IRRESPECTIVE OF their level of talent, footballers will be criticised and abused.
It comes with the territory, every individual who embarks on a career in the professional game knows what to expect.
Yet certain players tend to attract more fervent antipathy than others for a range of reasons.
Often, it has nothing to do with their ability — Ireland international James McClean, for instance, has received death threats over his refusal to wear a poppy.
Sometimes, it is the most talented players that receive the highest levels of abuse.
In August 2022, a study revealed the identities of the two most abused players on Twitter.
One was Cristiano Ronaldo, who some critics consider the greatest footballer of all time.
The other was Harry Maguire, who in August 2019 became the then-world’s most expensive defender when he joined Manchester United from Leicester City for a fee of €87 million.
Maguire was always going to be a target for abuse if he struggled for form on the back of such a high-profile move, which is precisely what happened, losing his place in the XI following Erik ten Hag’s appointment as manager.
While his performances have evidently not been up to scratch for a while, it is difficult not to feel sympathy for Maguire on a human level.
The degree of abuse aimed at the embattled star has been extreme even by footballers’ standards.
And it is often high-profile social media accounts from mainstream organisations who are joining in with the mob and encouraging them to behave insensitively.
Not many people in the world will be able to relate to Maguire’s experience — living under intense scrutiny and the spite that usually comes with it. However, it is certainly not a pleasant experience and it is one that seems to be genuinely affecting the player.
A difficult start to the season in which he has barely played for United became worse during the week.
Amid England’s 3-1 win over Scotland at Hampden Park, Maguite was jeered by the hosts’ fans every time he touched the ball, while a second-half own goal exacerbated an already difficult situation.
“It’s a joke,” manager Gareth Southgate told reporters. “I’ve never known a player treated the way he is — not by the Scottish fans, by our own commentators, pundits, whatever it is.”
His mum, Zoe Maguire-Wilkinson, also hit out at the “disgraceful” abuse aimed at her son.
“I was there in the stand as usual, it’s not acceptable what’s been created, over nothing,” she wrote on Instagram. “I understand that in the football world, there are ups and downs, positives and negatives but what Harry receives has gone far beyond ‘football’.
“Harry has a massive heart and it’s a good job he’s mentally strong and can handle it as others may not be able to. I wish this sort of abuse on nobody!”
Maguire himself played down the impact of the Scottish fans’ taunts.
“It pretty much takes the pressure away from my teammates and puts it all on myself,” he said. “It makes them play better, for sure.
“It is a little bit of banter and it is a hostile environment, coming away to Scotland.
“I would not say I am a person who struggles with pressure mentally. I have been through a lot in the last couple of years and I have been Manchester United captain for nearly four years.”
Despite this upbeat exterior, you would have to wonder whether Maguire feels different privately in the face of this relentless criticism.
The fan abuse has been normalised for quite some time in Maguire’s case — it’s hard to believe that just two years ago, he was a regular in the United side and selected on the official Euro 2020 Team of the Tournament after helping England reach the final.
An article published last March in ESPN quoted Old Trafford sources suggesting Maguire focuses “too much on social media criticism despite being advised to stay off Twitter in the immediate aftermath of matches”.
Recent performances certainly suggest he is feeling the pressure and the overwhelming lack of compassion demonstrated by the majority of those within the footballing community makes for an uneasy watch.
And if Maguire’s predicament epitomises the worst aspects of modern football in the social media age, the situation involving Richarlison illustrates how the sport has changed for the better in recent years.
The Spurs striker does not attract quite the same levels of abuse as Maguire ostensibly because he is not quite as high-profile a figure, but the Brazilian has similarly struggled for form following a big-money move (€58 million plus €11 million in add-ons) from Everton in July 2022.
Last season, the Brazilian managed just a single Premier League goal for Tottenham in 27 appearances.
This campaign, he has yet to score in four appearances, and he was dropped from the starting XI ahead of the side’s recent win over Burnley.
It went from bad to worse during the international break. Richarlison failed to score during Brazil’s 5-1 win over Bolivia, missing a gilt-edged opportunity indicative of a striker shorn of confidence.
The player was substituted with 20 minutes remaining and he was spotted on the bench looking tearful following another day to forget.
No way Richarlison thought he was Gabriel jesus and missed that pic.twitter.com/uoG8mXWNyc
— AFCtrey (@afc_treyy) September 9, 2023
Yet in stark contrast with the brutal treatment of Maguire, fans rallied around Richarlison with messages of support in reaction to his obvious struggles.
Days later, the Brazilian newspaper O Globo quoted Richarlison saying that the tearful reaction was a means of “getting the things that were happening off the pitch out of my system”.
He continued: “Now things are a bit more stable at home. People who only had their eyes on my money are no longer close to me.
“Things are going to flow now and I’m certain that I will have a good run at Tottenham and will make things happen again.
“I’m going to return to England and seek psychological help, from a psychologist, to strengthen my mind. That’s what it is about, to come back stronger.”
The fact that Richarlison was comfortable admitting he was planning to “seek psychological help” is a sign of progress in football.
Mental health has long been a taboo topic in the game, with suffering from and opening up about these issues unfairly and erroneously perceived as a sign of weakness by people who lack education on the matter.
Ex-Ireland international Richie Sadlier has written about coming through this unhealthy environment in the late ’90s and early ’00s.
The treatment of Stan Collymore and the negative manner in which the striker was perceived, after he undertook therapy for clinical depression in 1999, showed why so few footballers were willing to go public with their ordeals in that era.
It was telling that Collymore retired just two years later at the age of 30, which led to the former Liverpool star being sued by Real Oviedo, who were unhappy at his failure to fulfil a four-year contract.
There are countless similar stories about football’s inability to fully understand mental health difficulties, including the tragic story of Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke.
So Richarlison’s words are the latest step in the right direction amid a growing trend of players speaking openly about their problems.
It highlights how far the game has come in a relatively short space of time and it is an act to be celebrated in an environment that is invariably teeming with toxicity.
Upcoming Premier League fixtures (3pm kick-off unless stated otherwise):
Saturday
Wolves v Liverpool (12.30)
Aston Villa v Crystal Palace
Fulham v Luton Town
Man United v Brighton
Tottenham v Sheffield United
West Ham v Manchester City
Newcastle United v Brentford (17.30)
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Bournemouth v Chelsea (14.00)
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Nottingham Forest v Burnley (19.45)
