Only after matches I understand – fans Partizan those watching on television could be blissfully annoyed by their team's cataclysmic performance in the second half. Basketball players Paris was blown away by a weakened Partizan in the middle of Belgrade.
The fast regulators of Telekom's Arena Sport television anyway stifle the shouts from the hall when those shouts are not convenient for the government. The commentator is not allowed to say anything.
But in the hall, filled to capacity, it was sickening for other reasons.
Nikolaj Velimirović in the hall
That's kind of how it started. Then, when the unofficial anthem "Da volim crno-bele" usually starts, the victory song of Nikolaj Velimirović was played from the speakers. This has never happened before.
Wailing from the speakers was followed by the raising of three joined fingers (popular salting) in the so-called Partizan's pit. of the most ardent fans and confusion in the rest of the hall.
Bishop Nikolaj Velimirović at the match of the club called "Partizan". What brain came up with that?
It appeared to be "in honor" of a recently deceased general and war criminal Nebojša Pavković. His character was later developed in the dugout and they sang "General Pavković is one of us", and the hall again did not accept it as usual, when the turbo-Serbization started.
And then it started.
"Go to Chaciland"
During the second quarter, someone unfurled a support banner over Partizan's bench to students. The entire hall began the repertoire of "Pumpaj" and "Students, students", along with the usual messages to President Aleksandar Vučić.
Some big guys wanted to steal the banner, but the crowd defended the fan with it.
A section of the fire pit seems to have joined in chanting against the government. About twenty loyalists, those who stand closest to the leader of the fans, rushed at that. A fight broke out. A few guys got trampled.
Next to this reporter, a child cried, shaken by the scenes. We all know each other here - we have been coming to the same places for four years. It was sickening.
The leader of the fans himself arrived late, managed to break up the fight and push those who were beaten out of the hall. The police were not there.
The rest of the hall shouted to the loyalists “Go to Chaciland", "Gypsies, gypsies" and "Out, out."
In fact, half of the fans from the dugout, behind the basket, left the hall. Of the others, the majority - villages. And that is blasphemy at Partizan matches.
It was a boycott of the leadership of Partizan's tribune, which, surrounded by about 120 loyalists, was the only one left standing there.
What does that tell us?
The cheering was completely broken. The one with the megaphone didn't even try anymore. The whole hall against 120 loyalists who were pointlessly showing everyone the middle finger.
There was more throwing, 20.000 people started cheering here and there spontaneously, without fan leaders.
But it wasn't that anymore. Few people thought about basketball because, that's what people said, the team can't be blamed for anything when the cheering is like this.
This journalist has been through everything and anything with Partizan and believes that cheering is suffering with short happy breaks. But he has never attended such a painful match.
But it is a good paradigm of society today. The people against the government, settled. And a handful of loyalists, but even more resolved - a caste of tender-dahi, officials or, as among Partizan's cadets-fans, petty criminals.
They are so determined because they can lose everything that doesn't belong to them anyway. That's how it will be.
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