Now the Easter bunny is to blame for stayaway Gooners
FIRST it was the Beast from the East, then Mother’s Day, and yesterday it was the turn of the Easter Bunny.
After Arsenal supporters voted with their feet for home Premier League fixtures against Manchester City and Watford, apathy again reigned at the Emirates Stadium. The explanation was not convincing.
‘It is explicable by the fact it is Easter, a family happening,’ manager Arsene Wenger said. ‘We’re not going for a lot in the Premier League in people’s minds. We had a break, the last two or three weeks we faced that problem.’
A club official trundled around in the second half to report that more than 59,000 tickets were sold but he was not fooling anybody; most neutral observers estimated there were at least 10,000 fewer spectators in the stadium.
Wenger’s conclusion that Arsenal supporters are experiencing a religious reawakening is not credible. Instead, it is increasingly clear that supporters are expressing their discontent at the club’s malaise in the most direct manner.
It was the same against Manchester City in the snow and against Watford on Mother’s Day. Yes, fans must fight the elements and balance social lives, but generally they do all they can to turn up to watch their team. Yet at the Emirates, apathy has taken over.
By the full-time whistle, the jeers at half-time felt like an illusion. This was, ultimately, a handsome victory for Arsenal and their fourth in a row in all competitions. But before the break, the pent-up frustration among their fans had resurfaced. One attacking move went backwards and the groans intensified. Wenger said his side ‘lacked urgency, pace and drive’. A better team than Stoke would have punished them.
These are uncertain times at Arsenal and Premier League fixtures are peculiar affairs. The top four places are beyond their reach and the priority can only be the Europa
League. Yet there is pride to play for and it should unsettle Wenger and his players that Sean Dyche’s modest Burnley side were only two points adrift of their team before this match kicked off.
Wenger, who had lost his voice through illness early in the week, must have delivered a firm reminder of his players’ responsibilities at the break.
The atmosphere improved as the team did and, by the end, Arsenal fans gleefully teased their old foes from Stoke over their impending relegation.
For Wenger, it felt an important upturn. Arsenal have one, they hope two, more crucial fixtures to play at home this season in the Europa League. The mood must improve if the team are to navigate a way through a competition that still contains sides such as Atletico Madrid and Lazio. Arsenal’s form is returning, so will the supporters follow? ‘They will be back on Thursday (for the Europa League), don’t worry,’ Wenger said. He must hope so.