Jaap Stam

Jaap Stam
Author: Jaap Stam
Publisher:
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2002
Genre: Soccer players
ISBN: 9780007117093

Now recognised as one of the best central defenders in the world, Jaap Stam was a huge influence in Manchester United's 1998/99 Treble winning season and continues to earn the plaudits for his performances at both club level and for Holland. In this, his first book, Stam reveals what it is like to play for the biggest and most famous football club in the world, sharing the limelight with the likes of Ryan Giggs, David Beckham and Roy Keane.

The Boss

The Boss
Author: Michael Crick
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 660
Release: 2003
Genre: Soccer managers
ISBN: 0743429915

Ferguson's own autobiography was a great bestseller on its publication in 1999. But Fergie's book told the story through only one pair of eyes. Now, Michael Crick, acclaimed biographer of Jeffrey Archer, writes the first fully rounded, independent portrait of Sir Alex. From his roots as a Govan trade unionist to the current peaks of world football, Crick applies the same forensic skills he applied to his study of the disgraced Tory peer. Through hundreds of interviews with those who've known and worked with Sir Alex, and delving back through the archives, Michael Crick explores the money and the politics of football, the bust-ups, the fights, and those memorable moments of glory. Charismatic and charming, volcanic and ruthless, searingly ambitious and astonishingly successful. What makes Sir Alex Ferguson tick? How did this complex character become the most successful manager in British football, producing -- first at Aberdeen and now at Manchester United -- two of the most prolific trophy-grabbing machines in the modern game? THE BOSS is essential reading not just for Manchester United fans and football followers in general, but for anyone interested in the skills of successful management.

The Baby Faced Assasin - The Biography of Manchester United's Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

The Baby Faced Assasin - The Biography of Manchester United's Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
Author: Ian Macleay
Publisher: Kings Road Publishing
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2007-09-03
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 1784185477

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is an Old Trafford legend. After three injury-ravaged years, he blazed back to reignite his career and that of his club, Manchester United. His fantastic goals have thrown out a challenge to the Abramovich empire which had emerged in his absence and risen to dominate the Premiership, challenging Man United's position as the world's greatest club. Famous for his youthful looks and uncanny ability to score in the dying minutes of important games, often coming on as a 'super-sub', he's one of football's most cerebral and naturally gifted strikers.His last-gasp winner in injury time against Barcelona in 1999's Champions League final helped secure the crowning glory of Man Utd's glorious Treble. Plagued by a knee injury, Solskjaer has nonetheless earned sixty caps for Norway, and continues to put them away to deadly effect for his club, who never tire of singing 'You Are My Solskjaer' whether he's on the pitch or not. And he's committed his future to Old Trafford with the prospect of coaching duties after 2008, where his knowledge of the game, skill and attitude can continue to benefit his adopted home.In this informative and insightful book, sports writer Ian MacLeay charts the highs and lows of The Baby Faced Assassin's career to provide an in-depth look at both the man and the striker who looks set to go down in history alongside Denis Law and Jimmy Greaves. It is a must-read for any sports fan.

The Secret Footballer's Guide to the Modern Game

The Secret Footballer's Guide to the Modern Game
Author: Anon
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Total Pages: 152
Release: 2014-11-04
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 1783350636

The bestselling anonymous author is back with the ultimate book to challenge conventional footballing wisdom. This is football gift with a bit of attitude. Perfect for football fans and armchair referees alike. With his trademark wit, opinion and candour, The Secret Footballer will guide the reader through: The pass - geometry and positioning and intelligence; Fitness; Skills & dribbling; Power & passion; When to listen to your gaffer and when to ignore him; Data and how it is used on the pitch/in transfers; Football academies; Match fixing, diving and other dark deeds; Tunnel vision - what it takes to be a pro; What the pundits say and what they really mean; top 11s (goals to scapegoats, chants to stadiums); 'Bouncebackability' and other words that just aren't acceptable.

The Story of the World Cup: 2014

The Story of the World Cup: 2014
Author: Brian Glanville
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Total Pages: 470
Release: 2014-01-14
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 0571312543

The dramatic and controversial history of the world's leading tournament. Brian Glanville's classic account is a celebration of the great players and matches from Uruguay in 1930 to South Africa in 2010 - and a bold attack on all those who have mismanaged the 'beautiful game'.

Sir Alex Ferguson, G.O.A.T.

Sir Alex Ferguson, G.O.A.T.
Author: Harry Harris
Publisher: Boldwood Books Ltd
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2020-09-10
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1913721116

From his early career as a manager for Aberdeen and then to taking the helm at Man United and guiding the club to its most glorious period for thirty years, Alex Ferguson has become without doubt the most famous, influential and successful football manager in the country. Man United dominate the English game and stand on the threshold of European glory. Just how has Alex Ferguson - this ex-Aberdeen and Rangers player - taken them there? This book has the answers. In this unique tribute, his one-time playing colleagues, fellow managers and the international stars of the game provide personal insights into the secrets of Ferguson's mercurial character and glittering career.

