Alexis Sanchez! Luis Suárez! Eden Hazard!

June 17, 2016June 17, 2016 / mjoldfield22 / Leave a comment

First we brought you the exciting stories of Bale, Rooney and Sterling and now we’re back with three more must-read titles for football mad 9-12 year-olds. Enjoy!

Alexis Sanchez: The Wonder Boy

Sanchez

This is the story of the Arsenal superstar’s incredible journey from the streets of Tocopilla to become ‘The Boy Wonder’, a national hero, and one of the most talented players in the world. With his pace, skill and eye for a goal, Alexis is now one of the Premier League’s biggest stars. The story is every bit as exciting as the player.

Read all about Alexis’ exciting childhood, his rise through Chilean football, his partnership with Antonio Di Natale at Udinese, his time with Messi and co at Barcelona, and his amazing first season at Arsenal.

Luis Suárez: El Pistolero

Suarez book

Follow the Uruguayan’s winding path from love-struck youngster to Liverpool hero to Barcelona star. Grabbing goals and headlines along the way, Luis chased his dreams and became a Champions League winner. This is the inspiring story of how the world’s deadliest striker made his mark.

Read all about Luis’ move to Europe, his World Cup adventures, his brilliant time at Anfield with Steven Gerrard, and his big money move to Barcelona to join Messi and Neymar.

Eden Hazard: The Boy in Blue

Hazard

This is the thrilling tale of how the wing wizard went from local wonder kid to league champion. With the support of his football-obsessed family, Eden worked hard to develop his amazing dribbling skills and earn his dream transfer to Chelsea.

Read all about Eden’s days as a child prodigy in Belgium, his trophy-winning days in France with Lille, his development under José Mourinho, and his incredible rise to become a league champion at Chelsea and the best player in the Premier League.

New Football Titles – May 2016

April 9, 2016April 9, 2016 / mjoldfield22 / Leave a comment

With a few notable exceptions (George Rinaldi’s Calcio’s Greatest Forwards, Michael Gibbons’ When Football Came Home), the yearly football book schedule doesn’t really kick off until the darling buds of May. Here are the big titles to look out for:

1. Soccermatics by David Sumpter (Bloomsbury)

Football statistics have never been so popular and neither, perhaps, have mathematics. So Professor Sumpter’s idea is perfectly-timed; think Soccernomics but looking at the geometry of formations and the role of probability theory at the bookies. Forget Popular Science, this is Popular Maths.

Buy it here

Soccermatics

2. Forever Young: The Story of Adrian Doherty, Football’s Lost Genius by Oliver Kay (Quercus)

We know about Ben Thornley but do we know about the Class of 92’s other unfulfilled talent? Well, we soon will. Adrian Doherty was a brilliant winger and a highly intriguing character in a world of Nicky Butts. Told by one of the UK’s best sports journalists, this promises to be a fascinating but tragic tale.

Buy it here

Forever Young

3. The Romford Pelé: It’s only Ray Parlour’s autobiography (Century)

Bend it Like a Bullard must have sold pretty well last year because here’s another cockney geezer holding court. An underrated player and a renowned joker, Parlour is nothing if not entertaining. The brilliant cover image is worth the price alone.

Buy it here

Parlour

4. Rocky: The Tears and Triumphs of David Rocastle by James Leighton (Simon & Schuster)

From one Arsenal legend to another. David ‘Rocky’ Rocastle died 15 years ago at the age of just 33 after suffering from non-Hodgkin lymphoma. A skilful midfielder, Rocky was part of the Gunners team that won the 1989 league title in such dramatic fashion (see Fever Pitch). Leighton’s book features moving testaments from friends, family and team-mates.

Buy it here

Rocky

5. Four Lions by Colin Shindler (Head of Zeus)

The 50 year anniversary of ’66 will be celebrated to death (Henry Winter, Bobby Charlton…) so it’s nice to see a book taking an interesting angle. Colin Shindler is a social and cultural historian and uses the careers of 4 England captains – Billy Wright, Bobby Moore, Gary Lineker and David Beckham – to explore post-war Britain and a half-century of change.

