Is it really necessary to always have a target boy? Since I have been on this site (and I am sure every other site is the same) there has been at least one player that fans have picked on and considered as useless, not worthy of the club and therefore must go under any circumstances, free if necessary.
Some of the more famous ones included Pires, Gilberto and even players such as Henry, Bergkamp and Vieira. Of course the less able ones were the easier target and this list is endless. Players such as Stepanovs did not do themselves any favours by making some very costly mistakes and at the same time not really having the necessary top skills that are required to be successful at the very top, so its perhaps easier to understand the criticism.
Players such as Kanu are even more frustrating because we know how talented this guy is, yet for the last 2 years the impression that he has given us is that “I have done my bit at Chelsea with that brilliant hatrick and don't need to prove anything”. Unfortunately what Kanu didn't realise is that players such as Bergkamp and Henry have this type of brilliance throughout the season and they still give 100% in every match. Fans of course are quick to pick on this, and rightly so, and Kanu has very quickly become a target boy which I have to say that even I found it difficult to argue with. Until this weekend I was convinced that Kanu had no future at the club but seeing his performance against Celtic made me think that perhaps this guy has realised that just skill isn't enough. I know that 45 minutes would normally mean nothing but 45 minutes in a friendly match where he chased every ball, created some brilliant chances for others and worked as a top player should, has left me wondering that perhaps we haven't seen the last of Kanu. Lets hope so!
Of course Cygan has had to go through the same crucifixion as Jesus Christ and still has a lot to prove. Yet somehow, I believe that some fans will never accept him even if he has a great season. It will give me a great pleasure if he does that because I really believe he is the right player alongside Sol. He has the brain and skill which would compliment Sol's power, strength, pace and determination.
I will never forget Pire's first season, especially the first 6 months in which so many fans would have killed him given the chance. The rest is history as they say.
Wiltord of course has never been the darling of Highbury and never will be because what the fans see is that he stopping players such as Freddie, Parlour and Pennant from playing. Yet if you check the facts since he has been at Highbury they show that he deserves his place in the team.
Now the man of the moment is of course Jeffers. And why? What has this guy done to deserve such a force of hate? We suddenly get all these fans coming out of the woodwork telling us what a crap player he is and that he is only good enough for teams such as Wolves, Birmingham etc. What sort of logic is this? Surely if he is good enough to score for those teams then he must even better for us because he will gets lots more chances with players such as Bergkamp, Pires, Henry etc. creating the chances for him. Can someone please remind me where this guy has gone wrong? Has this guy been given a run in the team and did not produce? Has he had any chances that he didn't take and let the team down? Of course he had major injuries but is that his fault? Now he seems to be over the injuries so instead of the fans getting behind him to give him the confidence that he needs, they are demanding his exit. Well, he may well go but the question who would you pick on next? Senderos? You never know, he could make a mistake that causes us the match and what an easy target he would then become.