JibrinA football club in turmoil and a fanbase debating how to rescue it: it’s Leicester City.
Now comes the tale of a wealthy family who lost everything, and the supporters who had no option but to try to hold it all together.
Over the weekend, as Leicester City fans attempted to come to terms with the unprecedented double blow of being dumped out of the FA Cup and dropping into the Championship’s relegation places on the very same day, two social media posts surfaced urging supporters into action.
The first post encouraged people to take part in a protest march to the stadium ahead of the fixture against Norwich on Saturday 28th February, starting from F Bar on Walnut Street at 11.30am.
It struck exactly the right tone, acknowledging the successful years under King Power ownership while making it clear that change is required, in an effort to reassure and win over supporters who feel a sense of emotional loyalty toward the current owners.
If the ideal moment to protest was three years ago, the next best moment is now. Because it’s simple to propose something. It’s far harder to organise it. So rather than squabbling over the perfect style of protest, anyone worried about the direction of our football club is duty-bound to support every thoughtful initiative like this that unites the fanbase.
The second post, in reply, followed a similar format but softened the message, calling for the removal of Jon Rudkin (albeit misspelled) and louder backing for the team.
There were numerous inherently absurd elements within its content.
The notion of “standing with a family” who are at risk of driving the club to its knees. The appeal for players’ chants to be sung as though they originate from somewhere other than one individual. The call for “exploring alternative investment opportunities beyond the current ownership structure” (you truly never will sing that). The claim that Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha “gave his life for the club” rather than being the victim of a helicopter tail rotor bearing seizure.
Yet however irritating or misguided the post may have been, the core principle of supporting the team is sound.
Importantly, that does not conflict with the march organisers who have sought to bring together a fractured fanbase by advocating a protest without encouraging a boycott. The appeal to “unite for change” depends on supporters accepting that the current circumstances will inevitably produce negativity. We simply need to ensure that negativity is channelled in the correct direction.
Continuing the dual theme, the reaction from both supporters and players at the final whistle after last Tuesday’s opening defeat of the week to Southampton was puzzling.
The players went through their customary slow lap of the pitch applauding a section of supporters, most of whom had either already departed, chosen not to attend, or were responding with anger.
Don’t persist with these laps of dishonour. Just leave the pitch and reflect on what has happened. There is nothing here worthy of applause from either side.
The immediate response to the calamity from the stands was a loud rendition of “You’re not fit to wear the shirt”.
Whether they’re fit to wear the shirt or not, this is the group we are left with for the next three months and we must find a way to back the entire effort. Especially when perhaps the only player considered fit to wear the shirt quite literally isn’t right now.
You would struggle to find a more divided football club, or one that looked more destined for relegation.
Even in victory at Cheltenham recently, chants from the away end centred on how poor Cheltenham must be for Leicester to be ahead and a vow to invade the pitch if Patson Daka scored (he did; they didn’t).
It may have been one of the bleakest victorious away ends assembled by Leicester City supporters in recent memory. There was no celebration. No optimism. And no recognition of the modest role supporters can play in lifting the younger members of this squad, many of whom featured at Cheltenham and are now being relied upon out of necessity.
The matchday squad for the 4-3 defeat to Southampton last Tuesday included a 17-year-old, an 18-year-old, a 19-year-old, a 20-year-old and three 21-year-olds. One of the latter, Abdul Fatawu, has completed only one full, injury-free campaign at senior level. He made his 100th first-team appearance that evening and has effectively been pushed into a leadership role by Rudkin’s desperate attempt at squad construction. The same applies to Ben Nelson, also 21, appointed captain for the trip to the south coast on Saturday.
It will not be the supporters’ fault if Leicester City are relegated this season, but if you want any degree of certainty that this football club survives beyond the summer then perhaps it is time to help foster a more positive environment for the likes of Louis Page, Olabade Aluko, Jeremy Monga, Ben Nelson, Divine Mukasa, Silko Thomas and Dujuan Richards. They should not be in this situation — but they are.
A properly managed football club would have the privilege of introducing these youngsters in calmer circumstances rather than abruptly handing them the captaincy due to a shortage of senior leaders, positioning them as the solution to all our problems, or starting them away from home without a single minute of senior football behind them. But to quote the pre-reform Foxes Trust, we are where we are.
For the time being, at least. Because another relegation looms. And there is a misguided notion among certain supporters that League One is precisely what this football club requires. The previous time we descended to such depths, that proved true. We received the reset we needed.
The present financial landscape makes it naive to assume history will repeat itself. The club would enter the third tier burdened by the albatross of Seagrave, carrying a long-standing failure to operate sustainably in recruitment and retention, and facing a new regulation: a ceiling of 60% of turnover allocated to player wages.
This is a club whose ownership deemed it acceptable to spend 116% of its revenue on salaries in 2022/23 and 102% in the Championship in 2023/24. There will be no spending our way out of trouble this time.
If you have not been paying attention, the period for blindly trusting those in charge has long since passed. We can only attempt to mitigate the fallout.
In truth, there are few incorrect choices supporters can make now. To protest is justified. To support the team is justified. It is equally difficult to criticise those who opt to stay away through frustration or indifference.
Three months remain. Still an opportunity for supporters to come together in demanding change, generate a healthier atmosphere for the players and encourage the return of those who have drifted away from matchdays.
But the frustration must be directed toward those responsible for placing Leicester City in this predicament — not the ones now tasked with preventing the nightmare scenario this May.
Jibrin
