Here on Planet Football it can often feel like we inhabitants occupy a parallel moral universe. In this universe some fans will openly support their club captain in the midst of a court case over horrifically racist language they would never tolerate in their own house, while the others plant their flag on the moral high ground, and berate those who maintain his innocence (but still celebrate his goals like a proud dad on a Sunday). Some lash out at anyone who exhibits anything other than blind faith in a captain who let it slip and others invest actual, real money into a damning banner attached to a plane but questions the loyalty of those who’d rather spend £1000 on a holiday than a season ticket.
This blindly partisan digital age is the lovechild of a perpetually angry, non-stop rolling news, Twitter-fuelled, phone-in frenzied world in which its latest victim, Frank Lampard, is labelled a “Judas” because, having been released by his club, he dared to sign a contract with another.
Very few of you will remember, but I wrote something in a similar vein at the very beginnings of this shit storm about how no one should feel animosity towards Frank; I also predicted that he would stay at Manchester City for the entire season, I obviously did not know about the exact details of his contract but, having found out at the same time as everyone else, can honestly say that I could not care less. Lampard was a free agent being offered his last big contract and a move to the Big Apple, happy days, he was then offered a short term contract/6 month wait for his connecting flight, with a club challenging at a level which he knew he could still compete, happier days. Professional integrity dictates that you must “allow yourself to make a personal choice, an uncompromising and predictably consistent commitment to honour moral, ethical, spiritual and artistic values and principles” – in other words, if Lampard thinks he can still cut it, Chelsea and the decision makers within in, had no right to tell him he couldn’t, and thus submitted their right to dictate his behaviour afterwards.
To their credit, those at the club have behaved admirably, even John Terry raised a few smiles when he joked “I fucking knew it” after Lampard jeopardised on some lack lustre defending against his old club. Amazingly, Mourinho has managed to avoid spouting off anything too derisory towards the man he let go. The biggest backlash Lampard’s faced has come, predictably, from those blindly partisan fans who now doubt his loyalty. It seems completely bonkers to me how anyone can question the commitment and loyalty to Chelsea of Frank Lampard. These fans belong to every club and tend to operate with a concept of loyalty that is utterly distorted, unrealistic and hypocritical. If a great player joins the club, no matter who his previous pay masters, he is a hero. If he leaves, he is a traitor. Cesc will testify.
Obviously I know that Lampard once said that he would not play for another Premier League club. But so what? I said earlier that I was going to have soup for tea, but I’ve just finished eating lasagne. I changed my mind, perhaps he did the same. People do that. He is simply playing football, the thing he loves to do and is really good at, for a club who actually want him. What more is there to say?
It must be acknowledged that some fans have every right to feel aggrieved, any who laid their fandom at the door of New York City and thus expected to see Frank Lampard for the whole season (not most of it) should and do feel let down. That is some commitment worth questioning.
Lampard has proved his worth, City have played the system and are at least 5 points better off for it, meanwhile Chelsea do not appear to be missing their top goalscorer and his famous late runs into the box. Let’s hope he realises that most understand, on both a professional and a human level, why he now wears a lighter shade of blue.
