I want to start bluntly: real hatred is something that can hollow you out. I know that because of what happened to my cousin after an Old Firm game, and how that event took over a decade of my life. It isn’t a word to sling about when you don’t like a player's performance or personality.

Why one terrible experience matters

There’s a difference between being angry at a player on the pitch and carrying a poisonous, all-day, every-day hatred for another human. When someone says they were consumed by hate for years, you can see why they mean it — it’s not a soundbite, it’s a daily grind. Comparing the two is disrespectful to anyone who’s lived through trauma.

Fans moan, shout and gripe — that’s part of football

To be fair, supporters will always shout at players. We tell them to leave, we swear at them, we question their commitment and their ability. That doesn’t automatically equal existential hatred. Lots of fans are brutally honest from the terraces; sometimes it’s deserved, sometimes it’s unfair. But it’s a different thing entirely to claim people truly hate a player like Tavernier because they voiced displeasure at a game.

Don't cheapen real suffering

Calling every bit of criticism ‘hatred’ cheapens the word and what it stands for. There are conflicts and tragedies in the world — and personal horrors too — where hatred is active, dangerous and life-changing. If we keep throwing the word around for every bit of terrace bile, we end up ignoring the people who actually need the word to make sense of what happened to them.

I’m not saying players are above criticism. Far from it. But let’s try to keep perspective. Football is loud and ugly at times. That’s one thing. Being consumed by hatred is another, and it deserves to be recognised as such.

Written by Boy blue 4: 17 June 2026

Tags: match-review