Donald Diplomacy

I'm incredibly self-aware whilst writing this. After all, I write for an "unauthorised" website. That, and the individuals involved are never shy to consider legal proceedings against perceived libellous commentary. For that reason, I've erred on the side of caution. Apologies if at any time I beat around the bush - you can never be too careful these days.

This piece should be about a transfer rumour: Wanderers have been linked with 19 year-old Nice midfielder Nabil Khali. In fact, he's rumoured to be at the club today for talks. However, it isn't about the rumour. It's about the fiasco which emerged on Twitter following it. But first, a digression if I may.

In December last year, I wrote an article entitled "Unanswered Questions", which focussed on concerns regarding the transition of power from the Davies-Gartside dynasty to the Anderson era. A key change has been that the club is far more accessible to fans than ever before, and I'm not talking about the cringeworthy gifs from the new lad down in IT running the club's Twitter account, but the personal Twitter account of a Mr Lee Anderson, who is heavily involved in our transfer dealings, but has no specified role at the club. It's a good job really, because his employment in the club whilst also acting as a football agent is in contravention of Football League rules (shh, don't tell anyone, we'll get in even MORE trouble!).

A fan "broke" the news on Twitter that Khali was booked into the Whites Hotel on Monday 3rd July, prompting Mr Anderson to enquire if anybody knew the individual in question, linking the issue to a recent bomb threat. What Anderson wanted this fan's details for, I won't speculate. The fan was accused of releasing "confidential details of people staying in our hotel". When a writer of this fan site questioned the veracity of the link between an internet rumour and a "controlled explosion", he was blocked from following said account "as all real BWFC fans should".

This concern for confidentiality comes just days after the same individual confirmed to his 12,000 followers how much Dean Moxey had been paid per appearance last season (

Moxey had taken to Twitter to bemoan the fact that his promotion bonus had not been paid. The resolution? To post videos of away fans cheering and publicly accuse Moxey of lying on the same social media platform. It appears as though the regime's attempts for transparency only go so far: you can have the answers they want you to have, but dissent will be mocked or threatened with reprisal.

It's all very Donald Trump to me. One tweet in question ended with a sarcastic "Great Supporter!". A message straight from the President's handbook. Flattery, insult, narcissism and petulance are the order of the day. What's worrying is that the masses on both a large and small scale appear to respond to it. The main difference between the two for me is that the Super Agent is much more "down with the kids" on the emoji front. Something for Mr Trump to strive towards the next time he wants to find a new way of defaming CNN or grab a pussy.

This fiasco doesn't make our club look good. It's embarrassing, it's unprofessional and it smacks of immaturity. Yet again, we're forced to talk about what's going on away from the pitch, just two months after the joy of promotion. If I was a rival fan, I'd find it hilarious. As a Wanderer, it's disheartening.

My advice to both the President and the "Super Agent" would be to close your Twitter account. It's not doing you, or the institution you serve, any good. But nobody cares about me, or the site I write for. We're an unauthorised site trying to destabilise the club and belittle the wonderful achievements of the current ownership. As you were.