More Great Soccer Titles

2011 has seen a bumper crop of great soccer books.  The world’s most popular sport and fine literature is a crazy good combination. 

Len Shackleton once said “The world’s best 11 players wouldn’t make a team, you must have blend.” That certainly was the story behind Stokoe, Sunderland, and ’73: The Story of the Greatest FA Cup Final Shock of All Time by Lance Hardy.  The author details a magical journey of a talented Sunderland squad that was forever an underdog. 

Success would come as a philosophical change brought about by an incredible manager named Bob Stokoe, a change that resulted in some serious hardware for Sunderland. 

The previous manager, Alan Brown, was described as a “sergeant major” who resorted to heavy-handed tactics that included having defenders head away golf balls. 

Stokoe was the complete opposite, a man who wore his emotions on his sleeve and had a deep passion for the beautiful game.  One match stood out in my mind as a defining moment for a heroic manager: “Stokoe came out and saluted the supporters. As he did so he wiped tears from his cheeks and blew kisses. This unashamed emotion summed up Stokoe.”    

The second title worth your attention is GB United: British Olympic Football and the End of the Amateur Dream by Steve Menary. This book certainly fits a niche; it contains the only full history of the British Olympic football team.  

It is a story of amateurism versus commercialization, nationalism versus greed, and unity versus diversity. 

The Olympics represent the best the civilized world has to offer.  Certainly the sport of football deserves to be in that discussion. 

And it will be a big story soon with the Olympics headed to England next summer.  It won’t be fans of Chelsea, Manchester United, and Liverpool, but rather GB United under a dream of Olympic glory.