You’ve spent a fortune to travel 300 miles from north London to Newcastle and your team is 5-0 down after 21 minutes. Do you stick by them, either out of duty or in the hope that they pull off the greatest comeback in Premier League history – even more spectacular than when Newcastle themselves came from 4-0 down to draw with Arsenal – or do you make an early exit? That was the dilemma facing the travelling Spurs fans on Sunday and quite a few decided they had seen enough.
If the supporters wanted to send a message to the club, it worked. Tottenham reacted to the 6-1 defeat by sacking their caretaker manager Cristian Stellini, the second time the club had ditched a manager in three weeks. But is leaving a game early really in the spirit of being a fan? And how early is too early?
Supporters who leave early are in danger of missing something incredible. When Arsenal went 4-0 up St James’ Park in 2011, Newcastle legend Malcolm Macdonald turned to a friend and said: “I can’t stand it. It’s dire. It’s purgatory to watch.” He upped and left at half-time, missing the greatest comeback in the club’s history. Macdonald should have known better given that he once scored a hat-trick in a game where Arsenal came from behind to beat Newcastle 5-3.
If you have left a game early, we would love to hear from you. When did you leave, what drove you to the exit and did you live to regret it?
