Top 10 Football Books that Everyone Should Read
Top 10 Football Books that Everyone Should Read. Selling millions of copies, the best-selling football books often contain autobiographies which are hardback.
However, there are many more types of formatted books about top footballing moments out there. The authors have scouted the world to find interesting stories – they’ve studied legendary teams and iconic players to ensure that these scenes will be immortalized for future generations.
This article lists 10 books that will broaden your horizon, improve your knowledge and reignite your love of the beautiful game.
1. Inverting the Pyramid
Inverting the Pyramid is one of the most influential football books. The publication came at a perfect time, as a nation questioned how an England side boasting Wayne Rooney, Gary Neville, and John Terry failed to qualify for Euro 2008. The answer is succinctly and expertly explained, as Jonathan Wilson takes us through a history of formations past 4-4-2.
2. One Night in Turin
The book is an up-close and personal account of the 1990 tournament where the author was given nine months of access to for England’s team led by legendary coach Bobby Robson. The tournament was punctuated by a nail-biting penalty shootout, which still haunts England years later.
3. The Immortals:
Arrigo Sacchi’s methods infused the sport with innovative ideas and tools that have traveled down through Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola, and many other modern-day managers. His latest endeavor is a comprehensive strategy book with how-tos for creating success through football.
4. The National Team
With its four World Cup victories and four Olympic gold medals, the U.S. women’s national soccer team is one of America’s highest profiled exports. It has brought in piles of money and received acres of respect for an underrated sport. The leading football journalist Caitlin Murray tells the story with her book, showing how the team broke records, generated a lot of interest, and earned tons of admiration from experts in the industry.
5. Ultra by Tobias Jones
Ultra is a book about the Italian football subculture, which has taken on the international awareness of British hooliganism. The author, Tobias Jones, goes beyond explaining and profiling the ultras of different teams. He gets very up close and personal with them and paints a vivid picture into their daily lives, from their favorite foods to their styles of dress .
6. The Man Who Saved FC Barcelona
In this biography, Sue O’Connell, who is the grandson’s wife of Patrick, writes of her husband’s life and career. His story includes turning a career in English leagues into managing success with Real Betis. But his most difficult moment was the Spanish Civil War when he saved Barcelona from financial ruin.
7. Danish Dynamite
Denmark first qualified for the World Cup in 1966, but it didn’t make the cut until 1986. This landmark World Cup was one that fans of Denmark will never forget because Denmark famously upset both Argentina and Brazil during the tournament with draws and 2-1 wins respectively. The book chronicles what happened in Mexico in 1986 as well as looking back on previous moments of Danish football glory.
8. Tears at La Bombonera
Christopher Hylland spent his years in various countries. He became enchanted with their way of life and playing football and how the two are intrinsically linked in that part of the world. The book reads as a multi-cultural love letter to the wild fanaticism of South American soccer.
9. The Bottom Corner
In the recent English football pyramid, a gap is growing between the capital and the British to access. Although there are many stories to be found in Non-League Football, it is important to not ignore this sport which fuels local communities all over England. Despite losing relevance as lower club league games have drawn more attendance than top-tier ones, there are still some stories left for unlikely heroes.
10. The Barcelona Legacy
Jonathan Wilson’s The Barcelona Legacy explores the idea that much of modern football came from the mind of Johan Cruyff. Although there are many books that cover the topic, from Cruyff’s perspective, Jonathan Wilson compiled his own research in a notable footballing book, “Inverting the Pyramid.”