You won’t find a bigger legend in the English game than Geoff Hurst. And you won’t find a better book than Geoff Hurst’s Greats: England’s 1966 Hero Selects His Finest Ever Footballers from Icon Books.
He is, after all, the only player to ever score a hat trick in a World Cup final. His 66 appearances and 29 goals during national team duty are also quite legendary. On the club side, Hurst scored 228 goals in 561 appearances with teams in England, Ireland, and the U.S. He would also go on to successfully manage several teams.
We were quite impressed with the fact that he was very much unbiased, and unlike others in the same situation, didn’t resort to simply complimenting his friends and teammates. He didn’t even include himself in the top 50, which would not happen with many of today’s footballers. Yes, 11 of the 50 are English and five are from the 1966 World Cup squad, but every choice is clearly warranted.
Many of Hurst’s choices are quite obvious; the likes of Pelé (1), Cruyff (2), Maradona (3), Di Stéfano(5), and Eusébio (9) are no-brainers. But Hurst was aware of the need to be comprehensive and go at this in a global manner, including players like Jairzinho(24), Garrincha (45), and Lev Yashin (47).
You can tell that Hurst put a lot of thought and deliberation into this book. He commented on the fact that he went through many drafts to get the list just right. The work was well worth the time and effort because this is an absolutely brilliant read.
This book is a great way to celebrate the anniversary of England’s World Cup victory. It’s also a great way to look at the history of the beautiful game, seeing how the likes of George Best (11) and Duncan Edwards (18) stack up against the stars of today. It’s a trip down memory lane and a brilliant reflection on the best to ever play the game.
