All of the Arsenal stuff is heavily manufactured and their ‘banter’ is just as false. The real truth is fans mostly only ‘like’ players if they are performing well for the club. And there’s no problem with that. It’s the same for England. This isn’t a personality contest but a competition to win and if they get close, as they are, then you like the team as an entity, not for the individuals who make it up. Our decisions about whether we like or dislike players is based on what we see on a football pitch in most cases. It’s hardly the best way to judge someone’s character.

It’s the same rubbish used by fans who say “I’d get behind the team if they give their all.” Except they wouldn’t. It’s as much of a cop out as blaming the personality of footballers on why you can’t support them. Losing a load of games doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not giving your all as it can just as easily mean you don’t have the quality to win them. But losing a lot of games would see fans turn against the team, no matter how hard they may be ‘trying’.