Sammy McIlroy experienced one of the most memorable careers in football. After all, who else can say they played with George Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton, experienced relegation, won trophies and played under six different managers at Manchester United? With more than 400 appearances, McIlroy - the last player signed by the legendary Sir Matt Busby - is a bona fide Old Trafford legend, and is an intrinsic part of the fabric of its illustrious history. One of the few footballers to have played in two international tournaments for Northern Ireland (and been captain in one), 'Super' Sam went on to manage his country after a successful spell in charge of Macclesfield Town. He tells his extraordinary story with remarkable candour and emotion, pulling no punches. From the anxiety of his homesickness to the exhilaration of his club debut, from the lows of his heartbreaking exit from United to the highs of leading his country out in a World Cup, The Last Busby Babe finally puts on record one of the greatest careers in football history.

This is a fascinating biography of Aston Villa hero, Jackie Sewell. Based on hours of indepth interviews with Jackie, this title tells the story of the footballer who was 'worth his weight in gold'. Aston Villa Football Club is steeped in football history and many books have been written on the successes of 'The Villans'. Alongside their achievements on the field, they have produced a number of star players who have made significant contributions to football history. One such player is the unsung hero, Jackie Sewell. Jackie Sewell enjoyed his most successful period as a professional footballer at Villa Park but he also graced the fields of English football with Notts County and Sheffield Wednesday. In 1950, he was transferred from Nottingham to Sheffield for a world record fee and was known as the footballer who was 'worth his weight in gold'. This biography is based on in-depth interviews with Jackie in his Nottingham home and delving through his massive collection of football memorabilia - the book includes photographs of previously never seen personal memorabilia that Jackie has stored meticulously and kept private until now. Jackie pioneered soccer in three African Countries, establishing the coaching programmes which have now resulted in virtually every current Premier League side having an African contingent of players. In 1953 the England International side were acknowledged as being the 'world champions' until one fateful day at Wembley when they were crushed 6-3 by the then Olympic champions, Hungary. Jackie talks openly about his memories of that game and the reasons why England were so heavily defeated. Without doubt, 87-year-old Jackie has some fascinating recollections of football in the 50s and is not afraid to tell his explosive story. This book is a must for all football fans but particularly supporters of Notts County, Sheffield Wednesday, Aston Villa and Hull City (where Jackie ended his career) as it will transport you to a time when the game was bigger than the players and when success was not measured purely in monetary terms.

*OUT NOW* THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'Neville at his authentic best. [He] is the closest thing to a spokesman there is for English football.' Sunday Times 'Brilliant.' Mail on Sunday 'Gary Neville usually talks a lot of sense, and writes it too . . . Neville's words are timely.' Henry Winter, The Times 'The People's Game is [Gary's] call to mend football, harmed by the greed and selfishness of bigger clubs and associations.' Radio Times __________ The beautiful game is under threat. The greed and selfishness of the biggest clubs is harming the sport, with smaller clubs struggling for financial survival and supporters being left behind. It's time to fix football. __________ Football is the people's game. A sport accessible to everyone and enjoyed by millions around the world. But football is broken. Beneath the glamourous sheen of the Premier League, it's a game that's rusting and rotten. The growing influence and wealth of the biggest teams is harming the game, leaving fans out of pocket and smaller clubs clinging to survival. The European Super League, which looked to eradicate competition in favour of guaranteed profits, was just the beginning. This isn't what football is about. Something's got to change. Enough is enough. Gary Neville has had a front-row seat in football for over 30 years, witnessing the sport at every level - as a player, a coach, a pundit and an owner. Most of all, he's a fan. Shocked by the state of the game, Gary looks to find out how we got into this mess, who's responsible, and what we can do about it. The People's Game is Gary's vision for a brighter future. Drawing on interviews with those at the epicentre of the sport's biggest issues - from the role of ownership to the lack of funding in the football league, the rise in racism, ownership models and the future of the women's game - he explains how football has sleepwalked into this mess and offers a new path forward. With stories from his own playing career, as well as insight into some of the biggest footballing decisions in recent history, this is a total look at the game today. This is a passionate, personal and critical account of how football lost its soul, and what we can do to get it back. __________

Welcome to the Official Hibernian FC Annual 2022! Packed inside you'll find features on your favorite players, learn more about what your club does in the community, take quizzes to test your knowledge on all things Hibs, and enjoy fantastic pictures of the season. Enjoy the read!

His Name is McNamara is the riveting story of the life and career of football manager and former player Jackie McNamara. Jackie played for a series of clubs but is best known for the trophy-laden decade he spent at Celtic, culminating in a spell as club captain and a Scottish international career. His departure from Celtic in 2005 was controversial and abrupt, taking the football world by surprise when he signed for Wolves despite a last-minute attempt by the club to keep him in Glasgow. After spells at Aberdeen, Falkirk and Partick Thistle, he finished playing and moved into management with Thistle, Dundee United and York City. Jackie pulls no punches as he gives us the inside track on a career at the highest level of the game and the battling qualities he needed to succeed. It was those qualities that he drew on when his life was threatened by a brain aneurism in early 2020. His Name is McNamara is a story of success and survival.

