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Being at the top of the football food chain will always attract vitriol of all kinds of nuances. Acting like you’re at the top purely off nostalgia will definitely become an unwavering source of ridicule. If self-fulfilling pride is more cultural than simply based on results (recent or otherwise), things are going to get as complicated as they can be.

The reality of competitive culture in football affects the biggest club names because it’s a way of raising the stakes and injecting passion into the sport. The whole culture around Liverpool understands this principle and raises the stakes with its most well-known factors. The result is a staunchly loyal following and an even greater significance for international football culture.

This article will be a slight meditation on what Liverpool fans represent for the rest of the world of football. We’re particularly interested in how fellow Premier League fan groups perceive the Reds, their fans, and their particular effect on the general football discourse!

What do they think of the Reds?

Even as a fan of a rival team, it’s very hard to look at how the Liverpool Football Club community galvanises the sense of community around it. It’s in the position of sharing a city with only one major team, much like the case of Manchester United. However, LFC enjoys the most intense support in the city of Liverpool.

Given its historical significance and intense loyalty from its fans, Liverpool represents the subject of envy for many fans of clubs around the Premier League. Why is it so, especially given their reputed contribution to football fan culture?

Historically, one of the roots of this perception comes from the Heysel disaster. It’s a hard thing to stomach as a Liverpool (or football) fan, but it’s a reality. The tragedy that happened on that fateful night of 29th of May, 1985, brought a disastrous stigma on both Liverpool fans as hooligans and English football fans. Moreover, the ban on English clubs from European competitions over the course of the next 5 years is also a source of discord, given the effect it had on the rest of English football.

It’s also hard being at the top and maintaining a darling reputation. Liverpool’s heights in the Ian Rush era were something that attracted lots of envy, much like Ferguson’s United and Guardiola’s City. Winning at a dynastic level will always create a sense of enmity in other football fans – a sense that fathers instill in their children. Given that every fan base gets smug when their club is at the top, the perception transfers to the fans right away.

Modern Talking Points

Nowadays, it’s safe to say that there are a few more arguments for why Liverpool and their fans are under the microscope.

One of the first would be the fact that they, along with other clubs in this league, are under American ownership. Along with the Spurs, Chelsea, and, formerly, United (who changed controlling ownership) and Arsenal (who smartened up in the meantime), they were in the boat characterised by inefficient ownership, relatively frugal transfer policies, and a very business-oriented approach rather than seeking to win. Association with such a phenomenon is clearly problematic for the average football fan, especially the arrogant oil-club fan bases who revel in their club’s excess.

Another word that you can easily find associated with Liverpool is the ‘overrated’ moniker. The argument is all about saying Anfield and its atmosphere are overrated messes, that Klopp and his team are overrated because they should’ve won more than they managed to. Remember when the Reds’ fan base was ecstatic about Salah’s breakout campaign, and everybody was calling him a ‘one-season wonder?’

How about Trent ‘Fullback who can’t defend’ Alexander-Arnold? Rival fans love to hate Liverpool and call its fans overrated because they don’t understand that loyalty is all about consistency. When Liverpool was wasting money on the likes of Carroll and was today’s Chelsea (without the actual heft of their transfer windows), they were a mediocre, finished club in the eyes of the high-flying mans.

Is the ‘insufferable’ moniker deserved?

It is not because loyalty within unity is a beautiful thing that the truest, most passionate fans prove to be possible. Many think about the fact that the club spoiled its fans with the last 7 years while forgetting how seismic a season was 2013-2014. For those who had just started rooting for the club, it was as beneficial of a starting point as the best online casino welcome bonus. To the victor go the spoils, but Liverpool fans were so overjoyed to see the heart of getting out of mediocrity that they put their rival fan bases to shame.

When you’re intensely loyal and passionate about your club, the ‘fanatic’ label can be a double-edged sword. Some may appreciate your passion, while others may call you cringe. However, many fan bases don’t understand the sense of community and overall cohesion that lives on after whichever season, regardless of its results.

Being insufferable represents engaging in logical fallacies for the sake of narrative, being smug about your unwavering superiority, and belittling everyone else beyond the normal sense of competitiveness. Liverpool fans rarely do such a thing, especially those who understand the core of actually being from the city of Liverpool.

Conclusion

As we close this article, we need to remind every reader that being passionate about your own club also means respecting competition. The validity of rivalry is about competing and knowing how to do so. Your club is your priority, but the perception of others should be an afterthought. What’s most important is to love the community as much as you love what the team represents.

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