Books, yes books...

Football literature. I'm a massive reader of the stuff. There are many reasons why I enjoy it, for the poetic prose that reminds us of the great teams and players of the past, to extending my knowledge of the game through obscure anecdotes. Regardless of how many people read football literature on here, I'm going to share my favourite books on the topic of the worlds greatest game.



Simon Kuper with the help of economist Szymanski, decide to disect many of the myths and cliches in football, with the help of Maths. The book becomes an intruiging insight into sides of the game hidden from the general public, with a fascinating section on how clubs are run. The chapters are all engrossing and backed up with comprehensive stats to prove/disprove many things ranging from Racism, suicide, and which country is the worlds maddest football supporters (the answer will suprise you).



The book is a compilation of the Smiths journalistic works, containing lots of his articles, mainly from the last decade. His writing is incisive, contreversial and extremely witty. It encapsulates the British fans humour and banter, whilst remaining articulately written throughout.



Simply put, one of the finest books written about the sport, and one of my all time favourites. Tim Parks, once English football fan, lives in Italy, where he teaches. Over the years he came to support his local side Hellas Verona. The book documents his experiences travelling around Italy as he decides to attend every home and away game. Beautifully written, it's as much a guide to travelling scenic Italy as it is about football. His book describes his relationship with the prejudiced Verona fans and is a poignant look at fans of small provincial clubs. A must read.



This is one of the most comprehensive looks at the history of the sport. The book is meticulously researched, and covers pretty much every major tactical change in the game, starting with the formation of the sport in England and Scotland, through Argentinas la nuestra, the transferring of Englands coaches to the Eastern Europe, Catenaccio, Total Football, Lobanovskiy's pressing, right up to the Mourinho effect. Each chapter is brilliantly written and supported with diagrams, whilst including many fascinating anecdotes from the games greatest thinkers, the likes of Zagallo, Herrera, Cruyff, Clough, Sacchi etc. A definite for those interested with the tactical side of the game.

My step-dad has just given me a book he liked called Brilliant Orange. It's about Dutch football. Plan to start that soon and put a picture in the spoiler...



I've read a few books about Arsenal. One was about Bertie Mee and I think it was also called Bertie Mee. Most recently I read The Glorious Game which was a book about Wenger at Arsenal and it had a chapter or two at the start about Wenger before Arsenal. Both good books.

Been meaning to get Inverting the Pyramid for so long, I love reading Jonathan Wilson's blogs on the Guardian site, really enjoy how he analyses the game.

Had quite a few people recommending a Season With Verona too, will probably pick that up at some point.

As billionaire 'super-benefactors' fight for the right to own English football clubs, "Pay As You Play" takes a detailed look at the correlation between success and transfer spending. Tactics, motivation, fitness and luck play a part; but is an expensive squad increasingly essential for success? Which managers have excelled in the transfer market? And who blew their budgets on bad buys? Which clubs punched above their financial weight, and which ones punched well below theirs? What players proved to be great value for their price tag, and who ended up as a shocking waste of money? By converting all Premier League transfer fees since 1992 to current-day prices - using our specially devised Transfer Price Index (TPI) system to give precise 'football inflation' figures - teams could be accurately assessed against one another, whether from 1993 or 2010. How would the prices paid for Dean Saunders, Roy Keane or Frank Lampard compare with Thierry Henry, Wayne Rooney or Robinho? All 43 clubs to have played in the Premier League up to May 2010 are analysed, with noted writers and journalists - including Jonathan Wilson, Gabriele Marcotti and Oliver Kay - also providing their views on the club they support or report on. All in all, it makes for an entertaining and revealing read on the world's most popular game, and its most appealing league.

"An ingenious and intelligent look beneath the surface to reveal what the headlines too often don't tell us. Fascinating." Jonathan Wilson, author of 'Inverting the Pyramid: A History of Football Tactics'

"For years we've judged football and football people without the analytical tools to do it properly. Finally a book that attempts to do so intelligently. Hopefully a harbinger of more to come!" Gabriele Marcotti, author, journalist, broadcaster"

I've never gotten round to buying this book but every review I've seen about it has been positive, so I'm definitely buying it at some point.

Exonerate that looks quite interesting, I might just have to check it out

Completly different to the other books mentioned but I can't get enough of reading about following Chelsea through the 70's and 80's.

Hoolifan



The Naughty Nintie's



Would understand why people wouldn't enjoy these book's but reading them makes me laugh at the storie's and I could read them all day. Steaming in is an Arsenal version which is also excellent.

Three autobiographies that I really recommend of footballers are George Best, Paul McGrath and Diego Maradona.

The flawed side to their genius and the weaknesses in their character made for excellent stories, unlike a book like Pele's one which I found quite boring.