Chiesa Song An Embarrassment To Anfield

Whether you like it or not, Juventus fans will hear echoes of Heysel

IF FEDERICO CHIESA wasn’t a cult hero at Anfield before, his goal that put Liverpool in front in the 4-2 victory over Bournemouth on Friday confirmed his status. The Italian scored his side’s third and caused an explosion of joy in the stands.

The Premier League’s opening fixture was an emotional event. The tributes to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva meant tears were shed before and after the game. Yet there were other aspects of the night that were less wholesome.

A man in the disabled section was arrested for allegedly racially abusing Antoine Semenyo. The Bournemouth striker then scored twice. Some might say that’s the best revenge. I’m not one of them. The best revenge would have been Semenyo dragging the moron out of his wheelchair and beating the abuser to a pulp. Where’s Eric Cantona when we need him?

As it is a lifetime stadium ban and a criminal conviction will have to suffice. You’d also add public shame but these days racist behaviour seems to be becoming less and less of an embarrassment in the UK.

The song in praise of Chiesa was also jarring. The winger joined Liverpool from Juventus. These two clubs have some history. You wouldn’t know it to hear the song. It starts with, “We can hear them crying in Turin,” and ends with the delightful sentiment, “Fuck off Juve, I’m a Kopite now.”

Liverpool supporters used to sing to Chelsea fans: “You ain’t got no history.” Those singing the Chiesa song must have forgotten their own past. For the record, on May 29, 1985, before the European Cup final against Juventus, 39 people died when a wall collapsed after Liverpool supporters charged towards mainly Italian fans. These deaths have been weaponised over the past 40 years to score points against Liverpool Football Club, the city, Scousers and anyone who supports Liverpool.

And then there’s the “poetic justice” view of Hillsborough that suggests “you had it coming because of Heysel,” and “no one can trust anything you say about Hillsborough because you all lie about Heysel. Murderers.”

Yes, all those words in quotes have been said or written to me in the past decade. Only last week, an anonymous troll posted this to me after Liverpool fans booed the national anthem: “… Liverpool fans thought it would be a good idea to murder Juventus supporters…”

Crying in Turin? Yes, there have been plenty of tears there. Not over Chiesa.

One Liverpool fan site thought it was a good idea to put crying emojis on to a map of the Italian city and post it on social media. Unsavoury? In the fucking extreme.

The reaction to those who have pointed out that the song is a bit inappropriate is pathetic. It’s not about Heysel, they say.

And it’s not. I agree.

But here’s the thing. I’m positive that many people singing “Always the victim, it’s never your fault,” really are singing about Luis Suarez and Patrice Evra. Except that’s not what we hear. The “always” tells us that those who chant this at us are repeating the slurs from The Sun and the South Yorkshire Police that placed the blame for the 97 deaths at Hillsborough on Liverpool supporters. There are too many echoes of Boris Johnson’s claim that we “wallow in a sense of vicarious victimhood.” Sometimes what you mean is not what the listener hears.

So, in that context, let me run that final snippet through a translator for you but switch cities and clubs. This is how the Chiesa song may sound to the ears of a Juventus supporter but I’ve adjusted it to make it really clear.

“Fuck off Liverpool, I’m a South Yorkshire policeman now.”

Enjoy your Chiesa song. Me, I’m uncomfortable about it to the point of puking.