How to Be a Footballer

Product Information

As the title suggests, this book from Manchester United legend Roy Keane is a follow-up to his hugely successful first book Keane: The Autobiography which was first released in 2002.

Balague has previously written football books on Lionel Messi and Pep Guardiola and this book follows the same biographical format, charting Ronaldo’s early career at Sporting Lisbon, through to his time in England with Manchester United and becoming a ‘ galactico‘ at Real Madrid. A slight criticism of the book would be that he doesn’t ‘name or shame’ when it comes to some of the controversial moments he experienced but this goes to show the all-round professionalism of the Frenchman. Co-written with Leicester Mercury feature writer Lee Marlow, Muzzy Izzet’s book is brutally honest and he comes across as a really humble guy who had to work extremely hard to get to the level he played at. Hamilton recalls, “I stayed well into the autumn afternoon and left hopelessly drunk on Bell’s Whisky. We never got to the champagne. My notebook was choked with stories.”Merson’s rollercoaster ride of drinks, drugs and gambling which plagued him throughout his entre career is recounted in a poignant but funny way and the book is littered with laugh out loud anecdotes. Gillespie comes across in the book as a really decent man who unfortunately has a really sad story to tell. We found the way that Adams talks about overcoming his personal demons that he still faces to this day extremely inspiring.

An enjoyable book and a bit of an eye-opener when he talks about the racism he has experienced within the game.

The football book was once a Christmas staple. No visit from Santa to the Ross household was complete without the Shoot! Annual or the Topical Times Football Book. These photo-based publications, along with the obligatory My Story by a star player, established a lowly perception of football books as either pictorial and aimed at children, or as cliche-ridden as a post-match interview with an impatient manager. But football is a metaphor for life, isn’t it? Surely the perfect vehicle to convey the frailties of human existence? Amongst the anecdotes that are peppered through the book are Gerrard’s thoughts on players he has played with and against and also managers that he played under. With a foreword from Arsene Wenger, Ray Parlour’s book is extremely well-written, easy to read and gives a great account of life as a Premier League footballer in the 1990’s.

This isn’t one of those football books full of amusing stories from the dressing room, (although there are of course some funny ancedotes), it’s more of a book on leadership skills, qualities and values and how you can lead a team of people to success. Peace’s masterful novel depicting the 44-day tenure of Brian Clough as manager of Leeds United depicts how his paranoia and loneliness (and irrationality) grow with his increasing isolation. Insomnia takes hold and the Clough of the novel struggles to understand why the skills and practices that made him a brilliant football player – prior to career-ending injury – and then a mercurial manager, have apparently deserted him. Supporters can easily become obsessed by tactics and formations. Whether the “diamond” trumps the “ false nine” or whether 4-3-3 is just 4-5-1 with lazier forwards? And for those who (pre-Covid) lived for those never-ending pub arguments with no hope of resolution, this book is their bible. Although it stops short of explaining the theory of the ‘67th-minute’ goal. That’s explored in detail in There’s Only One Danny Garvey. One thing to note is that there are a few swear words within the book therefore it’s not suitable for some of Ronaldo’s younger fans.

One of the most renowned and influential managers in world football, Arsene Wenger’s autobiography charts his extraordinary career from his early managerial days in France and Japan to his 22 year tenure with Arsenal. Following the theory of fandom as therapy, Hornby describes how he used Arsenal to escape from his parents’ divorce, problems with women, the question of what to do with his life, and so on. He treats his fandom as a problem, as something not entirely healthy. This set him apart from the previous notion of fandom as a hobby, and from his imitators who wrote cutesy accounts of watching bad football in the rain without any of Hornby’s honesty about their own lives.

One of the greatest footballers of his generation, Rio Ferdinand’s autobiography charts his rise from West Ham’s youth teams to Manchester United legend.This book is a fascinating insight into the life of Gareth Southgate who went from a skinny introverted teenager who was told that he wouldn’t make it in the pro game, to someone who played for and managed his country. He writes in-depth about the transition from Arsenal’s ‘boring, boring Arsenal’ tag to the Wenger Revolution and the joys of playing with one of the most technically gifted players in the world in Dennis Bergkamp. Fantastic book profiling the rise and rise of Jamie Vardy – from playing pub football and working in a factory to defying the bookies odds and winning the Premier League with Leicester City and representing his country. Paulo dreams of becoming a football star and escaping his life of poverty. His all-boys neighbourhood team don’t think that girls can play football, but when one of his teammates is injured, the only chance they have of succeeding is if his sister Maria steps in to save the day. This beautifully illustrated picture book provides an insight into life within a Brazilian favela and will inspire young girls to be the hero of their stories. 5. Booked by Kwame Alexander Arguably changing the modern game when he joined the North London Arsenal with his approach to nutrition and coaching methods, Wenger talks openly about his football league and cup triumphs and the unrest that led to his departure from the club in 2018.