From: Zain Nasir
Date: Sat, Sep 12, 2009 at 6:11 AM
Subject: Thank You, Myles
Hi Myles,
I have been a regular reader of this site for years now. This is one of the best blogs out there and trust me it is. Very different, very comprehensive and very thoughtful. It makes you think and you just cannot stop reading due to losing interest in the middle. Once you have started reading article, you have to go all the way and it becomes an addiction. I, today just wanted you to thank you for having such a wonderful blog and writing it from your heart.
You may say you are no Arsenal fan and only a journalist but I disagree. You are an Arsenal fan and you know it. The frustration , depression, anger you show towards this team cannot be from a person who does not love them.
You love them and like many lose your rag when they make silly mistakes but you cannot stop and there you come back again with another article and another thought provoking article. Though I have to be candid and accept you were not the same Old Myles for last couple of months. Way too negative for my liking but today you are back. The Myles I knew is back ! Your article today made sense. 110% or even more so thanks a ton, Myles. And thank you for being back again. Keep on writing.
Respect and Regards from Pakistan.
Myles replies
Zain,
The piece you refer to was Arsenal have Almunia, Man City have Shay Given. How important will that be?
ONCE AND FOR ALL, LET’S BE CLEAR ON ONE THING : It’s not my job to be an Arsenal fan. I’m just an author who writes on the internet for Arsenal fans.
It’s my job to tell you things you don’t already know, to describe the game I see, the team I see, the club I see. Most of my friends are Gooners and many of them read ANR and phone me when I get it wrong. But we are adults who can agree to disagree on certain issues, certain players.
I haven’t ruled out BECOMING an Arsenal fan at some point. That could happen. But not while I’m having to watch some of the dunces who now appear in Monsieur Wenger’s team. (A phone call has just informed me that Almunia has a chest infection.)
It’s true that I do lose my rag. I’m a football fan and it’s an emotional game. When I’m really angry, I don’t write. I take a day off.
When you write a blog 250+ days a year you can’t remember everything that you write. That’s one of the reasons I repeat myself. But mainly I repeat myself when a game proves that what I wrote previously is now more true than when I wrote it the first time.
Unfortunately, many Arsenal fans want me to be something I cannot be. I’m not really a cheerleader by nature. I am not driven by the worship of a club or loyalty to a club.
But if something is brilliant, I can say how marvellous it is and do that as well as anybody. A match, a film, a gig, a book -I can rave about any of those. I can get excited and evangelical. And I’m perfectly happy doing that. It’s easier to write, for a start.
However, as I’ve said before, success is self-explanatory. It speaks for itself and doesn’t need me to explain it.
In general, I’m glad Arsenal have fans in Pakistan and I’m pleased to hear from you. But I’m not here to hold your hand and tell you everything’s gonna be alright. I don’t think it is gonna be alright, far from it.