Book reviews

Arsenal are attempting to control their fans' nickname, as Jon Spurling reports

With the media gleefully fanning the flames of boardroom discontent (described as a “civil war” in the Daily Telegraph), the last thing Arsenal need is a protracted conflict with sections of their own support. Yet with the announcement that the club has applied to trademark the word “Gooner”, a damaging legal struggle could ensue. The battle over the club’s financial direction could rumble on for a long time – Arsène Wenger and chairman Peter Hill-Wood’s desire for self-sufficiency within five years is in marked contrast to the David Dein-chaired Red and White Holdings’ urge for a rapid injection of cash. The war against global capitalism in N5, however, was lost long ago. Arsenal’s plan to register a word that was coined by supporters over 30 years ago is further evidence of the club’s frequent heavy-handedness when it comes to exploiting their commercial potential.

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Roger Lytollis reports on an odd sacking at Carlisle

It felt as if we’d seen it all. There was the talking alien who spoke to the chairman (“Michael, don’t be afraid”), the goalkeeper who kept us in the League with the season’s last kick, and the curry-house waiter who staged a bogus takeover. After a decade of owner Michael Knighton, Carlisle United fans are well versed in absurdity. But even these battle-scarred veterans found themselves stunned by events on the first Monday morning of the season. And all it took was a few words on the official website: “The board of Carlisle United Football Club regret to say that they have lost confidence in Neil McDonald and are ­terminating his contract forthwith.”

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After three years in jail, Lee Hughes is a footballer once more. Oldham fan Dan Turner reports on the reaction from Latics and supporters elsewhere to the signing of someone who caused death by dangerous driving and the difficult questions about the rehabilitation of prisoners the case raises

Few events in modern football arrive right out of the blue. A much ridiculed post on a message board, a conversation in the pub with someone who knows someone… there’s usually at least a rumour that signals there’s a story knocking about. But not this time. When, in May, the news broke that Oldham Athletic were to sign Lee Hughes subject to his gaining parole from prison, nobody saw it coming.

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As Leeds have lurched from crisis to crisis, outsiders have wondered why fans have not become more militant. For Duncan Young, it’s because there’s no question of a move from Elland Road

As this summer’s Leeds United pantomime ran its course, I was increasingly confronted by passionate supporters of other clubs, incredulous that Leeds fans have not risen in righteous anger and deposed Ken Bates, or at the very least made a stand against him. How much humiliation would it take before we finally seized control of our own destiny rather than accept a constant diet of wailing and gnashing of teeth?

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It’s not about money, of course. But occasionally players wonder if their clubs are as eager to win trophies as they are – and if not, whether they should consider a move. Harry Pearson sympathises

The arrival of the British summer used to be heralded by the swooping of a swallow. These days, though, the most reliable signal that it is time once again to stand around a barbecue with rain dripping from your nose is a chorus of football’s top names wondering aloud in the press if “this club’s ambition matches my own”.

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