Was there ever a good football book written?

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All this talk of the keane book, the ferguson book, the stam book...but who has read any of them? Are there any football books out there that give dish worthy of the name?

Robinson

― Robinson (Robinson), Friday, 4 November 2005 19:05 (twenty years ago)

What kinda book? fictional? memoir? biography?

― kingfish orange creamsicle (kingfish 2.0), Friday, 4 November 2005 19:09 (twenty years ago)

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― Huk-L (Huk-L), Friday, 4 November 2005 19:16 (twenty years ago)

Brilliant Orange - tremendous read about Dutch football, especially the chapter on penalties.

I have a book called only the keeper to beat which is pretty good

Ajax, the dutch, the war, is interesting, but the football is kind of a subplot.

barca (a peoples passion) uis a good read, but reads a bit like an advert for Barcelona.

There's a few more too which I can't remember as I'm a bit scrambled after a long old week at work

― Porkpie (porkpie), Friday, 4 November 2005 19:41 (twenty years ago)

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― Masked Gazza, Friday, 4 November 2005 19:51 (twenty years ago)

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― Oh No, It's Dadaismus (Dada), Friday, 4 November 2005 19:52 (twenty years ago)

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― theantmustdance (theantmustdance), Friday, 4 November 2005 20:06 (twenty years ago)

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― CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Friday, 4 November 2005 20:23 (twenty years ago)

ah fever pitch, the football book for people who don't like football (or would maybe prefer a night in with a girlie film and a tub of haagen dazs to a night on the terraces)

― Porkpie (porkpie), Friday, 4 November 2005 23:18 (twenty years ago)

that does sound rather nice.

Robinson

― Robinson (Robinson), Friday, 4 November 2005 23:21 (twenty years ago)

This is supposed to be good. I haven't read it, but I was thinking of asking for it for Christmas.

http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/0224064363.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Teh HoBB (the pirate king), Friday, 4 November 2005 23:21 (twenty years ago)

It is good, though for some reason I haven't finished it, very interesting chapter about Glossop

― Porkpie (porkpie), Friday, 4 November 2005 23:31 (twenty years ago)

Talking of Fever Pitch, a couple of months ago I was flicking through my Dad's copy of it and was struck by a section where he was moaning about the increasing commercialisation/sanitasation of football, and was horrified by the fact that the following season (this was in 1991, before the Premier League was even on the cards) ticket prices were going to rise to £8 (and this before Highbury became all-seater). He couldn't get over the fact it was going to cost more to watch a football match than it would to go to see a film in the West End. If only he'd known what was to come...

― Teh HoBB (the pirate king), Friday, 4 November 2005 23:37 (twenty years ago)

Full Time: The Secret Life of Tony Cascarino by Paul Kimmage

― Michael B, Saturday, 5 November 2005 06:59 (twenty years ago)

I second Brilliant Orange, but 'Those Feet' is crap, really disappointing and often plain wrong.
Phil Ball's 'Morbo' is interesting, and especially good on the often unacknowledged Real-Barca-Athletic Bilbao triangle.
'One Hump or Two- The Frank Worthington Story' has little drawings of Wanky Worthington in the corner of each page which appear to move when you flick the pages. He juggles trhe ball though- nothing naughty.

― snotty moore, Monday, 7 November 2005 02:35 (twenty years ago)

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― aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Monday, 7 November 2005 11:08 (twenty years ago)

Old but good: http://www.intosport.co.uk/acatalog/football_against_the_enemy_regular.jpg

― Chuck_Tatum (Chuck_Tatum), Monday, 7 November 2005 11:14 (twenty years ago)

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― Markelby (Mark C), Monday, 7 November 2005 11:18 (twenty years ago)

Aldo - that Shit Ground, No Fans is a *terrible* book. Someone gave it to me last Xmas. Whoever wrote it must have spent half an hour doing the research. About half the clubs' entries in there are just derivative anyteam songs like "And it's [insert team's name], [insert team's name]FC, who are by far the greatest the world has ever seen" or "We hate [rivals], and we hate [rivals], we are the [rivals] haters".

― Teh HoBB (the pirate king), Monday, 7 November 2005 11:26 (twenty years ago)

Pete Davies 'all played out' about the 1990 World Cup is fantastic.

Colin Ward 'Steaming in' is the only decent hoolie book and is classic

'Kerry: the autobiography' is the heartstring-tugging tale of Chelsea and England legend Kerry Dixon's extraordinary rise to fame.

