TheInfiniteOdyssey

"The protest wouldn't be happening if the team was doing well" Almost like that's the point, Ashley's ruinous ownership means the team largely never does well by any metric.

It’s a weird take because your post (as usual) lacks all form of perspective. You’re fixated on an isolated incident rather than acknowledging the actual purpose of the protest, it’s underlying factors and its impact. The said impact is to engineer some kind of forced disruption to a formal apparatus that has long since ignored or totally sidelined grassroots campaigning.

Would this not be true for any prospective ownership model that's not fan-owned?

In an alternative universe whereby we had Spurs' place in the Super League, our fanbase would be stating "support the team, not the ESL" and packing out every game.

I haven't bothered to find any reactions, but you would imagine most Fulham fans would be apprehensive of their run of fixtures also. They look largely favorable on paper, but considering their abject form, it's certainly not a given that they'd get 6 points out of Burnley and Southampton. Could quite easily get 0.

I definitely agree with this. The behemoths of English football - Man United, Liverpool, Arsenal are always going to act as a lightening rod for any issues and rhetoric circulating in the footballing world. That's why their ESL memberships and sullied ownership are catching fire because there's just so much more attention affixed to these clubs at any given moment. It's not just a national gaze, it's worldwide. Newcastle will obviously be the biggest club in our own head-space, but that's never going to be reciprocated. Another issue with our fanbase wondering where all the outrage is about Ashley and his ownership is that if we're being direct, the narrative has gotten stale. It's difficult to keep repackaging this trauma (more like numbness) to other audiences now. - An awful, predominately lower-half team with an owner that has no ambitions beyond that for the past 13 or so years Yes we've had relegations across that time, but that's pretty much how it's been. So for a neutral observer looking in, they're probably thinking "well yeah that's shit how Ashley is still there, but it's been that way for ages now so why are you still going on about it?". There's no new narrative, just staleness in perpetuity. We're still talked about clearly, but at the same there's nothing really new to say about us. What's more, this is compounded with little direct action being orchestrated and carried out by the actual fanbase. So you have the same narrative, every season being played-out which inevitably dilutes the issue.

Yeah, tribalism is such a powerful barrier for any form of cross-partnership network across fanbases. But in the same breath, tribalism is the bedrock of football's social identity. I think on this occasion, it's clear why this has resonated across the wider footballing pyramid, as the 'ESL' was threatening to usurp the traditional classifications and meritocracy of the English (also wider European) game. However, back to your point, I think common tribalism means nobody is going to give a fuck about a bad owner at another team, exceptions being cases like Wigan or Blackpool perhaps. We're all guilty of it, the West Ham ownership for example are comprised of total crooks but I couldn't care less because my focus is solely on Ashley and NUFC. I don't think a 'common purpose' will ever truly be achieved on matters like these, mainly due to the social currents that underpin the game and culture.

We’ll get 3 points against Sheffield United, but fully expect 0 from all other fixtures.

Brilliant by the Man United fans, the type of direct action that hasn’t been seen at NUFC for the last 10 or so years. Really puts it into perspective how pathetic the “support the team, not the regime” fanbase we have.

4 wins in 24 games and 17th in the league, he’s an absolute disgrace. Ideal scenario in my opinion is get hammered in each remaining game, alongside Fulham failing to pick up points in all their games respectively as well (apart from when they play us of course). Will illustrate how utterly hopeless he is every week until the end of the season

Yeah, same bloke who said back in October that the Premier League had to open their books or a date in court would be set Apparently it was “that simple” He’s tried to walk back that story every time since, they’re all clueless.

I think it’s over anyway if Chelsea beat Fulham on the weekend.

They have enough points already I'd expect, but Brighton's run-in isn't the best, if Fulham decide to pick up some form.

Another stupid scenario where they slow it down and distort the actual event from what it was.

A figure of £120m was reported by the Spanish media outlet AS, but that was from Perez’s ramblings, so not clear if it’s true or not.

Henry Mauriss must be ready to step in?

Arsenal fans forum being held with Josh Kroenke, CEO and fan groups

Perez delivering quite possibly the worst press tour ever seen so far.

In the majority of 'apologies' made by the affected clubs, all have referenced their determination to pursue another strategy down the line. This appeasement needs to end man, they're just going to try something else in a year or so time. Project Big Picture was only 6 months ago.

They won’t unfortunately, Ceferin was practically falling over himself to congratulate Man City’s ‘historic’ reversal yesterday. He’s not going to do anything to shake relations with the big clubs, except perhaps not sending Agnelli a dinner invitation.

UEFA have completely squandered their unmitigated leverage by pushing through those ridiculous Swiss Model reforms to the competition, even while all this was collapsing. Morons.

Matt Law sinking to new depths of client journalism this morning

Apparently Linekar is a mate of Woodward, that one does read sarcastic though I agree.

It's fair to say that the Spanish television network where Perez had his interview yesterday aren't taking this turn of events too well.