Pretty much everything to do with supporting a football club is pretty strange. Celebrating wildly when some guy you've never met who's on thousands of pounds a week kicks a ball into a net is objectively pretty strange behaviour
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What is it with fans calling players they've never spoken to by their nicknames?
Pato, Mozzer, Rallsy.
What's that all about?
If you did it in any other walk of life you'd be considered a bit if an odd job. Why does it happen in footballing circles?
Pretty much everything to do with supporting a football club is pretty strange. Celebrating wildly when some guy you've never met who's on thousands of pounds a week kicks a ball into a net is objectively pretty strange behaviour
I guess between themselves in the club environment players will have nicknames for each other, but for fans who are distant from it, it's strange.
Fingers and Snowy were good ones
Affectionate and funny ones I kind of get.
It is the nicknames that make it feel like the person has grown up with them and went on their stag do that make me feel a little uncomfortable when they're blurted out.
Oh yeah we've all worked with people or had mates who have nicknames and vice versa.
I find it odd giving a familiar name to somebody you watch from distance and have never spoken to.
Some of the nicknames I've seen our players given are probably the only time they've ever been called that particular nickname.
Mozzer is also Morrissey's nickname. Madge for Madonna. Michael Jackson was called Jacko.
Shane Williams is Shaneo.
Jeremy Corbyn is Jezza.
If you had 5 mins I bet you could think of loads of "familiar" sounding nicknames for celebrities.
Like I said, it isn't football-centric. It probably happens more in football though due to the amount of players involved.
I plead guilty to the occasional use of 'Mozzer' and once threw in a 'Pato' although I usually avoid the nicknames.
However, I don't think you are right about use of nicknames being unique to 'footballing circles'. From memory I went through school using nicknames for teachers and other kids, a lot of whom I had never spoken to in person - including the school thug ('the Slug') and the head ('the BIM' - the bastard in the middle on school photos). The same at college and throughout most of my jobs - people I knew of but didn't know personally quite often had nicknames that were used by all and sundry (especially in HR and direct works supervisors and managers).
In our house we often use nicknames to refer to members of the Tory Cabinet, Starmer and Trump - it makes the abuse much more enjoyable.
Were most of them not given by the press though?
A bit different to somebody taking it upon themselves to nickname a player they've never spoken to with a name nobody else calls them. Sean Morrison I've seen called Mozzer, Moz, Morrie and Morro depending on who calls him it. He probably answers to one of them, if that,and from people he knows.
Think that is the first time I've ever heard Shane William's called Shaneo although my head might have been poisoned by valley girls on international rugby day giving a death curdling "Come on Shaaaane" at the TV.
Always called David Marshall, Marshy but found out that the players call him Boggy
I’ve heard Murphy called same interesting names...........