Buy it here

Four Lions.jpg

6. Retired by Alan Gernon (Pitch Publishing)

There are few things I enjoy more than a great ‘Where are they now?’ story. Iain Dowie is now the regional sales manager for ‘Go To Surveys’ in case you didn’t know. This book explores the many trials and tribulations of hanging up the boots.

Buy it here

Retired

7. Football by Jean-Philippe Toussaint (Fitzcarraldo Editions)

A book about football by a prize-winning writer – if Eduardo Galeano is anything to go by, what’s not to love? There’s even an essay on Zidane’s headbutt.

Buy it here

Toussaint

8. The Periodic Table of Football by Nick Holt (Ebury Press)

‘108 elements from the football pantheon arranged by their properties and behaviour on and off the pitch’ – a brilliant concept and a lovely gift book.

Buy it here

Periodic Table.jpg

Top 10 Football Book Publishers

January 22, 2016January 26, 2016 / mjoldfield22 / Leave a comment

The big trade publishers all have their few A-list football titles every year but for the best stuff you need to dig a little deeper. What you’re looking for are these great (mostly independent) sports publishers, working a little under the radar to bring you passionate, interesting books. This is a list for both aspiring writers and avid readers. So in no particular order:

1. BackPage Press

BackPage Press

Website: http://backpagepress.co.uk/

Twitter: @BackPagePress

Background

“BackPage began publishing world-class sports books in 2010. Today we produce great audio content, brilliant blogs, sold-out live events and we’re still publishing some of the best sports books out there.”

Books to read

Barça by Graham Hunter

I Think Therefore I Play by Andrea Pirlo

2. Pitch Publishing

Pitch

Website: http://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/

Twitter: @PitchPublishing

Background

“Pitch capture the real spirit of sport with entertaining and clever ideas. They work out what the aficionado would want to read, then deliver it with great verve.”

Paul Hayward, Chief Sports Writer, The Telegraph

Books to read

Eibar the Brave by Euan McTear

Fully Programmed by Derek Hammond and Gary Silke

3. DeCoubertin Books

deCoubertin

Website: decoubertin.co.uk/

Twitter: @deCoubertin

Background

“deCoubertin Books is a small publisher with big ideas. We use our experience from the worlds of journalism, web, publishing and design to produce beautiful non-fiction books that we passionately believe in.”

Books to read

Up There by Michael Walker

Touching Distance by Martin Hardy

4. Yellow Jersey Press

Yellow-Jersey-Press_0

Website: https://www.penguin.co.uk/search/?q=yellow+jersey&f=i%3AYellow%2BJersey

Twitter: @YellowJersey_ed

Background

“Yellow Jersey Press is a sports list with a distinctive literary edge and a particular passion for cycling. Four-times winner of the prestigious William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award, Yellow Jersey publishes some of sport’s greatest heroes including Sir Bradley Wiggins and Diego Maradona as well as some of the best and most respected sport’s writers in the industry – William Fotheringham, C.L.R James, Ned Boulting, Paul Kimmage and H.G Bissinger.”

Books to read

A Life Too Short by Ronald Reng

Promised Land by Anthony Clavane

One Night in Turin by Pete Davies

5. Ockley Books

Ockley

Website: http://www.ockleybooks.co.uk/

Twitter: @OckleyBooks

Background

“Ockley Books Ltd is a publishing company looking to carve a niche in the world of sports books and writing. We are only looking to bring you the highest quality books possible and give our writers as much help as we can to produce their finest work.”

Books to read

The Agony and the Ecstasy by Richard Foster

Juventus: A History in Black and White by Adam Digby

6. Tales From Ltd.

Tales From

Website: http://talesfrom.com/

Twitter: @TalesFromLtd, @TalesFromTheVic, @TFTheCity, @TFTRW

Background

“Tales From produces excellent sports books and live events. Lionel Birnie is a journalist, author and Watford fan and Adam Leventhal is a TV presenter, journalist and author.”

Books to read

Tales from the Vicarage (Watford)

Tales from the City (Norwich)

Tales from the Red & Whites (Sunderland)

7. Trinity Mirror Sport Media

Website: http://www.tmsportmedia.com/

Twitter: @SportMediaTM

Background

“Trinity Mirror is the biggest publishing plc in the UK and Sport Media is its award-winning sports publishing unit. We work with some of the biggest clubs, organisations and individuals in Britain and have years of experience across the area of sports publishing.”

