I believe the key to that statement was diehard. No one ever made the claim that people can or cannot support whoever they wish. But the fervor that many of these people have for what seems to be nothing more than a random choice borders on lunacy. People have reasons for choosing to support a particular team/club, some reasons, such as geographic location, family history, involvement with said club, are certainly better than others. While I do not think that fanaticism and ardent zeal is a good thing, I can at least understand why it is that many Bolton supporters were upset that they were relegated, because a plurality of Bolton supporters are from Bolton. It actually means something to them - community pride, increased revenues, etc. Having one of these club "supporters" from Western Canada, Singapore or the Eastern Cape get all bent out of shape because their somewhat randomly selected English Premier League side didn't win the title that year is odd, very odd, and most people here (in the actual home of the EPL) find it odd too. Again this is not to suggest that people should not have an interest in foreign leagues, because they can. It is the level of fervor and aggression that people have in doing it.
Oh and good work in bringing Jagger into this debate. He is one of the only individuals posting here that I can understand being upset at his club of choice's poor state of affairs. Why? Because he is from Merseyside. And if I was going to have a cheeky punt, I'd wager that he comes from a long line of supporters who have proudly (though not currently) worn the red and white. Connections are a big thing for people when they choose to support a particular club. Randomly choosing to support the biggest or most successful club at the time then claiming them as one's own, irritates many people, myself included.
Go ahead, support whomever you want, glory hunt to your heart's content. My only wish is for these types of "supporters" to not get as visibly upset over results that have little impact upon their day to day lives and to have some perspective in all of it. It is a big ask I know, but one that is eminently achievable.
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