Sentimentality in football: You just can’t help yourselves

That was a particularly bitter tale, but it can be more enjoyable. In 1997, Graham Taylor (I know, just indulge me a little) decided to give management another go with Watford. To summarise, Jason Lee was signed (sans pineapple), and Watford won promotion from the third tier as Champions. The following season he took pretty much the same team into the Premier League (sans Jason Lee). They were relegated, of course, but for those of us who missed the halcyon days of the late 1970s and early 1980s, to see Taylor return and deliver back to back promotions was more than enough. The stories were true, he wasn’t mortal, he was a god. Albeit, a god whose powers were rendered utterly useless when deployed outside of south-west Hertfordshire.

Back to the matter in hand, and I hope that Bryan Gunn is still revered for his exploits on the pitch, but that disastrous spell as manager has left a stain, however small, on what should be an immaculate record. With that in mind, how on earth can Kenny Dalglish live up to the expectations of Liverpool fans, given the success he accumulated the first time around at Anfield? It would be safer to wipe the slate clean, but if history has shown us anything, it’s that footballers and managers will always be tempted to go back, and fans will always welcome them. Indeed, football depends on those emotional ties. Fans don’t care for realism; they will always want to dream that new legends of yore can be written. They don’t want to visit the park of the fallen heroes.

Michael Moruzzi. Follow Regista-blog here.

image from welloffside.com

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