Football transfers and 'six degrees of separation'

Arsenal had to give their former teammate Robin van Persie a guard of honour last season

A friend of mine, whose advice on songs usually turns out to be good, recommended me a song. I downloaded the song and listened to it while travelling to and from my office.

“Six Degrees Of Separation” is a song by Irish alternative rock band The Script. The song was released as the album’s second single on 25 November, 2012. And before I knew it I was hooked on it. I came back home and was browsing through Facebook when I saw a football post and that is when the lyrics of the song hit me in a different sense altogether.

You hit the drink, you take a toke Watch the past go up in smoke, yeah Fake a smile, yeah, lie and say that, You’re better now than ever, and your life’s okay When it’s not. No.You’re doing all these things out of desperation, You’re going through six degrees of separation.

The Facebook post was an image of an Everton fan holding a hand made poster which said “Once a blue…….now a red…….in our eyes…….you are dead”.

Obviously, Rooney has still not been forgiven by a section of the Goodison faithful. Being a through and through United fan, ordinarily, I would have said to myself nine years have passed, why can’t they let bygones be bygones. But the song playing in the background made me think deeper. Those fans like myself, when I was brooding over Beckham, Ruud Van and Ronaldo, were going through the ‘six degrees of separation’.

The love and attachment we fans feel towards our sports-stars, be it any sport, is something quite unique. The club/franchisee format entices people even more, associating them with foreign sports, clubs and players.

The bond one develops with these franchises and the stars over a period of time becomes a passion. The loyalty, the love adds a new dimension to the life of the fans. The clubs, the stars become a part of our life.

The Six Degrees Of Separation:

First, you think the worst is a broken heart What’s gonna kill you is the second part And the third, Is when your world splits down the middle And fourth, you’re gonna think that you fixed yourself Fifth, you see them out with someone else And the sixth, is when you admit you may have ****** up a little

There is no doubt RVP was the MVP last season. Van Persie was the element that made the difference and won the league for United. His transfer saga and the 2012-13 season from the point of view of an Arsenal RVP fan perfectly explains the six degrees of separation a fans feels after a transfer.

First: When the transfer rumours started building up that with a just a year remaining on the contract, RVP might move away from the club. If that was not enough, it soon became clear that Sir Alex was trying to lure him to Old Trafford. Nothing could be worse than the club talisman moving to a rival. The ever faltering feelings.

Second: The pictures of RVP at the United medical and then the unveiling – RVP holding a United shirt at Old Trafford. How can the club captain join the enemy. Not able to digest the thoughts of the hero of recent seasons suddenly becoming the villain. The frame of mind struggling to put him under negative light. The Betrayal.

Third: When the season moved ahead without RVP but with the new recruits trying to fill the void. Some sparks did lit-up but the team struggled and fell behind in the league. Hopes of winning the league long gone and the prospect of missing out on a champions league position becoming all but real. And Spurs looking the likelier to finish ahead in the league. On the gates of hell.

Fourth: Just when all seemed over, things started to turn out the right way. Spurs dropping valuable points, Arsenal going on a streak of consecutive wins. Slowly but surely coming back in the race for Champions League qualification and then gaining the upper hand. The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.

Fifth: United win the league. Worse they ensured making the championship safe before playing Arsenal the second time in the season. This meant as per the EPL tradition, Arsenal had to give United a guard of honour. And that fateful moment when RVP started the game and thus walked out on to the field to receive the guard of honour from his one-time Arsenal teammates. The bitter realization that he has gone on to achieve something better. Jealousy and Cataclysm.

Sixth: Come end of season, fans started making noises to bring in a big name striker who can be the 20-goals-a-season striker every league contender must possess. Arsenal management realizing what they are missing. And thus trying harder than ever to bring in big stars like Gonzalo Higuain and Luiz Suarez. The reluctant acceptance.

Oh, no there’s no starting over, Without finding closure, you’d take them back, No hesitation, That’s when you know you’ve reached the sixth degree of separation.

Perhaps this is what the United management has realized, with indications that United is trying to negotiate a deal to bring Ronaldo back. Last season it was ‘one signing to win the league’, with Ronaldo it will be ‘one signing to retain the title’.

Be it Figo, Baggio, Cryuff, Barmby, Tevez or any other significant transfer – it made the fans go through the various degrees of emotions. The roadside bars, the sports cafes, the club forums, Facebook groups or blogs have provided discussion mediums for fans, but as the song goes:

No, no, there ain’t no help It’s every man for himself...No, no, there ain’t no help It’s every man for himself..You’re goin’ through six degrees of separation