The Forgotten Champions recounts Everton's remarkable 1986/87 title win - a feat that tested Howard Kendall's managerial skills to the limit. The previous season, the club were runners-up to rivals Liverpool in the league and FA Cup. Top scorer Gary Lineker left for Barcelona with no replacement in sight and the arrival of several inexperienced players worried the fans. An injury crisis deprived Kendall of key stars such as Neville Southall and Peter Reid, forcing him to field a makeshift team at the start of the season. Optimism was in short supply at Goodison as by November the team were in eighth place and struggling to stay in contention. Further injuries to Graeme Sharp and Kevin Sheedy threatened to derail Everton's title bid, but the astute purchase of Wayne Clarke proved crucial as the Toffees strung together a winning sequence. Against all odds, a patchwork, injury-ravaged Everton were crowned league champions, ahead of Liverpool. It was a magnificent achievement. To date, it is the club's last ever title.

As usual, the Official Celtic Annual 2022 has the Player Profiles on the current Celts aiming to add to the club's already illustrious silverware tally as we also welcome Ange Postecoglou to the Celtic fold. Celtic Women had a real season to remember and your Annual focuses on three highlights - Chloe Craig making her 200th appearance, the green and whitewash over Rangers and the nail-biting climax to the term that saw the Ghirls qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time ever. We also look back at a few Celtic legends, namely Henrik Larsson, Tommy Burns, Jackie McNamara and Tom Boyd to find out what their careers were like BC (Before Celtic). All this, along with your traditional Paradise Puzzle Pages, is inside your Official Celtic Annual 2022 and we hope you enjoy reading once more about your heroes in green and white.

The Official Bournemouth Annual 2022 gives you exclusive access behind the scenes at Vitality Stadium to find out about our squad, journey and all things AFC Bournemouth! The squad have helped us by picking out their favourite games and moments, all while wearing our famous red and black stripes. Can you crack our mega quiz selection? From agonising anagrams, wicked word searches to super squad questions, pit your wits to prove you're a champion of Cherries knowledge! Know your history! Find out more about our incredible journey to the Premier League, including a look at some of the best Cherries kits from down the years. Find out exactly what happens on matchday - all from the view of some of our heroes in the dressing room! Could you pick out a Cherries dream team? We've profiled loads of our stars from the last century, you'll need to decide who you'd put in our best-ever starting 11.

By James Pearce, Oliver Kay, Simon Hughes and Other Award-Winning Writers of The Athletic As Liverpool ended their 30-year wait to be crowned champions of England, they were followed by their equivalent from the world of sports writing: a team of elite talents, assembled to leave all competition trailing in their wake. This is the story of Liverpool's title win in the longest season, as told by the writers of The Athletic, with their blend of inside access and expert analysis; great ideas and beautiful writing. Articles include profiles of each of Liverpool's title winners by their former youth team coaches; Oliver Kay watches Sadio Mane score against Manchester City in the company of the striker's family, in his hometown in Senegal; James Pearce spends 90 minutes analysing Virgil van Dijk; plus there are exclusive interviews with Jurgen Klopp, and the club's US owners. Read the stories behind a unique and historical season from a team of writers every bit as good as the footballers they were following.

The history of the fierce football rivalry between England and Germany is encapsulated in a single moment - Geoff Hurst's extra-time shot off the crossbar in the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final and the decision of an infamous Russian linesman to award a goal. It is a rivalry that now spans more than 90 years since the first official match between the two nations. For the English, a series of high-profile defeats at major tournaments saw Germany become the Angstgegner on the field, as well as an enduring obsession for the national press. For Germans, Wembley still represents the home of football, where the memories of 1966 have been supplanted by numerous successes and the appropriation of the English anthem 'football's coming home'. The rivalry has long crossed the lines of the football field, with the two nations at various moments forced to admire and learn from each other, and with football encounters between England and Germany repeatedly marking important developments in a unique and ever-changing political and cultural relationship.

