With Obi Mikel it was proven beyond reasonable doubt whereas with Terry it wasn't. If the situation was reversed then the club would have condemned Terry and most likely sacked him.
Not so sure about that mate. But then, every Club would be the same, not just Chelsea. They'll protect their investment to the death. Just like Liverpool did. The mighty pound rules supreme.
Not all the Headhunters were racist, it was only the 90s generation, there were black faces amongst the Headhunters although I am not trying to condone their behaviour. Our support seems to largely consist of men aged 40-60, you don't often see younger faces at the Bridge which is a shame, it makes you wonder where the next generation will come from. Compare and contrast to Arsenal which seems to be people 20-40 mostly. There are probably 4 types: The Gloryhunters/JCL - Mainly corporate types who see football matches as a cinematic experience rather than a football match. The Casual Old School Fans - People that have followed the club for decades The Local's - Same as above but younger (I'd fall into this category) The 90s Headhunters - The type that live in the likes of St.Helier and are banned from attending football matches. The latter are in the minority but all clubs have them. Rest assured though the Headhunters were not profoundly racist, it was something deeply exagerrated by the media. But the racial abuse of Mikel would not have come from those types, it would have come from the former (Gloryhunters/JCL's). One of the people that racially abused Mikel was Southern American and it was clear that racism was deemed acceptable where he is from (similar to Suarez incident). Unfortunately being successful attracts this breed of fan. There is no way in a million years this type of fan would have stepped foot inside Stamford Bridge never mind be a regular there.
How comes Chelsea attracted all the head-cases despite it being a pretty decent area? My old man recalls that during his years going to Soccer in England, there was never a bother amongst rival fans but that Chelsea kicked it all off, just before he moved back here.
I'd like to think so but perhaps a part of me is in denial there. I'm not so sure Gourlay could promote his "global brand" with such ease with a convicted racist as captain. Terry is not only captain but also a youth academy product and fan favourite. This alone made it very difficult for Chelsea Football Club to deal with as there was so much sentiment involved. I'm quite sure that any other player would have been out the door. Suarez was indispensable as he was (and probably still is) the only good player Liverpool have on their books. Terry for the reasons above. As Swords says it's all about the £ but I would have fully supported the decision to sack Terry if he was proven guilty in a court of law.
Chelsea's support never really came from the Chelsea area. In fact you'd probably find more Fulham fans in Chelsea than Chelsea fans. A lot of Chelsea's "head-cases" came from disaffected youth from working class areas in South London and The Home Counties at a time when Thatcher was coming down hard on the working class. The overhwhelming majority of Chelsea's support comes from South of the River.
That's interesting DL, didn't know that. So is the "white-collar" Chelsea hooligan, as portrayed in a couple of films, a bit of a myth?
I wouldn't say it's a myth but it's greatly exaggerated. The hooligan films I feel are indicative of the media's views. Notice how Millwall are always the arch enemy in every main hooligan film and West Ham are seen as the heroes. There was a blatant bias towards West Ham in the film "Green Street" which I felt was Hollywood and offered little insight into hooliganism and the culture in general. Football Factory is a better film in that aspect albeit it doesn't portray Chelsea (or Millwall) in a very good light.
oh suprise suprise to see Swords on a Chelsea thread...... Lot of Chelsea support is also Hayes, Northolt, out past slough etc...... few QPR strongholds out there though.......!!
Two decent Movies but there was a better one that came out subsequently but I can't remember the name. The main character was a big black dude that was adopted by an elderly white couple and he became a head man in the West Ham firm. I really enjoyed that film. (The Prison Guard in it was QPR!)
Sorry, getting back on topic I think it's just the club wanting to cover their tracks and appear to do the right thing by Mikel, not a case of double standards as such.
Cass. Named after Cass Pennant, that was a brilliant film and one I have watched myself. There are others that have been recommended to me like Rise of the FootSoldier but I haven't had the time to watch it. Anyhow I don't want to detract from the topic any further so I'll leave you all in peace ans wish you the best against that lot from N17 on Sunday
