"Will we ever see eye to eye again?"

My boyfriend supports The Arse

After six months of what seemed like blissful happiness I found out that my boyfriend is a closet Arsenal fan.

Over the summer he managed to keep up the pretense that he was mildly interested in Tottenham signings but had no great interest in football but when the new season started, he could conceal his inner gooner no more.

It all came to a head last Saturday when I found him in his flat surrounded by holes he had punched in the walls. At first he told me he'd lost his job, then he told me his granddad had died and finally he tried to fob me off by pretending to be dying of cancer. But I knew it had to be something serious and then I saw his computer - he'd just looked up the Arsenal v Fulham result!

What shall I do? This mismatch of football allegiances is certainly going to cause a massive rift between us but I don't want my otherwise functional relationship to end. He is the gentlest, most honest man I've ever met. Am I deluding myself with thoughts of this working?