Jerseybean Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Not sure if there is already a thread on this, I couldn’t find one, if there is please can the mods amalgamate this. Have just finished reading ‘The footballer who could fly’ by Duncan Hamilton. Would be good to hear of other good reads on the subject of football books. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sticks 1969 Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 All played out the story about Italy 1990 brilliant read 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Horse With No Name Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 32 minutes ago, Jerseybean said: Not sure if there is already a thread on this, I couldn’t find one, if there is please can the mods amalgamate this. Have just finished reading ‘The footballer who could fly’ by Duncan Hamilton. Would be good to hear of other good reads on the subject of football books. Don't know if you like auto/biographies but currently reading Geoff Merrick's, but also Brian Clough's is a good one also Johan Cruyff. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davefevs Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 David Conn - The Beautiful Game (lots of stuff re how teams cheated or overspent) Simon Jordan - Autobiography (yes, I do recommend this) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
And Its Smith Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Miracle-Castel-Sangro-Joe-McGinniss/dp/075152753X/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=3O8O1OY5K4Q1Z&keywords=castel+di+sangro+football&qid=1658143959&sprefix=castel+di+sangrio+football%2Caps%2C53&sr=8-1 Superb book 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Head Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby is brilliant, much better than the film. I also remember Only A Game? by Eamonn Dunphy from the 1970s which I thought was well written. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davefevs Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 2 minutes ago, And Its Smith said: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Miracle-Castel-Sangro-Joe-McGinniss/dp/075152753X/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=3O8O1OY5K4Q1Z&keywords=castel+di+sangro+football&qid=1658143959&sprefix=castel+di+sangrio+football%2Caps%2C53&sr=8-1 Superb book That’ll do for hollybobs. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerseybean Posted July 18, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 1 minute ago, Richard Head said: Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby is brilliant, much better than the film. I also remember Only A Game? by Eamonn Dunphy from the 1970s which I thought was well written. I need to re-read Fever Pitch remember it being excellent 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davefevs Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 1 minute ago, Richard Head said: Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby is brilliant, much better than the film. I also remember Only A Game? by Eamonn Dunphy from the 1970s which I thought was well written. I read Dunphy’s book in school, was the first of its kind. The Garry Nelson diaries, Left Foot Forward and Left Foot in the Grave are excellent too. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bristol Oil Services Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Frank McAvennie's memoir: "Birds, Booze, Blondes, Bubbly, Breasts, Birds" or whatever it was called. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leveller Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 (edited) I’m just reading Inverting the Pyramid by Jonathan Wilson. Fascinating, albeit hard going at times too. Football tactics from the nineteenth century onwards. Edited July 18, 2022 by Leveller 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chinapig Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 1 minute ago, Leveller said: I’m just reading The Inverted Pyramid. Fascinating, albeit hard going at times too. Football tactics from the nineteenth century onwards. Do you mean Inverting The Pyramid by Jonathan Wilson? In which case I agree. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Geoff Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Pep Confidential. A brilliant insight into Peps first year at Bayern. The author had unlimited access to Pep and recounts loads of technical and tactical insights. A fascinating read. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chinapig Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Das Reboot: How German Football Reinvented Itself and Conquered the World by Raphael Honigstein. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Geoff Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Bobby Moore the man in full by Matt Dickinson. Extensively researched. Another great insight into Bobby's career on and off the pitch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTRFTG Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 (edited) Ronald Reng's - A life too short Ghostwritten - Ossie, King of Stamford Stan Bowles (though ghostwritten) - Stan The Man Paolo Hewitt - The greatest footballer you never saw Kevin Beattie - The Beat Pete Davies - All Played Out For Fiction , the utterly brilliant David Peace's The Damned United Edited July 18, 2022 by BTRFTG 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvin Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Where's Your Caravan?: My Life on Football's B-Roads By Chris Hargreaves (now manager of Yeovil Town) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Net Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Harry Dolman's Biography The Working Man's Ballet - Alan Hudson (probably more interesting if you can remember that era of football) Charity shops are a great place to pick up football books. One of the very few books that I never finished was an early Gary Linekar autobiography, the most boring book ever. