We live in a world that’s angry and cynical. Fair enough. It doesn’t mean we have to live our lives that way every day, though. So when Tottenham Hotspur players offered to reimburse the fans who traveled to St James’ Park only to see them 5-0 down after 21 minutes on their way to a 6-1 shellacking at the hands of Newcastle United, why not take it in the right spirit?
Which, in this case, basically means: “We stunk up the joint, we’re upset like you, we’re grateful to those who support us and, while we know we’re judged by performances and we hope to set it right on the pitch, here’s a small gesture that we want to make.”
I have no problem with it. It’s a nice thing to do that acknowledges beyond words that, yes, they were terrible and have been terrible for some time. I’m sure every single Tottenham fan in the world would much prefer that they set it right by playing better on the pitch and qualifying for a place in Europe next season (ideally the Champions League, although let’s face it, that ship has probably sailed), but, frankly, Tottenham’s players can’t control that. What they can control is this. So they affect what they can control.
– How Premier League clubs qualify for Champions League, Europa League
Some went forensic about what it will effectively cost the players. Tottenham received 3,209 tickets for the game. Of that allotment, 3,193 were sold for either £30 ($37.46) to adults, £25 ($31.21) for seniors and £19 (£23.72) for under-18s; 16 went to wheelchair users (their helpers got in free) and they paid either £15 ($18.73), £12.50 ($15.61) or £9.50 ($11.86). Total cost: £96,270 ($120,195.98), which is less than 0.1% of what Tottenham’s players will earn this season. And, of course, it doesn’t cover the cost of travel — it’s around a 600-mile round trip — or meals or snacks or pints of beer.
But … so what?