'Football Dreams' a take on Nik Cohn's classic 'Rock Dreams' has just come out and is v good fun, but i would say that cos it is by a friend of mine.

― Pete W (peterw), Monday, 7 November 2005 11:27 (twenty years ago)

http://www.cherryred.co.uk/books/images/thespiritofwimbledon.jpg

This is actually a very good book if by good you're allowed to mean moving and passionate rather than eloquently written. Also, I am just about visible on the front cover if you look hard enough.

― Markelby (Mark C), Monday, 7 November 2005 11:29 (twenty years ago)

Also, I am just about visible on the front cover if you look hard enough

top or bottom picture?

― Teh HoBB (the pirate king), Monday, 7 November 2005 11:30 (twenty years ago)

I am one of the contributors to that book!

Second Those Feet - 6 varyingly interesting articles, rather than a book. Also struggle to understand Kuper-love. Football Against the Enemy is one of the most overrated books ever. Football means different things in different places. Who knew? And Kuper was lauded as if he was some kind of fucking Proust when it was published when his writing is tedious at times.

Kimmage / Cascarino is brilliant and easily the best ghosted auobiography, though Dave Conn ghosted Lee Sharpe's one, so that might be good.

Tor! is fantastic:

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But Dave Conn's two books take the award for me. They really have changed the way the game operates and runs in positive ways. Not as much as we might like, but they've absolutely made a difference.

― Dave B (daveb), Monday, 7 November 2005 12:03 (twenty years ago)

The QPR manager will explore such themes further in his forthcoming autobiography, titled Thanks, Steve.

"I went to Southampton the other week, with Kim. These kids shouted, 'Oh Holloway, you're a legend. Sign this.' Then they said, 'Thanks, Steve.' It was the same in the Chinese chip shop when I was at Bristol Rovers. They started off by calling me 'Horroway'. But before long it was: 'Salt and vinegar, Steve? How much you earn, Steve?' Why," Holloway asks, "is it always Steve?"

http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article324844.ece

... erm i'm getting fairly bored of olly now, dare i admit it.

― hold tight the private caller (mwah), Monday, 7 November 2005 12:59 (twenty years ago)

if paul kimmage is the chap i'm correct in thinking does the odd sunday times big interview profile thing, then i reckon him to be the most total and utter fool ever to pick up the pen. ever. in any school of writing. ever!

― hold tight the private caller (mwah), Monday, 7 November 2005 13:04 (twenty years ago)

"only a game" by eamonn dunphy, keano's ghost writer and himself a professional footballer in the 70's with millwall. now a thoroughly disreputable and brilliant journo and pundit in ireland.

― d.arraghmac, Monday, 7 November 2005 13:08 (twenty years ago)

Ruy Castro's biography of Garrincha is a good one. Alex Bellos on Brazilian football generally, another.

The worst biography I've read for some time is the Robin Friday story (Paolo Hewitt and Paul McGuigan). Not so much a book as a series of taped conversations presented without thorough editing.

Agree with most of those above. Football Against the Enemy is great, though perhaps more of a travel book than a pure football one.

― Mikey G (Mikey G), Monday, 7 November 2005 13:15 (twenty years ago)

I am always going on about how good this book is... but it is

http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/football/books/4-2.jpg

... while this has been picking up some very good reviews:

http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-images/Books/Pix/covers/2005/09/08/father_final.jpg

― Jerry the Nipper (Jerrynipper), Monday, 7 November 2005 13:16 (twenty years ago)

"the away game" by matthew hall. ostensibly about australian players who went to europe to make it; really details how a succession of incompetents and criminals fucked the game in australia for 40 years.

― pretentiosexual rights activist (haitch), Monday, 7 November 2005 13:42 (twenty years ago)

the first person to big up The miracle of Castel de Sangro gets crossed off my Xmas card list - awful terrible book.
Morbo = yes! fantastic stuff.

― Porkpie (porkpie), Monday, 7 November 2005 14:59 (twenty years ago)

Among The Thugs?

― Eazy (Eazy), Monday, 7 November 2005 15:06 (twenty years ago)

I thought 4-2 wasn't all that, and having heard the bloke on the radio, he seems a bit of an arse.

― Dave B (daveb), Monday, 7 November 2005 15:56 (twenty years ago)

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About a journeyman midfielder in the lower leagues, and

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About the first rush-goalie.

