Delusions of Grandeur 18 Apr 2015 16:14

By Frank Mead, Editor

I was listening to a radio phone-in lately, and a fan of Newcastle United was banging on about the clubs progress (or lack of it) under Mike Ashley, and the delusions of grandeur this bloke seemed to have was incredible. He genuinely seemed to think that his club is one of the top teams in the country.

I’m a proper gobshite where it comes to football arguments, and if someone is talking complete and utter bollocks, I will verbally rip them to shreds. I would have loved to have an argument with this guy, and ask him why he believes the crap he was spouting. I think he genuinely believes that because his team ran us close in couple of title races in the 1990’s that they should be competing for the top four. Newsflash, genius, so did Blackburn Rovers, only went one better and actually won it – and look where they are these days.

I have absolutely nothing against Newcastle United, and I can understand his frustration, because it seems that these days the clubs’ only ambition is to remain a Premier League side, and share in the wealth that comes with that status. They have become one of the most boring sides in the top flight.

I’m sure that any Newcastle fan who might read this may point to the fact that they have the third highest average attendances in the country – that’s because you’re a one club city and you have the third biggest stadium in England. Far be it from me to big up the bin dippers, but when Liverpool increase Anfield, they will overtake you in that respect without any difficulty.

Newcastle fans such as the chap who inspired me to write this little rant need to realise that the days when you were among the Premier League’s elite teams are over. There are teams in the Championship that would have a strong argument that they are bigger than you, such as Leeds United, and two-time European champions Nottingham Forest - you may remember playing them when you spent a season in that division.

I detest Leeds United, and their fans in particular, for the hatred they show towards my beloved Reds (and pretty much anyone else who doesn't follow their team), but the fact remains that they are one of the biggest clubs in the country. I personally would love to see them back in the top flight. That might seem funny, considering how much I hate them, and I wont deny that I pissed my sides laughing when they went down to the third tier of English football – six years after being one game away from the Champions League Final. The joke isn’t funny anymore, and I want the rivalry back.

It was the same when Manchester City were relegated twice in three years, how we enjoyed winding up their fans about that – particularly as United’s star couldn’t have shone brighter at that time, while they scraped back into the second tier by the skin of their teeth, the Red side of Manchester was admiring the Champions League trophy that had recently taken up residence in the Old Trafford trophy cabinet. But most United fans would begrudgingly agree that the Premier League was a poorer place for lack of a Manchester derby. No, it’s not as important to us as the rivalry with Liverpool, but it’s a close second, for sure.

And then there’s Nottingham Forest. They’ve been out of the Premier League so long that it seems their fans have almost accepted they don’t belong in the top flight these days, which is a bit of a shame for a club who have more European Cups than league titles. In my mind, they are one of the clubs who should be in that top division.

I suppose I cannot blame the deluded fellow who called that radio phone-in, he wants the best for his club. When you consider some of the games they had in the 1990’s and early 2000’s, such as Asprilla’s hat trick against Barcelona, or even stuffing United 5 – 0, it’s easy to see why supporters such get so misty eyed about the past – after all, the present is nothing to shout about at the moment. 

Even some United fans, spoiled by the success we have had over the last twenty years, have had a bit of a culture shock over the last decade or so, as the wave of “New Money” clubs such as City and Chelsea have provided title challenges. The fact is that I believe no one club will dominate English football the way we did in the 1990’s (and certain periods of the 2000’s) and Liverpool did in the 1980’s. Back then, in addition to having more money than all the other clubs, we also had the best manager ever. There’s so much money floating about the game these days that it would be unreasonable to expect one club to rule the division all the time.

So to the chap who was ranting on about the direction his club is going at the moment, I say this; look at the likes of Leeds United and Nottingham Forest, who experienced the highest of highs, and thanks to a number of different reasons, look at where they are now. Just be thankful you are in the Premier League at all, boring the rest of us with your delusions of grandeur. I bet Leeds and Forest fans wish they had your problems………