People have always left matches early, and for a number of reasons. Blaming those who do after a bad result makes little sense…
EVERY home game, in the early stages of time added on, I’ll usually get a tap on my shoulder.
My seat is on the stairwell of The Kop. My cousin, who sits some rows behind, will be on his way down to the exit.
We will share a couple of words about the game. He will signal his head toward the concourse invitingly.
I will shake my head in resolve and slight amusement and I’ll usually catch up with him 10 minutes or so later somewhere around the stadium.
Every game is the same. We dance the same dance because in this particular instance we are different.
He leaves and I stay.
I’m not better than him for staying. Let’s get that out.
The perception that support is attributed to time in the stadium – like some sort of clocking in and out loyalty at work – is too simplistic and reductive.
People have always left Anfield before the final whistle and have a myriad of legitimate reasons to do so. Those who have or care for those with accessibility needs being a prime example.
Anfield also remains incredibly frustrating from a public transport and traffic management viewpoint. Long drives on evening games mean you’ll want to beat the congestion that inevitably builds up around the area.
As I said, time immemorial. It’s every match-going supporter’s right to decide when to take their retirement from the afternoon’s entertainment.
I stay because I like to look for some of the subtle nuances at full-time. What’s the body language like? Who looks pissed off? Who looks resolute or not arsed?
It gives me a minute to decompress. I don’t have to be anywhere, really. A minute I can spare.
So why write about it again? The question of atmosphere is so fucking boring. I won’t bother challenging the same falsehoods again.
But after the loss to Nottingham Forest, the old questions about atmosphere and belief and leaving early surfaced.
Put simply: it isn’t corporates, tourists or the elderly to blame. The point has always been that one particular facet is not responsible.
Yes, ticket allocation and pricing remains an issue and the recent example of Aston Villa’s Champions League ticket pricing should be worrying for all.
The Forest performance was one in which everything went wrong. It reminded me of the Crystal Palace defeat towards the back end of last season.
History has been recently revised in some quarters. The reaction of the supporters was the same that day against Palace.
Not every atmosphere under the last manager was Barcelona in the same way not every goal was a sumptuous counter-attack.
On every Anfield occasion, individuals come together to form part of a collective. That group can, we know, be hugely influential to outcomes.
We learnt so much over the past ten years. We were challenged and called out and went on a journey of our own.
We know that no game should ever be over. We know that we should be the angriest version of ourselves to help the team. We know.
This manager demands less than the last. He seemingly views it as his responsibility to give crowds something to shout about.
True, I suppose, but then the best version of ‘we’ has always been when Anfield decides to stamp its authority on the occasion.
It isn’t always easy to do. Sunny September days or lonely winter nights can be a distraction of their own. You can sometimes understandably see the football as an afterthought when catching up with friends or after a heavy day.
My own view is that Anfield is studious. At times too honest. It still audibly winces at tackles or penalty claims against Liverpool.
For me, Anfield is currently trying to figure out what to expect from a new era at Liverpool. It can’t be background noise. It doesn’t stand for the bullshit. It isn’t Old Trafford.
It can take a spark sometimes. A feisty opposition manager or terrible referee. It can often be a stadium that, for whatever reason, decides “we’re not having this’.
That is how it’s always been. The previous manager was more vocal in reminding us about responsibility. Those reminders are a legacy. They are heeded.
Liverpool are at Anfield tomorrow. People will do what they’ve always done. There will be departures and retainers and taps on the shoulder and polite refusals.
There will also be a reaction. We need dreams and songs to sing. We need pins in the map. It’s all to come once again.
We will know what to do.
Buy Dan Morgan’s book ‘Jürgen Said To Me’ on Klopp, Liverpool and the remaking of a city…