― Frogm@n Henry, Monday, 7 November 2005 16:05 (twenty years ago)

And THIS:

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About the first rush-goalie.

― Frogm@n Henry, Monday, 7 November 2005 16:07 (twenty years ago)

I note all these selections carefully.

What do people think of Hunter Davies's The Glory Game? I picked it up after hearing much good about it and thoroughly enjoyed it, especially in the way it functioned as inadvertant period piece given the passage of time, so I'm curious as to its current reputation if it has one.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 7 November 2005 16:22 (twenty years ago)

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Last one you can see why he's Roy Keane's unofficial spokesman.

Anything by Alex Ferguson is worth reading especially his diary of the 96-97 season, A will to win. On a reference tip, Simon Inglis's Football Stadiums of Great Britain is fantastic, though well out of date now.

― Billy Dods (Billy Dods), Monday, 7 November 2005 16:30 (twenty years ago)

I thought 4-2 wasn't all that, and having heard the bloke on the radio, he seems a bit of an arse.

Never was a more geezaesthetic sentence written.

― Jerry the Nipper (Jerrynipper), Monday, 7 November 2005 16:51 (twenty years ago)

Hey JtN you should publish that essay.

I agree with Boyler about "Those Feet", it's not very good. I thought the same about Bellos's Brazil book, but I'm thinking that the problem is that I read on the back that I'll be provided with an amazing insight into a nation's culture, and I wind up with a few mildly interesting points and a handful of excellent anecdotes.

I disagree with Boyler about 4-2, which I think subtle and engaging, though maybe it's not really a football book. I don't recall thinking much about football during reading it, or at least not as a result of what DT said. Thomson is a good thing, by and large.

― Tim (Tim), Monday, 7 November 2005 16:59 (twenty years ago)

http://www.playedinbritain.co.uk/Resources/fgbcover.jpeg

― ambrose (ambrose), Monday, 7 November 2005 17:12 (twenty years ago)

whoops just saw that billy dodds mentioned it. waiting for a new edition....

― ambrose (ambrose), Monday, 7 November 2005 17:13 (twenty years ago)

kicked into touch by Fred Eyre is pretty good, he's got a huge ego and a self depreciating streak a mile wide at the same time, but an interesting look at the lower leagues in the 50's and 60's

― Porkpie (porkpie), Monday, 7 November 2005 17:24 (twenty years ago)

The more I think about it though, these kind of books which seek to illuminate a culture through football are like all books which do the same - they tend to be ways in which the author uses various anecdotes to illustrate various commonly held perceptions and stereotypes. Hence Those Feet can be used to illustrate a strand of englishness - nay britishness - which values effort over art, which doesn't like not no fancy theories and wants action, action action. And all because the lady loves a strapping yokel.

The best books negotiate the present of national identity, as you'll never get to the roots of the question of why the brits are like they are. You can however, tell a new story to the brits, whcih is why I like Tor! It's not just that I'm hopelessly in love with Germany, but also it illuminates some non-stereotypically German traits that consistently run through German football, to the extent that they give me a new take on Germanness.

Inglis - I don't think there'll be a new edition for donkeys years. Inglis's book on European Stadiums is one I always enjoy reading. Easy way to find a football rockist - they'll always prefer the edition of that British book. The problem with that book was that it is a story of Archie Leitch and several others. Ooh look - someone built a kop, had a mainstand with a roof. And that's it for 100 pages. The second edition actually has changes afoot, where real design choices are made. And is also the one in my toilet.

Speaking of bog books, I like the Hulton Picture Library picture collection called 'Soccer:Fussball:Futball' and Eduardo Galeano. It's a nice bog book but I wouldn't go beyond that.

Anyone read 'the football man' by Arthur Hopcraft from the 1960s?

― Dave B (daveb), Monday, 7 November 2005 17:51 (twenty years ago)

I also really liked 'Only the Goalkeeper to beat'. It gets wearing as his increasingly narky defences of the goalie's art get in the way of a really good call for the under-appreciated goalie to be given their due.

Franklin Feur's Soccer and Globalisation is dog's arse. It's basically Kuper's with a 'hey, ain't soccer neat' tone running through it, with the added disappointment that the lesson for globalisation turns out to be 'there are different countries and the fact that something the same - football - is done differently in different places means globalisation will not be a monoculture. No shit sherlock.

― Dave B (daveb), Monday, 7 November 2005 18:02 (twenty years ago)

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