Guest Blogger's A Gooner Babe - Cheyenne

Hi all! Cheyenne here. I'm also known as Siren.

I grew up in a Man United family. This meant that Daddy supported Man United. My closest cousins supported Man United. And anyone else who knew football in the family supported Man United. In fact, I think at the end of the 1998/99 season, I got a Man United jigsaw puzzle as a gift.

It’s a wonder why I never put it together...

Football had been mainly a family affair and it was through football that Dad and I bonded. Although, being quite the rebel – I refused to take on the colours of his favourite club. Even at a tender age, I knew what was not right for me. I took on the role of the football atheist in the family since I was little and it followed me through my years.

This is not to say that I only supported Arsenal after being coerced by SgGooner (yes, coerced!). I’ve always loved Bergkamp – I think he’s a bit of a God. But even before the arrival of the Dutchman, I was fascinated by the efficiencies of Adams, Winterburn, Bould and Dixon. Arsene Wenger, I always thought, is one of the most brilliant strategist ever. I don’t think Arsenal would be what it is today without the genius of Le Prof (sign on the dotted line, Arsene!).

I remember being in awe of Emmanuel Petit and Patrick Vieira, and I loved Fredrik Ljungberg’s red hair. Soon Thierry Henry entered the picture and no one, Arsenal fan or not, can dispute the talent of the Frenchman. One Robert Pires made me yelp with glee when he would so masterfully dance past opposition. Then came Cesc Fabregas – need I say more?

I lost touch of the beautiful game for a while – personal reasons which are too lulling to mention here – but I’m sure glad I’m back in the thick of the action now. I’ve been in London since May 2007 (I’m writing from the football capital, eat your hearts out!) and Arsenal has been the centre of my universe. I managed to get tickets for the last game of the 2006/07 season against Portsmouth – THANK YOU ASHLEY! After which, I obsessed during transfer season and counted down the days till August.

During off-season, I visited Manchester – but no, I did not go to Old Trafford (the tours were closed anyway as Genesis was having a concert there). I went shopping at Trafford Centre (no affiliation to the Theatre of Dreams) instead. The months of May to July also brought music festivals and I worked as a bar staff/catering assistant at several events.

I was very lucky to get tickets for pre-season matches, including the Emirates Cup. Some of you may remember me mentioning that I had brief flirts with Fernando Morientes and our very own Mark Randall. Mark was definitely more reciprocal. If he remembers me the next time he sees me, I’ll give him a little treat.

Arsenal have made my Tour de Europe possible as well – almost. I went to Blackburn and almost stayed at the same hotel as the team. I got close to some of the lads as they alighted from the team bus. One of my most brilliant weekends, I must say. And of course before that, I stalked Arsenal all the way to Prague.

Prague is one of the cities I’ve always wanted to visit and I know some may want to shoot me, but I was hoping for Sparta Prague during the third round Champions League qualifiers’ draw. Flew to Prague I did, and I will never forget that experience. It was my first trip outside of England and my first European match. Clichy’s incredible assist that led to Cesc’s goal was extra special for me cos the two of them are my favourites. Then came Sagna’s thundering run that ended with a pinpoint pass to Hleb, who himself outmuscled and outpaced his markers, before the latter tucked his deserved goal in. We might have been a few hundred amongst tens of thousands, but man, we were loud! And why not? Our Arsenal came out tops. Plus, I met Jens Lehmann on the Charles Bridge!

I don’t know of many other things that brings me such joy – yes, maybe I’m a really sad person. The occasional good read or provoking movie rouses me, but not like football.

I know many girls enjoy football for the sake of their other halves, or for the eye candy (hell, I do too), but it’s a shame if the appreciation of the beautiful game is typified by gender. And sometimes it’s the boys’ fault as well! I remember being asked if I really were a girl when I first started blogging (you know who you are! =P). Regardless of gender, we should all turn to the person next to us and explain football to them because its spirit should be savoured. Because the magic that oozes from legends like Pele, George Best, Charlie George, Diego Maradona, Paulo Maldini, Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry crosses all boundaries.

This is after all, the most popular sport in the world...