Fans, Passion and Dignity - Why Football Needs to Grow Up

Monday was a recovery day; and now it's time for us all to take a deep breath and calm down. The sweeping melodrama and near-incredible scenes at Old Trafford on Sunday reminded me of the game I regard to be the most scintillating and dramatic of all time-AC Milan versus Liverpool, on that famous night in 2005 in Istanbul.

I do not intend to suggest that these were technically the best games of all time but merely to ask who could not be enthralled by their sheer excitement?

They are the games that sit at the pinnacle of why we can feel so intensely passionate about football. That the sublime, the ridiculous and everything in between could be squeezed into a ninety-minute game is why football can seduce people the world over, even if it is only in anticipation of moments, minutes and matches like the one on Sunday.

Bleeding out of the high drama on the pitch were all the back stories and plot devices that raised the temperature through the roof. Michael Owen, whose promising career took such a disappointing downward-turn after leaving Liverpool, is rescued from the Championship by their arch-rivals and scores the seventh goal in the number seven shirt (vacated by a hero who spurned them) to clinch the derby at the death.

So many threads ran through this one match that you could write a book on them: the mini-sagas of the Tevez affair, Hughes' mind-games and Gary Neville's attempted-taunt-cum-warm-up as the net rippled in the 96th minute to name only a few.

However, this article is not purely a reflection on the inspirational elements of the game we love but also a reflection on the divisiveness and strain that the nastier elements of our football culture can allow to develop within our community.

Passion in football is a cliche but what does it really mean? Is it the passion demonstrated by the impotent fury of Arsenal fans towards Adebayor during his celebration last week?

Is it the fan who took a clout from Bellamy? Is it the obscene terrace chanting which pretends to be humour and has a total disregard for younger and more sensitive fans?

Is it the man who feels the need to swear blind at an old man who asks him to sit down at a game because he cannot jump up and down every time the ball gets near the 18-yard box? No.

If it was passion then my girlfriend would feel flattered if i was to search out her ex-boyfriends to scream obscenities at them. It isn't, and she would have me out in the cold.

This faux-passion taints the pure emotion that we feel come win or loss. It is the lingering remains of hooliganism and a sad indictment on our collective nature.

What need, what drive was in the Arsenal fans who burst blood vessels screaming at Adebayor? Thierry Henry has said "No matter what Adebayor's emotions were, he could have earned himself a lot of respect by not celebrating the goal.

"That would have shown real class and that to be honest is what most players choose to do when they score against their old clubs."

He is right and it was utter idiocy from Adebayor but it was also pitiful. As I watched it (on my television if that makes the difference) I was bitterly disappointed but the vitriolic reaction of "hardcore" fans was despicable.

The atmosphere must have been unbearable for anyone who would not follow the herd toward knee-jerk fanaticism that has somehow earned its place in football supporting circles as an example of intense loyalty - this thing they call passion.

The sooner we gain some sense of dignity when it comes to our passions, the sooner we will all be able to enjoy them together. Until then we will remain subject to the ever strengthening doctrine that to love your team you have to hate the rest.