Giggs

Giggs
Author: Joe Lovejoy
Publisher: Penguin UK
Total Pages: 335
Release: 2006-06-01
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0141911662

Ryan Giggs first played for Manchester United in the season before the Premiership began; back when Bryan Robson was still captain. He took possession of United's left wing and never loosened his grip. Over a fourteen year career so far, he's seen them all come and go: Cantona, Schmeichel, Beckham and the rest. Sir Alex Ferguson said of Giggs 'I knew we had an outstanding talent when we gave him his debut.' That was back in 1991, but it remains as true in 2005 as it ever was. Giggs has been a pivotal figure in United's dominance of the Premiership. There have been rivals but no other team can match the their sustained record of success over recent years. And Giggs is the only player to have played in all eight of those title winning campaigns. Off the pitch, Ryan Giggs has always closely guarded his private life. But here he opens up for the first time, sharing details of the sometimes turbulent childhood that shaped him and the relationships that have mattered to him to reveal the man behind the famous number 11 red shirt. One thing seems clear: the Old Trafford crowd will be singing 'Giggs will tear you apart again!' for a few years yet ...

Fast Forward: The Autobiography

Fast Forward: The Autobiography
Author: Andrew Cole
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Total Pages: 219
Release: 2020-11-12
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 1529304970

'A powerful and moving book - it's quite a battle he has faced' Nick Robinson, BBC Radio 4 Today Programme 'It really is an interesting read' Dan Walker, BBC Breakfast *INCLUDES A FOREWORD BY SIR ALEX FERGUSON* __________ 'I'm not sure whether life prepared me for football, or football prepared me for life.' Misconceptions have stalked Andy Cole like a hatchet-man defender determined to cut him down to size. Now, in his candid and inspirational autobiography, Cole finally puts his side of the story. In the world of modern-day football, Andy Cole's reserved demeanour, combined with belief in his own ability, was often interpreted as an attitude problem that overshadowed his natural aptitude for goalscoring. Throughout his glittering career, he scored 187 Premier League goals, won 5 Premier League titles and 1 Champions League trophy. Now, two decades on from United's historic Treble, he not only gives the inside track on Eric Cantona, Roy Keane, Dwight Yorke and other members of that illustrious side, but also opens up about his fractious relationship with Teddy Sheringham and reveals the prejudices and preconceptions he had to contend with in his twenty years in the game. Compelling in its honesty and frankness, Fast Forward is the thought-provoking story of one man's determination to succeed and survive against all the odds.

The Anatomy of Manchester United

The Anatomy of Manchester United
Author: Jonathan Wilson
Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2017-08-24
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 1409144461

Award-winning football writer Jonathan Wilson selects ten landmark matches from Manchester United's history, from the first time they lifted the FA Cup, beating Bristol City in 1909, to the Cup victory of 2016 that proved to be Louis van Gaal's last game in charge. In doing so, he identifies the pivotal moments in the club's rise to being one of the foremost teams of the twentieth century. With his trademark tactical acumen, Wilson goes back to the matches themselves and subjects them to forensic examination, re-evaluating and reassessing, and going beyond the white noise of banal player quotes and instant judgements to discover why what happened happened. It is in this way, as far as possible, a football history of a great club. And because this is Manchester United, there is additional resonance. From the completion of Old Trafford in 1910, United have had a significant financial advantage. Yet their past has not been one of sustained success. As such, their history is also, to an extent, a history of English football, with all of its possibilities and frustrations.

Ode to Four Four Two

Ode to Four Four Two
Author: John McNicoll
Publisher: eBook Partnership
Total Pages: 207
Release: 2021-04-05
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 1785319183

An Ode to Four Four Two: Football's Simplest and Finest Formation examines how coaches in Europe, and particularly England, settled on the 4-4-2 formation to build iconic teams which would dominate both domestically and in Europe. Formations have continually evolved since the birth of the game in the mid-nineteenth century. From teams playing with four or five forwards, to the modern era of teams with just the one. Arguably the greatest formation has been 4-4-2. Some of the greatest teams have lined up in this multi-functional system. Flick through the football history books and it is filled with teams like AC Milan, Manchester United, Liverpool, Leeds United and Barcelona, all enjoying glorious eras playing 4-4-2. But it isn't just the elite of world football. Who can forget Leicester City, led by Claudio Ranieri, reviving the system against all odds to outperform the Premier League's big six to claim a historic title in 2016? Author John McNicoll looks at how and why these teams used the formation to such effect. How they dominated in their era to stand out from the rest. It is the story of how teams, both big and small in status, have played the system to perfection.