NOMINATED FOR BEST FOOTBALL BOOK OF 2010 IN THE BRITISH SPORTS BOOK AWARDS Updated second edition True greatness does not feel the need to proclaim itself from the rooftops. It is happy to state its case quietly, yet with utter conviction. Alan Gilzean was a truly great footballer. Every observer of his talent confirms this as an indisputable fact: from the legendary Jimmy Greaves, who regards him as the best striker he ever played with, to Don Revie, the former Leeds United and England manager, who described the former Tottenham striker as the best touch player in Europe, and Spurs fans whose spine-tingling refrain, Gilzean, Gilzean, Born is the King of White Hart Lane, continues to echo down the generations. It is now 36 years since Gilzean retired from professional football and his life and times have become shrouded in mystery and rumour. All that exists are the memories of his greatness ... but how long before even those are forgotten forever? After fans on Tottenham Hotspur online forums claim that Gilzean is living as a down-and-out, James Morgan, a lifelong Spurs fan and sports journalist with The Herald, Scotland's leading quality newspaper, is filled with a fierce desire to separate fact from fiction and sets out on a journey In Search of Alan Gilzean. The facts of his illustrious career are down in black and white: 169 goals for Dundee, including 52 in one season, a record that stood until Henrik Larsson broke it in 2001; a league championship medal with the great Dundee team of the early 1960s; then, a move to Spurs in December 1964, where, over the course of the next decade, he forms unforgettable partnerships with Greaves and Martin Chivers. Gilzean's greatness shines like a beacon, but where is the rest of his story? Morgan soon discovers that a sprinkling of newspaper cuttings, a Wikipedia page and idle internet chatter, are all that exist of a life less ordinary. The Scottish Football Association Hall of Fame website included a Swede, Larsson, and a Dane, Brian Laudrup, but no Gillie. Dundee FC has named lounges after former players who are not fit to lace Gilzean's boots. Spurs haven't heard from him in years. Former team-mates are none the wiser. One of the best British strikers of his generation is a forgotten man. Morgan's desire to change this, and find out the full story, takes him on an exhilarating personal journey all over Britain. From Gillie's birthplace, in the small Perthshire village of Coupar Angus, to Dundee, London and beyond, he leaves no stone unturned. Initially, Gillie hovers in the shadow before emerging as a fascinating and complex character whose natural reticence has obscured his legacy. Morgan's portrait of the original King of White Hart Lane restores him to his rightful place in football folklore and stands as the only faithful testimony to the life of a bona fide British football legend.

Renowned football writer and Spurs expert Julie Welch brings us a revealing and exhilarating account of the club's roller-coaster journey down the decades through the prism of its key strike partnerships. In 1961, Bobby Smith and Les Allen were the strike duo who led Tottenham to the league and cup double, making them the first club to achieve the feat in the modern era. It set in train Spurs' proud record of memorable strike partnerships whose goals brought glory to the club, rescued it from the doldrums or simply supplied unforgettable entertainment to millions of fans. These strike duos featured some of the greatest goalscorers and biggest personalities in English football history - from the top flight's record scorer in Jimmy Greaves partnering Alan Gilzean, to Steve Archibald and Garth Crooks, Teddy Sheringham and Jurgen Klinsmann and Son Heung-min and Harry Kane. Packed with insight, anecdotes and the recollections of legendary players, managers and supporters, Double Acts brings to life a rich and glorious history.

Soccer, the world’s most popular mass spectator sport, gives birth to great achievers on the field of play all the time. While some of them become heroes and stars during their playing career, transforming themselves into national as well as global icons, very few come to be remembered as all-time greats. They leave an enduring legacy and thereby claim to be legends by their own rights. While the rise and achievements of these soccer greats have drawn considerable attention from scholars across the world, their legacies across time and space have mostly been overlooked. This volume intends to reconstruct the significance of the legacies of such great men of world soccer particularly in a globalized world. It will attempt to show that these luminous personalities not only represent their national identity at the global stage, but also highlight the proven role of the players or coaches in projecting a global image, cutting across affiliations of nation, region, class, community, religion, gender and so on. In other words, the true heroes, icons and legends of the world’s most popular sport have always floated at a transnational global space, transcending the limits of space, identity or culture of a nation. This book was published as a special issue of Soccer and Society.

Ever wondered what is it like to be on the receiving end of a Sir Alex Ferguson hairdryer? Or how Jean Marc Bosman reacted the exact moment he discovered he'd won his famous court case? 'Henrik, Hairdryers and the Hand of God' lifts the lid on British sports journalism. Leading sports writers such as Patrick Barclay, Graham Hunter, Tom English, Graham Spiers, Hugh Keevins, Gerry McNee, Davie Provan, Pat Nevin and dozens of others powerfully relate the real stories behind the headlines, laying bare the world of sportswriting and broadcasting in all its fascinating glory and infamy.

Football Manager stole my life reveals the cult behind a computer game that, since its debut in 1992, has sold 20m copies and become a part of football culture.

When Arrigo Sacchi’s Milan destroyed Steaua Bucharest 4-0 in the 1989 European Cup final, everything changed. Studded with the world-class talents of their legendary three Dutchmen – Ruud Gullit, Marco Van Basten and Frank Rijkaard – they threw off the shackles of Italian football’s defensive traditions to pioneer a modern, high-pressing and boldly attacking approach. Sacchi revolutionised football and altered the DNA of the next generation of coaches, including Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp. This is the story of the crowning achievement of one of football’s greatest-ever teams – told by the man who built it. This is the story of The Immortals.