The Leeds United Collection takes you on a fascinating multi-coloured journey through the club's history from 1919 to the present day. With stunning photos of unique match-worn Leeds shirts and other paraphernalia, the book tells the Whites' story alongside anecdotes, interviews and quotes from many big names. See home and away shirts worn by Leeds legends from various eras including Billy Bremner and Albert Johanneson, David Batty, Gary Speed, Peter Lorimer, Paul Madeley, Paul Reaney, Norman Hunter, Mick Jones, Allan Clarke, Frank and Eddie Gray, Terry Yorath, John Sheridan, Ian Baird, Fabian Delph, Kalvin Phillips, Pablo Hernandez and many more. These superb images are brought to life with commentary on title- and trophy-winning seasons, plus promotion-winning campaigns. There are also interviews with Eddie Gray, Howard Wilkinson, Pablo Hernandez, Allan Clarke, Tony Currie, Jermaine Beckford, Aidan Butterworth, Simon Grayson, Brian Deane, Rod Wallace, Dominic Matteo and many more. This is a book no true Whites fan should be without.

The King of Dens Park is the authorised life story of Alan Gilzean, the legendary, world-class Dundee, Spurs and Scotland footballer. Exclusive insights provided by his family, closest friends and colleagues add to the author's own experience to reveal Gilzean, the man and the player. A reserved, charming and intelligent individual who shunned the limelight off the field, Gilzean played with a swagger as a maker and taker of goals. We discover how the native of the Perthshire town of Coupar Angus became one of the greatest performers in the history of both his clubs. Gilzean emerged a Scottish folk hero having scored the winning goal against England in front of 133,000 at Hampden Park - and was later welcomed back with open arms by the game after ending a self-imposed exile during which the uninformed conjured often defamatory myths. The elegant striker dubbed 'Nureyev in Boots' left us on Sunday, 8 July 2018. There will never be another like him.

You've seen him become a Liverpool legend, watched as he and Jude Bellingham lead England through the world cup - now get to know the real Jordan Henderson, both on off the pitch . . . 'A brilliantly told story with a uniquely vivid sense of what it is like on the pitch in matches of extreme importance . . . The perfect book for all football fans' DAILY MAIL 'SPORTS BOOKS OF THE YEAR' __________ Captain. Father. Leader. Fearless ambassador. World-class midfielder. Jordan Henderson is all of these things, and it is why he is one of the most widely respected players of his generation. In this tell-all autobiography, Jordan reveals how his early love for the game as a kid became an all-consuming passion that led him to follow his dream - to play for his home club of Sunderland. Transferred to Liverpool in June 2011, Jordan's early years at the club saw him struggle to settle under Sir Kenny Dalglish then Brendan Rodgers before eventually establishing himself at Anfield as a force of nature in midfield. In 2015, Jordan took the reins from Steven Gerrard. Under his captaincy, Liverpool have reached monumental heights - winning six trophies headed by the Champions League and the Premier League, bringing the club its first league title in 30 years. In this book, Jordan charts his decade-long journey with the Reds, and a behind-the-scenes look at his life both on and off the pitch. A must-read not only for Liverpool fans but for football lovers everywhere, this is the candid behind-the-scenes look into the lire of a top-flight footballer as you've never seen it before.

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF DON REVIE - ONE OF THE MOST COMPLEX AND CONTROVERSIAL MEN EVER TO GRACE THE GAME OF FOOTBALL 'Engrossing' - Sunday Times 'Impeccably researched... As a life and times, Evans's account is immaculate.' - Jonathan Liew, New Statesman 'A poignant and engrossing read... a well-crafted biography.' - FourFourTwo 'Thoroughly researched and engagingly written, this superb biography sheds new light on one of the most controversial, enigmatic figures in football history' - Leo McKinstry, journalist, historian and award-winning author 'Excellent' - Johnny Giles, Leeds United legend 'Essential reading' Ryan Sabey, the Sun Whenever the greatest managers the game has ever produced are mentioned, names like Busby, Shankly, Paisley and Ferguson trip off the tongue. Despite dominating the game in the late 1960s and '70s there is one name missing: Don Revie, the former Leeds United and England manager. Revie was one of the most complex and controversial men ever to grace the game of football. As a player, he was crowned Footballer of the Year and credited with creating the modern centre-forward. As a manager, he took a Leeds United side languishing in the lower half of the second division and turned them into not only league champions, but one of the most dominant sides in the country. As England manager, Revie lost the magic touch and became increasingly indecisive. After three years in the role and fearing the sack, Revie became the first man to walk out on England. Then came the backlash. Revie was branded a traitor and banned from the game for 10 years, and the press declared open season on the manager. Accused of offering bribes to throw matches, his reputation was destroyed. Shunned by the football establishment, he died just 12 years after walking out on England. Revie's death, at the age of 61, robbed him of the opportunity ever to rebuild his reputation as one of the most important figures ever seen in English football. The life and times of this multifaceted, enigmatic, pioneering football man have still never been fully explored and explained in detail before. Featuring new interviews with Johnny Giles, Kevin Keegan, Norman Hunter, Eddie Gray, Allan Clarke, Joe Jordan, Gordon McQueen, Malcolm Macdonald and members of the Revie family, this long-overdue biography reveals how today's football owes so much to Don Revie. --- Shortlisted for THE SUNDAY TIMES Sports Book Awards 2022 'A no-holds-barred insight that convinces the reader that Don Revie stands amongst the giants of English football.' -Lord Mann 'Meticulously researched and expertly crafted exploration' - Jeff Powell, Daily Mail 'A superb read'. - Alex Montgomery, Chief football writer and former Chairman of the Football Writers Association

'Believe in the Sign' is a 'sort of' memoir of a normal, average boy who would have grown up happily average and normal but for a dark and perverse passion: the seductive lure of masochistic devotion to a no-hope, near-derelict football club.