Books to read

GoodFella by Craig Bellamy

I’m Still Standing by Fabrice Muamba

8. Floodlit Dreams

floodlit dreams

Website: http://www.floodlitdreams.com/

Twitter: @IanRidley1

Background

“Ian worked for many years on national newspapers, including The Guardian, The Observer and The Mail on Sunday, and was Sports Journalist of the Year in 2007. He is also the author of 11 sports books, including the best-selling Addicted with Tony Adams. His latest is A Dazzling Darkness, with the world champion boxer, Darren Barker. He is also a scriptwriter and has for television. Ian is the creator of Floodlit Dreams Ltd, publishers of sports books.”

Books to read

Added Time by Mark Halsey

There’s A Golden Sky by Ian Ridley

9. Vision Sports Publishing

vsp

Website: http://www.visionsp.co.uk/

Twitter: @SportsVsp

Background

“Vision Sports Publishing is the UK’s leading independent sports book publisher. We set up in 2003 to publish the kind of intelligent and innovative books that we, as massive sports fans, would like to read ourselves and we are extremely proud of our reputation as a publisher of high quality sports books.”

Books to read

The Unstoppable Keeper by Lutz Pfannenstiel

Thinking Inside The Box by Louis Saha

10. Birlinn/Arena Sport Books

arena

Website: http://www.birlinn.co.uk/Sport/

Twitter: @ArenaSportBooks

Background

“Arena Sport is Birlinn’s sport imprint and is designed for the general trade. The sport books range from football and rugby, to golf and cycling. Arena’s first titles were published in June 2013.”

Books to read

Diego Costa: The Art of War by Fran Guillén

Shocking Brazil by Fernando Duarte

Raheem Sterling! Gareth Bale! Wayne Rooney!

August 7, 2015October 18, 2015 / mjoldfield22 / Leave a comment

Another football season is about to begin and the biggest superstars in the world have been preparing for months. In fact, they’ve been working hard all of their lives to make it to the very top. To succeed as a professional footballer, you need talent but you also need focus and courage. There will always be difficult times – growing pains and injuries, coaches thinking you’re not quite good or strong enough – but the best players in the world battle on to achieve greatness.

Raheem Sterling, Gareth Bale and Wayne Rooney are three of the best and most expensive British footballers ever. This season they’ll be playing in front of thousands of fans, aiming to win league titles and perhaps the biggest prize of all, the Champions League. But how did they get to where they are now? What challenges did they face along the way? What were the key moments in their incredible journeys?

There’s only one fun way to find out! Raheem Sterling: Young Lion, Gareth Bale: The Boy Who Became a Galáctico and Wayne Rooney: Captain of England are fictionalised stories for football-mad kids, aged 9 years and up. Come and share their highs and lows and learn what it takes to become a superstar. What are you waiting for?!

To buy the books, click here

Football Books 2015

May 15, 2015 / mjoldfield22 / Leave a comment

The football season is drawing to a close and the holiday season is just beginning. For those that can’t bear to leave the beautiful game behind, there’s only one solution: beach reading. With the help of the best sports publishers around, we’ve collated the best football books around so you don’t have to…

BackPage Press

Neil White: We’re working with Arena Sport on ‘DIEGO COSTA: The Art of War’, translated and updated from Fran Guillen’s Spanish edition of last year to include the World Cup, Costa’s transfer to Chelsea and this season’s dramas. Due out 16^th July, more info here

We’re really excited about ‘The Five-a-Side Bible’ which we’re developing with Freight Books and 5-a-side.com for an October release. That’s going to have lots of funny stories from the world of 3G, as well as tips from the best fives players in Britain, a five-a-side bucket list and much more. If you play short-sided football, this is the book you’ve been waiting for.

Around the same time, we should have ‘PUSKAS: Madrid, Magyars and the Amazing Adventures of Football’s Greatest Goalscorer’ done. We’re working with Freight Books on that, and it’s written by Gyorgy Szlossi, who heads up the Puskas Academy in Budapest, founded the Puskas Award with Fifa and remains a close friend of the Puskas family.

Pitch Publishing

Paul Camillin: The first half of 2015 sees a variety of titles being added to Pitch Publishing’s ever-growing football list, including biographies, autobiographies and club-specific titles.

