One of soccer’s most colorful and outspoken managers, Neil Warnock ran Sheffield from 1999 until 2007 and cemented his place in the Blades' history books by leading them back to the Premiership in April 2006. With his trademark humor and passion, here Warnock recalls various stories from his life as a manager and gives his input on such controversial players as Gerard Houllier, Gary Megson and Steve Bull. This is a candid insight into the journey of a rebel football manager from the Nationwide Conference to the Premier League.
Ever wondered how a transfer deal is done? What a manager says during his pre-match team-talk? What he screams from the techincal area? What goes on in training sesions, and on those long away trips? How a manager carefully builds a team, and what he does when the planning is disrupted by injuries? How he lifts a team after a crushing defeat, and keeps their feet on the ground after a resounding victory? How the man in charge handles the ever-present danger of getting sacked in the ultimate results business? In short, how one of today's top professional footballer managers somehow copes with the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, with having to live, breathe and sleep football 24 hours a day, 365 days a year? Then read The Gaffer.
The culmination of five years of research, this fascinating book reveals a side of football not explored before and explains why football coaches use astrology to gain a competitive edge. The result of 5 years of research, Football aims for the Stars shows how the constellations can affect planet football; find out why leading continental coaches believe they gain a competitive advantage by using astrology; explore the 12 paths to football success; understand what makes a telepathic partnership and, with examples including England 1966, Liverpool 1979, Manchester United 2007, and Barcelona 2009, see how a 'well balanced' team is built. This pioneering book will be essential reading for anyone with a serious interest in fulfilling their potential either as a player or coach. It will also provide fascinating insights for fans wishing to find out what they have in common with their heroes.
From the post room to the board room, everyone thinks they can be the manager. But how do you manage outrageous talent? What do you do to inspire loyalty from your players? How do you turn around a team in crisis? What's the best way to build long-term success? How can you lead calmly under pressure? The issues are the same whether you're managing a Premier League football team or a FTSE 100 company. Here, for the first time, some 30 of the biggest names in football management reveal just what it takes. With their every act, remark, and success or failure under constant scrutiny from the media and the fans, these managers need to be the most adroit of leaders. In The Manager they explain their methods, offer lessons they've learned along the way, and describe the decisions they make and the leadership they provide. Each chapter tackles a key leadership issue for managers in any walk of life and, in their own words, shows how the experts deal with the challenges they face in an abnormally high-pressure environment. Offering valuable lessons for business leaders and fascinating behind-the-scenes insights for football fans, The Manager is an honest, accessible and unprecedented look at the day-to-day work of these high-profile characters and the world of top-level football management. Featuring: Roy Hodgson, Carlo Ancelotti, Arsène Wenger, Sam Allardyce, Roberto Mancini, José Mourinho, Brendan Rodgers, Harry Redknapp, Sir Alex Ferguson, Walter Smith, Mick McCarthy, Gerard Houllier, Tony Pulis, Martin O'Neill, Neil Warnock, Howard Wilkinson, Kevin Keegan, Dario Gradi, Andre Villas-Boas, David Moyes, Alex McLeish, Hope Powell, Martin Jol, Glenn Hoddle, Chris Hughton, David Platt, Paul Ince, and George Graham.
My Kind of Club: The Inside Story of Neil Warnock's Cardiff City is the real-life tale of a managerial throwback and his final shot at the big time. When Neil Warnock took charge of Cardiff City in October 2016, they were a rabble - a fragmented club who lay in the Championship's relegation zone, without direction or unity. As for Warnock, he was pondering retirement, believing he could never manage at the highest level again after a series of high-profile failures. But together they were about to go on the footballing journey of a lifetime: to promotion, to the Premier League and back again, all with Warnock at the centre. This avuncular and endearing management veteran struck up a unique rapport with the Cardiff supporters by whom he'll always be affectionately remembered. This book, written by a journalist who witnessed it all first-hand, takes you inside Warnock's regime, into the heart of the transfers, the trials and tribulations of a truly unique period of Cardiff City history.
'Woodward's story is one of the most important of recent years...heartbreakingly powerful' THE TIMES 'Harrowing, brave, hugely important book' HENRY WINTER 'Haunting' SUNDAY TIMES SHORTLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL AWARD AND THE TELEGRAPH SPORTS BOOK AWARD 2020 A brave and moving account by football's first whistle blower, breaking the silence on the scandal of sexual abuse in youth clubs and junior teams. Andy Woodward was a wide eyed, hopeful footballer playing for Stockport Boys, when Barry Bennell first noticed him. Andy was 11 years old, and Bennell a youth coach with a big reputation for spotting and nurturing young footballing talent. The clubs Bennell worked for and the parents of the boys he coached, trusted and believed in him, inviting him into their lives and their homes. But behind the charismatic mask was a profoundly evil man willing to go to any lengths to satisfy his own dark appetites. Andy has been heralded a hero for speaking up about his horrific experiences at the hands of Bennell, but also at going further to expose the long hidden abuse buried within our nations' best loved sport. His story is only the tip of the iceberg. Andy's childhood was shattered by what happened to him and by the fear and silence that surrounded it. His youthful dreams of playing the game he loved were utterly broken, and years of living with the terrible secret and shame all but destroyed him. He hopes that by coming forward he might encourage others in similar situations to find the courage to speak out. A compelling and relevant story of the dark secret at the heart of football and another chapter in the ongoing expose of institutionalised corruption.
The legendary players and great managers of the HoopsFrom the thousands of matches ever played by QPR, stretching from their Victorian foundation to the Premier League era, here are 50 of the most glorious, epochal, and thrilling games of all. Expertly presented in evocative historical context, and described incident-by-incident in atmospheric detail, this book offers a terrace ticket back in time, taking in historical highlights from their first matches at Welford's Field in Kensal Rise to Loftus Road, Jim Gregory's QPR Revolution, the plastic pitch, and beyond. An irresistible cast list of club legends-Stan Bowles and Les Ferdinand, Tony Ingham, George Goddard and Rodney Marsh-springs to life in a thrilling selection of famous firsts, derby showdown successes, Southern League title clinchers, last-day dramas, European nights, Cup finals, and that unforgettable Sixties Double. This journey through the highlights of the Hoops' history is guaranteed to make any fan's heart swell with pride.
In the summer of 2012, Clarke Carlisle, after 15 years as a professional footballer, was without a contract and wondering if he still had a future in the game. With a growing media profile, thanks to his appearances on Question Time and an acclaimed documentary on racism in football, there were plenty of other opportunities, but he was determined to give it another go. Initially signing for York City before moving to Northampton Town, Carlisle was soon back in the thick of the action. As the events of the year unfolded, Carlisle looked back at his career, from his early days playing for England Under-21s, through career-threatening injuries and a battle with alcohol problems, to a late arrival at the top level with Burnley. As chairman of the PFA, Carlisle is a much-respected figure in the game; his raw honesty and penetrating insights will make readers view the game, and those who play it, in a whole new light.
Love him or hate him, Neil Warnock has produced more promotion-winning teams than any other manager and he's also known for saying exactly what's on his mind. In this comprehensive collection, author Gordon Law has compiled more than 200 of Warnock's most comical quotes and quips from the clubs he has managed. Packed with loads of punchy one-liners, wise-cracks, verbal lashings and humorous insights, this book will have football fans chuckling throughout the season. "Anyone who knows Gary Megson knows he is the biggest moaner around." "I don't think I've ever been a banker. I think that's what they were calling me..." "If corner kicks hadn't been invented, this would have been a very close game." "The sooner Tevez leaves the country the better."
