Beware, Brendan: the uprising of the silent majority is here – and it’s been coming for a while
Always be wary of the Silent Majority, in whatever field you operate. In the binary world in which we live, all the noise and attention is devoted to those pushing the extremes, but never on those who are in the middle.
But despite the ‘silent’ prefix, they hold more sway than you might think. Likewise in politics, see the floating voter. The furore is usually created by the staunchest supporters of either side, yet the key demographic that decides elections are those who have no fixed affiliation or haven’t yet decided.
Brendan Rodgers would be wise to learn the power of this silent majority, given the poor start to the season his Leicester City side have made so far, with only one point from three matches and a limping penalty shoot-out victory over Stockport County. The pressure is starting to build, and a key demographic is now coming into play.
Ever since that fateful afternoon in Nottingham, there has been a lot of discussion about Rodgers and his future at Leicester. On one side are those who want him out immediately, and possibly have for some time; on the other, those for whom Rodgers can do no wrong and that any criticism of him is a mortal attack on our Dear Leader.
Anyone who’s witnessed such a split on Twitter and beyond might think that our fanbase is split into those two camps. But there is a third – that aforementioned silent majority.
These are the fans who want Rodgers to do well, remembering those halcyon days from 2019-20 and the attacking verve on display. They remember the FA Cup win and that glorious afternoon, and they’re grateful to Rodgers for giving them that memory; for delivering the trophy that meant so much to so many.
They are, however, also concerned by the football that no longer shows such verve and swagger. They’re worried by the appalling recording of defending set-pieces. They’re troubled by suspect recruitment and reports that Rodgers went over his team’s head by bringing in Ryan Bertrand and Jannik Vestergaard, who simply haven’t worked out.
However, despite all of this, up until now they haven’t yet called for Rodgers to be sacked. They’ve been buffeted on both sides – seen as too critical by those who think Rodgers is still the one, and as weak willed by those who want him gone yesterday.
But that’s now changed.
The silent majority stayed quiet when we made a mess of a somewhat straightforward Europa League group, and ended up in the Conference League.
The silent majority were annoyed by us throwing away our chances of progressing in the League Cup, despite being in a strong position.
The silent majority stayed away from the firing squad after that disastrous FA Cup afternoon at the City Ground, when the side disintegrated completely.
The silent majority were annoyed when Rodgers claimed we’d overachieved by finishing fifth, despite only claiming months previously that this was what we were aiming for anyway.
The silent majority watched on as results continued to be inconsistent, with performances equally as hit and miss.
The silent majority saw a whole pre-season where Rodgers had plenty of time to get his squad fit, organise his defence properly and introduce some tactical tweaks to get improvements. They willed him on to achieve it.
The silent majority have seen in these first four games that nothing has changed – if anything, they’ve got worse.
The silent majority are no longer silent. They are letting their feelings known, in the ground and on social media. The silent majority look to have made their minds up. And when that happens, it’s a monumental task trying to win them back.