'I loved every page, and ended up admiring David Kynaston, our greatest social historian, even more than I already did' Nick Hornby Brimming with wisdom and humour, David Kynaston's diaries written over one football season offer up his most personal take on social history to date. David Kynaston was seven and a half years old when he attended his first Aldershot match in the early months of 1959. So began a deep attachment to the game and a lifelong loyalty to an obscure, small-town football club. Though as he sits down to write his diaries almost sixty years on, he reflects that life might have been simpler if his father had never taken him to that first match at the Rec... Shots in the Dark is the diary David Kynaston kept in the football season of 2016/17, detailing the ups and downs of the 'Shots' in the year that saw a divisive referendum in the UK and the impending ascension of Donald Trump. Here Kynaston presents a social history of modern Britain with a difference - all through the prism of the beautiful game. A testament to the ways in which fandom gives solidity and security to our lives, particularly in these bewildering and rapidly changing times, Shots in the Dark gets to the heart of what it means to be a devoted follower of a sports team. This is a diary of the macro and the micro, as questions of loyalty, of identity, of liberalism and of nationalism all rub uncomfortably up against each other during nine charged months. ____________________ 'A master socioeconomic craftsman' Guardian '[A] delightful book ... This is a book about football but, like all the best books, it is about a thousand other things as well ... This thrilling, intimate, sometimes poignant, often wonderfully funny book shows the workings in real time of a deeply civilised, humane and tolerant mind in an age when those virtues are in short supply. Here is a man with whom you would want to go to a match, and even share a beer afterwards. David Kynaston is one of the good guys, and this is one of the very good books' Daily Mail 'A charming diary ... He's the sort of fan I want to sit next to: partisan yet civil, eyes on the match but aware there are bigger things to worry about' Financial Times

Academic importance: The study of football and risk remains as important as ever in the social life and a critical examination of this relationship will touch the surface of wider trends (and risks) in the 2020s and beyond. Topicality: Risk and football are two elements that feature constantly in public debates. The book discusses highly topical issues such as the FIFA World Cup's expansion to 48 teams, the English Premier League's 'Project Restart' (following Covid-19) and environmental risks in context of the 2026 World Cup in Mexico, Canada, and the USA. Future-oriented: A short and accessible text that aims to provide directions for future research in the field. It will resonate well with undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers developing projects in this area. Newness and originality: There are currently very few - if any - books that take a sociological approach to 'global risks' specifically situated in football.

The spread of COVID-19 and the consequent pandemic since early 2020 have brought about unprecedented changes in all spheres of global life, creating a new sense of (in)security with social distancing, physical isolation, quarantine and lockdown becoming buzzwords to combat the disease. As in all spheres of life, the first wave of the pandemic posed serious challenges to the world of soccer, with diverse and intriguing responses across the globe. This book documents the early impressions and initial responses of various stakeholders of the soccer world to the challenges of COVID-19 in 2020. It reveals how the process of confrontation, negotiation, adjustment and overcoming against such challenges necessitated and inspired novel responses and strong improvisations from soccer bodies to players, referees to spectators, and journalists to sponsors. This process has revealed abrupt as well as radical changes in the organization, rules, spectatorship and telecast of the game, thereby affecting the game's cultural dimensions, commercial prospects and political implications. The volume points out that the way soccer has adjusted to the 'new normal' standard of the 'COVID Regime' has elicited newer meanings and nuanced representations of the game. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of the journal, Soccer & Society.

Football used to be better in the past - and here's the proof. Got, Not Got focuses on British football's apparent lost Utopia of the '60s, '70s and '80s - the fondly remembered 'Golden Age' of mudbaths and cloggers, of miniature, carpet-level games and imaginary, comic-fuelled worlds. It evokes the feel and smell of football past, its rituals and relics. But there's more to the agreeably grumpy authors' vision than a hilarious, heartstring-tugging celebration of everything we miss in modern football. Here are hundreds of beautiful images of a lost football culture, pin-sharp observations and memories shared by generations of fans - in all, an ideal blueprint to help restore the game to its former glories! This Aladdin's cave of memorabilia brings back the magic of league ladders and dogs on the pitch, sock tags and the magic sponge - and was runner-up in the BSBA Book of the Year Awards 2012.