Amidst a strenuous pre-season, Arsenal has announced a new partnership deal to boost up its sales and offer a new respite for their players.
The Gunners have now paired up with internet celebrity KSI and YouTube sensation Logan Paul to introduce PRIME, a hydration drink with thirst-quenching flavours that helps the players to replenish and refuel for the game. Prime is now the official hydration drink of Arsenal and will be available to all the Gunners on match days at the Emirates Stadium.
KSI, who is a lifetime, Gunner was ecstatic to have partnered with the club and called it a dream come true. While the Arsenal faithful were elated to have KSI on board as a sponsor, the reception towards his partner in crime, Logan Paul, was unwelcoming. And the reason for it lies in a forest far off in Japan.
In 2017, Logan was touring Japan, making vlogs for his millions of followers when he ventured into the forbidden Aokigahara forest at the base of Mount Fuji that has gained infamy for suicides. The forest has a reputation for people who want to kill themselves. According to folklore, the forest was the last resort for the monks who wanted to end their lives and is believed to be haunted by their ghosts.
Logan ventured into this forest with his crew and spotted a body hanging by a tree. To everyone’s surprise, he turned the camera towards the hanging body and documented it on video. Even though Logan was taken aback by this sight, he didn’t feel the need to hide it from the world and posted it on his YouTube channel.
His millions of followers viewed the video and Logan received immense backlash from the YouTube community and Hollywood stars. His actions were condemned and YouTube took down the video, forcing him to issue an apology, which he did. But his carefully built reputation had taken a hit.
So when Arsenal announced a partnership with Logan in the picture, the ardent fans couldn’t help but bring their Japanese centre back/right back, Takehiro Tomiyasu, up to the forum with a variety of memes. For them, what Logan did was unforgivable and given the Youtuber’s antics in Japan five years ago, Tomiyasu might just be itchy about facing him at any corporate or match day event.
The 23-year-old Japanese defender is slowly turning to be a vital part of Mikel Arteta’s back line. In the 2021/22 season, Tomiyasu made 21 appearances in the Premier League, impressing the gaffer with his sturdy abilities.
If Tomiyasu ever firmly feels that partnering with Logan degrades the sanctity of his home nation, there’s only little that anyone at the Arsenal corporate structure could do to make him understand that Logan will never commit such an act again. But if the show must go on, Tomiyasu will have to turn a blind eye toward Logan’s impeachable actions five years ago in Japan.
The fans on Twitter went berserk with their memes when they learned of Logan’s new association with Arsenal and were quick to address the dry humour behind it. A user mentioned that Tomiyasu will be eyeing Logan or staring him down whenever he sees him, while Logan will have to be forced to remember a painful memory that he has been working hard to get rid of.
The fans, being their quirky self, brought the reference of ‘Forest’ to the table and stated that Logan will take a daunting trip down memory lane whenever Arsenal plays Nottingham Forest in the Premier League. It’ll be a more harrowing sight if Tomiyasu plays in that game and Logan Vlogs it.
We do not know how the confrontation between Tomiyasu and Logan will pan out, but if left to the fans, they will probably make matters worse by continuing to talk or tweet about it. Until then, Arsenal awaits their first Premier League game away from home against Crystal Palace.
