Born in Assam, which is in the Northeastern part of India where football had as much relevance as cricket, the love for football was ingrained in me from my childhood. I used to watch the international games telecast in Doordarshan (the free national TV of India) and follow the football news through the sports section of newspapers. I also gave company to my father when he was watching the games, trying to explain rules like offside and why strikers are not the only important players in the team. I was an Argentine supporter, idolizing Batistuta and Crespo. The morning alarm to wake up during the World Cup and then crying incessantly for missing the 1996 World Cup final because my father couldn’t bring himself to wake a sleeping child up are my earliest football memories. With the advent of cable tv, my following expanded to the Copa America and the Euros.
The love for Arsenal started in college when a friend who is an ardent PL and Man United fan invited me to watch a PL game. At that time, I was of the opinion that how can football of a mere club surpass football of the international level. The biggest sport here is cricket and then IPL and T20 wasn’t a thing and international cricket with a mediocre cricket team the primary support. Anyways, as he was explaining how good the team were, why Sir Alex is a legend, and the players like Nistelrooy, Giggs, Ferdinand were the best, I noticed the other team were playing well. I always had a soft corner for the underdogs (like France in 1996 World Cup after Argentina lost), and what stuck is that this plucky team who is not as good as United is giving them a run for their money. At that time, I had no idea about Wenger and the Invincibles, and the legacy. All I knew was this underdog team was winning. And hence started my love for Arsenal.
College was mostly about being able to follow some important games if possible. The community TV more often than not being hijacked for some cricket tournament. I was able to diligent follow the game during my time in Kolkata when paying all the bills on a pittance left very few other options. Fast-forward a few years, and following football was tough with the abysmal timings in the US which led to many missed alarms and sleeping in the middle of games.
My recent best memory is the come-from-behind win against Hull in the 2014 F.A. Cup final. My picture in the yellow jersey is embedded in the Boston Gooner website for posterity (till we win the PL title).
I used to believe in Wengerball. That attack is the best defense. That a midfield consisting of Wilshere, Ramsey, Fabregas, Nasri, Song, Diaby, Arshavin led by RVP will win titles. That Vermaelen should be allowed to roam freely in front as a CM/CDM. That you can spend any amount of money and win short term, but long term, good coaching and players developed by the team will prevail. Other supporters were either glory hunters (United/Liverpool) or people who followed whoever was winning without understanding the game (Chelsea/City), or just plain delusional (Spurs).
As I am older and wiser, my philosophy has changed slightly. A good bus-park game can be good sometimes. Money is there to rule the game, and there is no ignoring the fact. Oil money fueled clubs and clubs with wealthy owners can buy and win titles, and good coaching can only take you so far. The game has changed since I started watching it and so have I. I still respect the likes of Fabregas, RVP, Alexis (maybe even Adebayor) for their contribution to our team and giving me a chance to dream that the season they played in might be different, despite leaving for better money and titles. I respect even more the likes of Walcott, Giroud, Koscielny, Xhaka, Bendtner (maybe Ozil, Aubameyang and even Kallstorm) who played to the best of their abilities giving 100% for the team despite being slated by the fans. I respect the likes of Mourinho, Pep and Klopp who managed to win titles even if it was against my basic philosophy. I respect the game of football even if it’s not my team.
But I still root for the underdogs. I cheered for the Leicester PL win. I am slightly relieved that we didn’t spoil Brighton’s chance for European football by buying Ceicado. And I am rooting for our young players who were patiently developed, showing great potential, and sowing dividends. I am an Arsenal fan galvanized through years of wasted potential and squad disarray, impoverishment through self-funding the Emirates, a legendary manager who was on the brink of tarnishing his legacy, and superstar players who jumped ship because of our inability to win titles or pay big money or just simply didn’t want to adopt according to the philosophy of the team and the manager.
I am a donkey because I am cursed with the burden of supporting a team that had gone through hard times. But things are looking brighter now. I will try to write sometimes about football without the technicalities (minus the xG stats). But like football, I might adapt and evolve. This is Wise Donkey Gooner saying Hello World.