Books about England

Review

Product Description: The story of Peter Knowles is unique. The gifted Wolves and England under-23 midfielder seemed to have the world at his talented feet. He was tipped to be the English George Best but sensationally quit football after becoming a Jehovah's Witness. He was just a few days short of his 24th birthday. Despite the pleas of his club, the players, friends, fans and family, Knowles would not change his mind and has always said it was the best thing he ever did. In "God's Footballer", Steve Gordos, recalls the shock waves created by Knowles' decision and traces the rise to fame of this son of a Yorkshire miner, who became an idol to fans, old and young, male and female. The book details all the matches that Knowles played for Wolves and includes tributes and recollections from his team-mates and from fans. There are also team line-ups for each match of his first-team career. In September 2009, it will be the 40th anniversary of Knowles' final match for Wolves. Those who remember him as a gifted player whose best years were lost to the game and those who have only heard the story second hand will be fascinated to read about the young man who turned his back on football fame and fortune.

Review

Product Description: From England dressing room to FA boardrooom, David Davies has enjoyed access all areas in football. He has known everyone from David Beckham to Wayne Rooney, from Sir Alex Ferguson to Sven-Goran Eriksson, as well as legends like Sir Matt Busby, Bill Shankly and George Best. He has lived through all English football's triumphs, tragedies, farces and scandals of modern times. Now, with the national sport perceived by many to be in crisis, no one is better placed to shed light on what has happened and why. His is a tale of fake sheikhs, fickle secretaries and beauty queens, and of how a boy from the Euston Road fell in love with football, and how he came to run one of the most high-profile organisations in the land.

Review

Synopsis: Kenny Sansom considers himself a lucky man. But he also knows he's pushed that luck, and is fortunate to have survived. As a footballer he soared to great heights - but as an individual he also sank to life-threatening lows. The nimble left-footed schoolboy from the streets of South London holds a special place in the history of the great English game, winning the hearts of Crystal Palace and Arsenal fans during a playing career which saw him captain successful teams at both clubs. He won a record-breaking 86 international caps at left-back, and featured in many of the most exciting and pivotal matches played by the Three Lions during that decade - including the infamous game versus Argentina in Mexico 1986. He's never been booked, let alone sent off. But off the pitch, unknown to his loyal fans, he was suffering in silence. On the brink of throwing it all away, Kenny has found the strength to fight back and defeat the demons of drink and gambling. Laying his soul bare for the first time, Kenny's story reveals the highs and lows of a man at the peak of professional achievement yet dangerously close to losing it all. The result is an entertaining must-read for all football fans - but it also offers hope to anyone caught up in the nightmare of addiction.

Review

Synopsis: Larry Lloyd was a typically uncomprimising defender of the Seventies and Eighties who played for Bristol Rovers, Liverpool, Coventry City, Nottingham Forest and England before trying his hand at management with Wigan Athletic and Notts County. With the candid style that brought him success as a radio talk-show host he tells all about his encounters with some of the games greats such as Bill Shankly, Alf Ramsey and Brian Clough. Shirking no challenges, Larry tells all about his tough childhood, how his blind father never got to see him play and the impact the Heysel Stadium and Hillsborough disasters had upon him. His is a genuine, often heartbreaking story of blood, sweat and tears, at a time when strength, integrity and the will to win - not fancy cars, trophy girlfriends and a ballerina's gait - were the hallmarks of great players.

Review

Synopsis: Colin Todd is a football man from the old school. He was brought up in the North East of England, a well known hot bed of soccer. Colin has enjoyed a career spanning over forty years in our national game. He played over seven-hundred and fifty games at the highest level, including twenty-seven full caps for his country. Working under such famous Managers as Brian Clough (3 times!) Dave MacKay and Sir Alf Ramsay to name but a few, he learnt the managerial ropes prior to stepping to the breach at Middlesborough. Two championship medals at his beloved Derby County, he also won the coveted PFA player of the year award in 1974. Colin has seen and studied all aspects of our beautiful game. At heart a strong family man he has recently taken up the post of first team Manager in the Danish League, the latest chapter in what has been a magnificent career in football. Colin maintains remarkable enthusiasm for the game which is evident throughout this autobiography.

Review

Synopsis: The England national team has had only eleven full-time managers - and Brian Glanville has known them all. In this fascinating account of each man - his strengths, weaknesses and impact on the game - Brian Glanville provides an in-depth analysis of the national team in general as well as the individuals under scrutiny. Funny, controversial, measured and thought-provoking, Glanville's assessment of why England has, for the most part, underachieved, will be required reading for all football fans and for every member of the FA Committee - if they are prepared to read some unpalatable truths. On Revie: "He was never cut out for the lonely exposed life of an international manager - almost pathologically thin-skinned." On Robson: "A mixture of good and bad luck characterised his years. He never seemed fully in control." On Venables: "Highly competent but appointed a few years too late." On Hoddle: "A curate's egg of a regime."

Review

Synopsis: Paul Parker's England manager, Sir Bobby Robson, once described him as a player who "leaps like a salmon and tackles like a ferret". Paul's positional sense saw him snuff out the threat of the world's top strikers as he wrote his name into football's history books with his dazzling displays in the Italia 90 World Cup. The night England lost the semi-final to Germany on penalties saw Paul intrinsically involved in both goals, in a game which has gone down in football history. At the time, he was captain and one of the most high-profile players of a buoyant QPR team. He later won a host of medals with Manchester United as Sir Alex Ferguson built a dynasty on the defence, marshalled by Paul. In his autobiography, Paul relives the years of struggle against racism which brought him to the top level of English football, reveals how he saved Fulham Football Club from extinction, why he left QPR and refused to sign for Arsenal and Spurs and how he struggled to cope with the debilitating injury which cost him his career. Never one to shirk an opinion, Paul reveals his thoughts on everything from bungs to racism, from the proliferation of England caps in the modern era to having a winning mentality. He also tells bundles of stories about the many personalities within the game with whom he has worked including Sir Alex Ferguson, Sir Bobby Robson, David Beckham, Roy Keane, Eric Cantona, Paul Gascoigne, Bobby Gould, Trevor Francis and Malcolm MacDonald. With a foreword by Sir Alex Ferguson, Paul Parker: Tackles Like A Ferret will entrance fans of all three clubs, plus a much wider audience who still hark back to that night in Turin when England so nearly reached the World Cup Final.

Review

A well laid-out and comprehensive history of the World Cup competitions. Includes some colour pictures but mainly consists of useful match reports of every game including line-ups and scorers. Recommended.