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledAjax Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Echo the thoughts on "Inverting the Pyramid". It's heavy and dense, but as a history of tactics (and society) it's unmatched. If you're interested in youth development then I recommend "No Hunger in Paradise" by Michael Calvin. Calvin's got a number of books out, including the classic "The Nowhere Men", but I enjoyed "No Hunger" the most. Finally, Nedum Onuaha was a much needed fresh voice on the podcasts last season. I've not read his new book "Kicking Back" but if his written word is as good as his spoken it should be a good read. I'll be grabbing it once it's in paperback. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Net Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Steaming In - Colin Ward - one of the early books about following football in the 1970's and 1980's. It isn't one of those typical hooligan type books - "we ran everybody off our manor", blah, blah, blah. An authentic account from somebody who was there at the time, not a main protaganist. It's been years since I read it, but I felt that it painted a true picture of what it was like to be on the terraces. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mozo Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 I once read the Garrincha biog by Ruy Castro and really enjoyed it. I'd never heard of him at the time but what a guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davefevs Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 3 minutes ago, ExiledAjax said: Echo the thoughts on "Inverting the Pyramid". It's heavy and dense, but as a history of tactics (and society) it's unmatched. If you're interested in youth development then I recommend "No Hunger in Paradise" by Michael Calvin. Calvin's got a number of books out, including the classic "The Nowhere Men", but I enjoyed "No Hunger" the most. Finally, Nedum Onuaha was a much needed fresh voice on the podcasts last season. I've not read his new book "Kicking Back" but if his written word is as good as his spoken it should be a good read. I'll be grabbing it once it's in paperback. Probably my least fave…my fave is Living On The Volcano. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dolman Pragmatist Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 I really enjoyed David Peace’s book about Bill Shankly ‘Red or Dead’, but it’s not for the faint hearted. I’d suggest having a look at it in a bookshop to check whether you think it’s for you, as it is a mind-boggling book, incredibly repetitive, but quite hypnotic if you can get into it. You’ve been warned! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 23 minutes ago, chinapig said: Do you mean Inverting The Pyramid by Jonathan Wilson? In which case I agree. Wilson has also written the history of football in Argentina which is brilliant & Behind the Curtain about Eastern European football, which is also very good. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledAjax Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 (edited) 12 minutes ago, Davefevs said: Probably my least fave…my fave is Living On The Volcano. Don't think I have tried that one. I found Nowhere Men a struggle, but felt Hunger was good, especially now that we know how the careers of most of the youth prospects mentioned therein have turned out. Some that are being highly rated at the time the book was written have faded into obscurity, whilst others are Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden. I think that makes it a good time to read this particular Calvin effort. One other that I wanted to mention is "The Hard Yards" by Nige Tassell. It follows the 2019/20 Championship season, and is coming out in paperback on 4 August. Tassell focuses on Wycombe, Bournemouth and Sheff Wed (who had the -12 points hit that season) but he says he covers the whole division so we should be mentioned regularly. Re-live the final days of Lee Johnson, from the heady heights of signing Kasey Palmer (again), Benik Afobe's cameo, and going unbeaten for 10 games in the early season through to an FA Cup exit to Shrewsbury, COVID sweeping the nation, and Rodri saving us all. Should be an absolute classic. Edited July 18, 2022 by ExiledAjax Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave L Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Would add my recommendations for The Miracle of Castel Sangro and The Damned Utd. And if you want to read more about Cloughie, then 'Provided you Don't Kiss Me', by Duncan Hamilton is excellent. Also 'Full Time - The Secret Life of Tony Cascarino' by Paul Kimmage - brilliant book. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spudski Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 13 minutes ago, Dave L said: Would add my recommendations for The Miracle of Castel Sangro and The Damned Utd. And if you want to read more about Cloughie, then 'Provided you Don't Kiss Me', by Duncan Hamilton is excellent. Also 'Full Time - The Secret Life of Tony Cascarino' by Paul Kimmage - brilliant book. The Miracle of Castel Sangro is a great read. As is...A Season with Verona by Tim Parks. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Wayne Rooney is good. As in good, if you’re trying to get the kids to sleep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Hunt-Hertz Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 Pointless, by Jeff Connor. A season following East Stirlingshire, who were dubbed the worst team in Britain. Humorous and melancholy, all at the same time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tinmans Love Child Posted July 18, 2022 Report Share Posted July 18, 2022 The Romford Pelé: It’s only Ray Parlour’s autobiography https://amzn.eu/d/8vxxglR Ray Parlours autobiography is brilliant, so many funny stories, and crosses over from the old school culture to the Wenger years, I read it in a few days, could put it down! Not football, but Shoe Dog is a brilliant read, all about the story of the guy who set up Nike to try and compete with Addidas, sounds boring but it was really good, one of the best sport related books I’ve read Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0182LF9SG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_SJ0WH1VACV9GZ1Z8C4Z0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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