Can Arsenal fans forgive Shkodran Mustafi and move on?

Why do fans find it difficult forgive Mustafi? by Lagos Gooner

A case study of Shkodran Mustafi’s time at Arsenal.

Hello Gooners! Well, it is no longer news that Shkodran Mustafi may be allowed to stay back at Arsenal and fight for an opportunity to impress the coach and win back the love of Arsenal fans. For somebody who was abused or attacked both online and offline, this may be a tough task to accomplish. The good news is Mustafi is ready to do whatever it takes to contribute his quota in making Arsenal successful again. The problem now is will the fans give him the chance to do this?

If there is one Arsenal player who has suffered enough backlashes from both the media and Arsenal fans, it is the world cup winning German defender, Shkodran Mustafi. The player himself attested to this, in a recent story about him in the news. According to the Sun, Mustafi admitted that he had to quit social media after his Arsenal blunders led to abuse from trolls.

Speaking to the Arsenal website, as reported by the Sun, Mustafi revealed he tried his best to block out the abuse. He said: “You’ve got to deal with social media. It’s difficult to handle when things are going well and then when things are not working out it’s even tougher.

“I managed to try to block it out a little bit. I was not that active on social media and wasn’t reading comments, I wasn’t too concerned about social media, I just wanted to go back on the pitch and give everything because I knew that in this moment I was not playing the football I know I could play.

“I was just talking with the closest people around me like my family, my parents, my wife, my kids, and this helped me to forget about everything.. In the morning when I was coming to training, I would just focus on the training and then go back home to spend time with my family. I tried not to read too much stuff that people were saying.”

Now, let us look at it this way; nobody sets out to intentionally commit errors that will lead to ugly accidents. We are all humans and we are bound to make mistakes. I understand that after making several silly mistakes people are bound to lose faith in such a mistake prone person, but attacking him everywhere he went, was totally out of order. I have people working for me and I will never be the type of person to make a fellow human being feel totally worthless and hopeless.

“It gets a little bit frustrating to read those comments but at the end of the day, you have to be professional and I tried to be as professional as I can.

“When things are going well, it’s easy to read those comments and like what you read. It gives you confidence but you have to be careful not to get carried away because you still have to stay professional.

“When the fans are on your side, it gives you so much more confidence. As a defender it’s always difficult because you always have pressure, especially when you don’t have the ball and the opponents are attacking. Every little mistake and every little error you make can lead to a goal.” Mustafi confessed.

Why is it difficult for fans to forgive players and give them another chance to redeem themselves? Is it because they are professionals and are expected to be perfect at all times? Or is it because they earn so much money playing football and this puts so much more pressure on their heads to perform so well in every game? Whatever the case, can we please remember that these players are humans and are prone to making mistakes, even when they don’t wish to? Can we as fans allow players make mistakes and learn from them?

We are Arsenal and we are proud.

Sylvester Kwentua

12 Comments

  1. He must be given a clean slate as what Arteta gave to the other senior players

    Luiz and Sokratis are not getting any younger, whereas Holding is rarely fit. Arsenal need to try Mustafi out one last time, before deciding to sell him or to extend his contract

  2. And we may not have any choice with another injury. So far there has been a big change in a number of players, why not him?

    I freely admit that I am a critic of him, and the whole back half of the team for that matter (excepting Leno) so maybe I am a hypocrite.

    We don’t really have anything to lose and maybe his form changes, he did make a German World Cup team many moons ago.

    It would be stupid to make an over-priced deal in January out of desperation – especially as it isn’t going to move us to top four this year. Summer is the time for us…

    1. Very sensible remarks
      We are over halfway through the season and will not make CL without winning Europa league
      There is no point vilifying Mustafi. His confidence won’t improve otherwise and although his Arsenal career hasn’t been a roaring success it appears he is staying so we need to help him through and support the overall cause

  3. Fact is, other clubs are just not interested in him. Selling is not an option. I don’t blame Mustafi for a prolonged period bad mistakes and blunders. I blame the club for not rectifying the situation sooner. We all know certain players are playing in a league that is just too fast and physical for them but, they are expected to continue under immense pressure. Mustafi is not suited to the EPL I guess? Again, I dont blame him personally.. we have made many bad buys over the years..

  4. No point in another chance! Mustafi is an honest hardworking guy who just happens to not be quick enough or able to handle life in the premier.Far better he moves on now with our thanks for trying!

  5. Little did Arsene Wenger know that his decision to sanction the acquisition of Mustafi would be a huge error of judgement in terms of the German’s football ability and result in a substantial financial loss for the Club he loves.I say this because the lack of interest in Mustafi speaks volumes and suggests that Arsenal fans are correct in their low evaluation of the player.In terms of his persona , I respect the man and wish him well for his future.

      1. Yeah it’s typical Arsenal supporters. Mustafi, Ozil, and Xhaka can be forgiven. But Maitland-niles made 1 mistake, and everyone didn’t want to see him playing for Arsenal again. Keep on forgiving them, and let Arsenal sink further

    1. His value has dipped because he is not playing regular football. He always had this habit of making stupid mistakes at the back but he can string together some good performances. Don’t forget when we bought him he was part of Germany successful football team n he was regular. If we want more money for him I am afraid we will have to play him to get his value up. His stats are pretty good.

  6. Mustafi is deserving of forgiveness and support. I like him. He is able to articulate his problems and admit his errors and that is the beginning of finding a solution. He comes across as honest and determined to do better. He should be given another chance and we should show him love. Life can be tough sometimes despite huge salaries and we need to always feel for others. No football player wants to be the butt of jokes. They all want to do better and be superstars. Goodluck Mustafi and I love you.

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