANS ARE NEGLECTED

I understand that football

clubs need to expand and

reach as many fans as they

possibly can – but it seems

clubs often neglect fans.

A few weeks ago, I tried to

find a pre-season friendly to

attend and I noticed that the team I wanted to see

weren’t playing any pre-season fixtures in the UK.

I recently gave a non-fan a basic breakdown of

what following a team costs. When I mentioned the

price of tickets, membership, travel and an adult-size

team shirt, they were shocked to say the least.

When someone buys a ticket in Germany, they are

given free transport from designated places and

discounts on travel. It’s my hope that more leagues

look at what the Bundesliga offers.

JP Austin, via email

fan, it seems strange to be cheering for

another team because of one or two

brilliant players, or whichever player is

funniest on social media.

Are we drifting away from supporting

one club and maybe into supporting

individual players? I’m not sure, but

it does mean I get to watch a lot of

football, so I won’t complain.

Dean Ratcliffe, via email

LAMPS WILL MOUNT

A TITLE CHARGE

The discontent around Chelsea’s

absence from title contention in the

last two years has been evident, with

two consecutive managerial sackings.

Roman Abramovich’s latest

appointment, Frank Lampard, has

addressedhisexpectationofa title

challenge. The shared ambitions

between Lampard and Abramovich

have provided some clarity for

everyone at Chelsea, including the

fans, Lampard and the players.

This clear direction is what Chelsea

managers in the past have lacked.

Many have had differing expectations

to Abramovich, which eventually led

to their inevitable sacking.

The new clear direction set by

Chelsea, combined with Lampard’s

optimistic expectations, will almost

certainly lead to the mounting of

a title challenge.

Charlie Broadberry, via email

Adidas Copa 17 FG boots for Star Letter and Trusox

WIN! for Spine Line, both courtesy of PRO:DIRECT

LAST MONTH’S SPINE LINE: “‘When you think about the true essence of life, I got fined for going to the toilet’ has got to be Robbie ‘Shithouse’ Savage in

your Players Lounge interview!” says @StuntmanRuss, via Twitter. Correct – the Trusox are yours! Entering the Spine Line via Twitter? Include #FFTSpineLine

GAME
B: The Milk Cup semi final, second leg
win against Ipswich (March 1985).
W: Man United tearing us apart in
1993 before going onto win the title.
Gloating United fans everywhere.

FACIAL HAIR
B: Grant Holt’s Movember hamster.
W: Dale Gordon’s Kid Creole
pencil ’tache.

MAnAGER
B: Mike Walker took us through the
looking glass to a world of dormice and
talking rabbits.
W: Glenn Roeder. Cocksure idiot aiming
his hose at anything remotely exciting.

CELEBRITY FAn
B: Hugh Jackman. Not sure he really
understands football, but Wolverine
claims to be a City fan.
W: Alan Partridge [above]. He’s from
Norfolk, as you may have noticed, but
it’s strongly suspected that he doesn’t
support City. Probably a Liverpool fan.

HARD MAn
B: Craig Bellamy. A lot of spunk for
a wee fella. Like an angry bobcat.
W: Raymond de Waard. A winger with
all the brute force of a rag doll.

SIGnING
B: Darren Huckerby signing for Norwich
felt very emotional.
W: Ricky van Wolfswinkel. There has
never been as much anticipation as
when this man arrived at Carrow Road
in 2012 for £9.45m. Sadly, he barely
deserved his car park space, in a spell
that could be best described as a ‘death
dance’. His agent was last seen selling
fidget spinners.