Somewhere in a dirty and depressed and sletet Liverpool (I was there several times in the 1970s and 80s and Thatcher’s policies had really mashed the whole town) has any christian group has taken graffiti to help give all the poor scousers some hope for the future. ”Jesus saves” is it written with big letters on a large central viaduct, the ”Jesus saves”, that is. But no real liverpudlian colleague has, of course, added to the main just below that: ”But Kenny Dalglish gets the rebound” – Kenny Dalglish hits in return!!!
Annandagsfotboll in England I’ve loved since adolescence, it has always been the coolest fotbollsdagen on throughout the year. I have been on the bakfyllda (!) the bleachers on both the Highbury, Loftus Road, Craven Cottage, Stamford Bridge, Selhurst Park, The The and White hart Lane. I’ve had some of my life’s greatest moments right there. Well, actually. The lugs could in the 1970s, 80s and even 90s be totally sick topical, political, funny, mean, nasty, beautiful, and entirely unpredictable. It escalated always on boxing day. It is becoming increasingly rare.
down and knocked out and miserable I tend to use Youtube and listings and amateur films over the English fotbollslags most självironiska and self-effacing sarcasm to cheer me up. Thousand men out of the Fulham bortafölje have 0-4 against Manchester City when they point the finger at the Cityfansen and chanting: ”We lose every week, we lose every week – you’re nothing special, we lose every week.”
Or QPR fans that completely surprising win away: “We’re winning away, we’re winning away – how shit must you be, we’re winning away.”
the One time I ended up next to Alan Rickman (magical actor, in ”Love actually”, for example) on a Boxing Day match between Fulham and Ipswich in The Championship. Småjäkligt, freezing cold, 0-0. I was so starstrucked that I could barely touch me and we stood CLOSE, we’re talking centimetres. I said, of course, not a word.
Saw Fulham now on boxing day at Viaplay. The crowd in this stunningly beautiful arena set with such that (damn!) ”klappor” in the hands and looked as if they were at the movies. Big business and money has sold out the football to the middle and upper classes. Soon it is only those who have the advice of English football. Or desire.
in eight parts, ”Sunderland’Til I Die”. It is not a superspektakulär film, no cineastiskt masterpiece, but well made and the careful and exhaustive – and if you want to know or understand anything about modern football and real football, real fans – it is an absolute must.
you in Particular who do not take the thing with all the damn nagging about allsvenskan and sports and sports history should, above all, take a look. Now are careless unfortunately, they are past the klassmässiga part of football in a city such as Sunderland, where you just can’t talk about football without also at the same time, talk in class, and 1900-century history, the industries, the shipyards and the workers. But you understand anyway.
Listen to the supporters, on the taxichaffisarna, on the kitchen staff cooking the food for the players every day, of all those who are putting all the time and all the money to see all of the away games – and not feel that they get the minimum back. How long are they out? How long are We out?
the Sunderland fall apart, fall out of the Premier League, coming last in The Championship – at the time of writing they are third in League 1. I have never been a Sunderland supporter, but after eight episodes is one more football fan than it has ever been.
standing there in front of the saint peter and are trying to infiltrate and trying to drag me to the memory of my life’s biggest moment, so it will be, of course, first of all with my boys, and a lot with my mother and my ex-wife and a few other loves that have made me truly happy – then, a sick bunch of meaningless football games!
Chelsea-Manchester United sometime in the 1990s, bought a svartbiljett and ended up in the bortaklacken. Was chockskadad and happy in two weeks. Siracusa-Catania, Serie C at the end of the 1970s, perhaps to 4,000 in the stands, the funniest match I’ve ever been on. Ove Kindvalls avskedsmatch at the Start of August 1966. Win against AIK, 6-0, Ove did four.
Can I be happier? Ever…? Ridiculous fun.
Read more chronicles of Johan Croneman here.
