The five stages of supporting Spurs in defeat
Denial
Whatever. They only won because we played like they do on most weekends, without any belief. Think we needed this to happen. A reminder that we still have a job to do. If we took them back to the Lane tomorrow, we'd crush them. Doesn't count for much, its like losing to Stoke. I'm really okay with it. We've been laughing at them all season long. We are still the better team and this was nothing more than a bad day at the office. We switched off and they had their moment in the sun, in their cup final, and they punished us for going to sleep. Means nothing. We'll win next week, they'll lose and nothing will have changed in the grand scheme of things. Let them have their moment, its what they value above anything else. Let them gloat, its what they do best. It's what they treasure above anything else, showing their pig ugly faces in public and giving it some because they're so obsessed with how they must always be perceived as winners. North London is still ours. If we had bothered to turn it on at 2-0 we'd have scored four or five.
Anger
WHAT IN THE **** WAS THAT? GUTLESS AND USELESS. TOO MANY PLAYERS BELIEVING IN THE POST-GAME HYPE. WE MADE A CRAP SIDE LACKING IN CONFIDENCE LOOK LIKE WORLD BEATERS, RE-CLAIMING PAST DOMINANCE WHEN WE WERE MEANT TO BE THE ONES SHOWING OFF OUR CREDENTIALS. DID WE EVEN HAVE A DEFENCE TODAY? I COUNTED FOUR CHEAP GOALS. PATHETIC, JUST PATHETIC. WE'RE GOING TO FINISH 7TH AT BEST AND LUKA AND BALE WILL BE GONE AND KING WILL RETIRE AND THAT WILL BE THAT. I BET EDEN HAZARD WAS WATCHING THAT AND NOW HE'S RIPPED UP HIS PRE-CONTRACT WITH US TO SIGN FOR THEM. WORST DAY OF MY LIFE. JUST CONFIRMS WE'VE FLUKED THE ENTIRE SEASON AND OUR PROGRESS OVER THE PAST FEW SEASONS IS BECAUSE OTHERS CLUBS HAVE SIMPLY NOT PUT ANY EFFORT INTO IT. TODAY WE'VE BEEN KICKED BACK INTO OUR BOX. I'M GOING TO MELT MY SEASON TICKET CARD AND MOULD IT INTO A MIDDLE FINGER AND MAIL IT TO LEVY. RIP TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR. LET'S NOT BOTHER TURNING UP FOR ANY OF OUR REMAINING GAMES, MUCH LIKE WE DID IN THIS ONE. WHY WASN'T SZCZESNY SENT OFF? HARRY, GOOD LUCK RELEGATING ENGLAND NEXT SEASON.
Bargaining
It's just three points right? Someone confirm it's just three points and three points is available every match so we can make up the deficit and boost it back to a ten point gap soon? Gloating rights mean nothing any ways, that's for kids in the playground. I don't care about gloating. Gloating doesn't matter right? We needed to lose because it will make us stronger so this is the best thing that could have happened. This is one of those sort of physical epiphanies, a slap in the face, a wake up call. I promise never to bait gooners on Twitter again or laugh at animated gifs of them crying. Seriously, had Lennon started instead of Niko we would have won the game. So Lennon has to start all remaining games and we'll win them all. Job done. That's what we need to do. We beat them at home, they beat us at their home. Points cancelled out then, all square then. Doesn't matter then. Might as well not count the derby games because of that.
Depression
Someone kill me. How am I meant to go to work tomorrow? All the gooners will be there early, newspaper cut outs plastered over their work desks, they'll even be gooners parading up and down the office floor that don't even work there. They'll be everywhere, all in their red colours gloating and boasting waving around DVD's of the Invincibles season in my face barking about shadows and 1961. That's it now, they're back in the title race and our season is over. We were wrong, we aint better than them. This single game of 90 minutes proves that beyond doubt. We've over-rated ourselves all season long. This is a disaster that we will simply not recover from. Utd will dick us next week and we'll be the ones looking up at a gap by the end of the season. Redknapp hasn't got a clue how to structure a side and select the right players and as for the Luka and Bale...sell them, cash in, and consolidate for the Europa League next season. I can't cope with the pressure. I don't want us to compete any more. It's too stressful.
Acceptance
We played poorly, we got what we deserved. No point ignoring it. Tactically not set up correctly, not enough of anything to muster up a sufficient challenge. Too much roaming. Fact is, they turned up for it and we didn't. That is surely all that counts. They were two nil down and thirty minutes later it's five two to them. There is no running away from it. Can't really complain if you never truly competed. Unacceptable from all concerned.
It's still one result, even if it always hurts to lose against them more so than any other loss. And this probably ranks up there with the worst of them. A harsh brutal reminder that nothing can ever be taken for granted. That's what expectancy can do. Still better to be here regardless of the result than to be stuck in the late 1990s and early 2000s when another defeat was added to a collective that anchored us to mid-table. As for them, only singing when they're winning. They'll have the bin bags out again soon enough. Clutching at beating us 5-2 will just belittle them further in the long run, much like the days when we held onto punctured victories like it meant so much more than it did.
Those last few sentences will only mean something if we remember this day and move forwards and consolidate our position. Onto the next game.
We've had our pride stolen. We need to claim it back. We need to stop believing in the hype. We have to be unified and we have to fight. We need to graft. Prove me right, Tottenham.
Why is acceptance so much like denial?