For those who lament the modern game, and feel somewhere along the way football took a wrong turn, losing touch with fans. The Ugly Game by Martin Calladine is a passionate, funny book of essays, and sets out to put football right by comparing it, often unfavourably, with American football, a sport, perhaps surprisingly, that’s showing how money need not destroy fairness and competition.

Soccer in Stilettos by Liam Newman is a definitive look at the rise of women’s football, telling the inspirational story of how the female sport has slowly but surely stepped out of the shadow of its male counterpart to become the truly beautiful game that it is today. With the future of the sport looking brighter than ever, how did football finally show sexism the red card?

Of the club titles, one is already proving popular with Leeds United fans, and flying off the shelves. Jon Howe’s The Only Place For Us is the A to Z history of Leeds United’s Elland Road home, revealing the stories behind its past uses, famous features and characters – plus fires, gypsy curses and escaped pantomime horses. Using archive research, insiders’ insights and fascinating photos, Jon Howe retraces the intriguing historical journey of one of Britain’s most iconic football grounds.

Then on the autobiography front we have Moody Blue, the self-told-tale of former Rangers legend Marco Negri and Luggy, the story of journeyman manager Paul Sturrock.

Ockley Books

This Yorkshire-based publisher’s small but finely-crafted football list is one of the best around. Current highlights include Adam Digby’s Juventus: A History in Black and White and Roger Domeneghetti’s From the Back Page to the Front Room: Football’s Journey Through the English Media.

I think the best, however, may be yet to come. It’s pretty rare these days that you hear of a football book and think ‘Wow, why has no-one written about that before?’ The Agony & The Ecstasy: A Comprehensive History of the Play-Offs by Richard Foster is definitely one of the most exciting ideas I’ve heard in a long time. You can read an extract here.

Trinity Mirror Sports Media

Hardback:

Danny Higginbotham Rise of the Underdog, RRP £16.99

Danny Higginbotham has always been honest. What he lacked in natural ability as a footballer, he made up for in raw passion and commitment.

He started his football education under the greatest – Sir Alex Ferguson – at his beloved Manchester United. After a headline-making loan spell in Belgium, he embarked on an eventful career journey, taking in stops at high-flying Derby County, Southampton, Sunderland and Stoke City.

Sharing Premier League dressing rooms and pitches with some big names, he experienced both sides of the modern game – from the gut-wrenching agony of relegation to the champagne moments of reaching Wembley. Along the way, he worked under charismatic bosses like Jim Smith, Harry Redknapp and Roy Keane – who delivered the most bizarre team talk he’s ever heard. At Stoke, he learned about the team-bonding tricks of Tony Pulis.

As honest and whole-hearted as his career on the pitch ‘Rise of the Underdog’ is the entertaining inside story of how an ordinary lad worked his way up the professional ladder, learning the lessons it takes to survive at the highest level of the English game.

Paperback:

Sergio Aguero Born To Rise, RRP £8.99

‘A must-read for any football fan’ Daily Mirror

Sergio Aguero is one of the top strikers in world football, but his rise to superstardom hasn’t always been smooth. Born into poverty, his life story Sergio Kun Agüero: Born to Rise is fascinating and a real story of talent, desire and the guidance of good people helping him to overcome adversity.

The book features a foreword from his best friend, Lionel Messi, and includes colourful dressing room revelations about his fellow countryman and other stars he’s encountered on his journey. This is a book every Manchester City fan will want to read, but also any football fan who is fascinated by that elite group of world greats who were touched by destiny and born to rise.

Leon Osman My Autobiography, RRP £8.99

“Fascinating” Liverpool Echo

LEON OSMAN has been at Everton FC since he was ten years old and in that time has witnessed major changes at the club and within football. A fixture in the Blues’ team for the past decade, Osman’s humour and thoughtful nature shines through in his revealing and entertaining autobiography.

Osman provides a unique insight into Moyes – the man and his methods – as well as many of the big personalities he has played alongside, such as Duncan Ferguson, Wayne Rooney, Tim Cahill, Thomas Gravesen, Mikel Arteta and Phil Neville.

Filled with entertaining tales and anecdotes from his life at Everton, Osman’s story is fascinating and inspiring.

Best of the Rest – top 5 new releases