Squeaky Bum Time


Book Description

Sir Alex Ferguson, who retired in May 2013 as manager of Manchester United is the most success manager English football has ever seen. He was simultaneously the most admired and feared manager in British football. During almost forty years in the dugout, and over half a century in the professional game, he’s torn up the record books, amassed a treasure trove of silverware, and unleashed the hairdryer – as well as the odd football boot – on countless players, rival managers, referees and journalists. But amid the sound, the fury and the mind-games lurks one of sport’s greatest wits. So here we present Sir Alex Ferguson: uncompromising, unrivalled and uncut. On Arsène Wenger: ‘They say he’s an intelligent man, right? Speaks five languages! I’ve got a fifteen-year-old boy from the Ivory Coast who speaks five languages.’ On Dennis Wise: ‘He could start a row in an empty house.' On referees: ‘Can anyone tell me why they give referees a watch? It’s certainly not for keeping the time.’ On his humble beginnings: ‘People say mine was a poor upbringing. I don't know what they mean. It was tough, but it wasn't bloody poor. We maybe didn't have a TV. We didn't have a car. We didn't even have a phone. But I thought I had everything, and I did: I had a football.’ After the winning the European Cup in 1999: ‘I can’t believe it. I can’t believe it. Football, eh? Bloody hell.’




This Is the One


Book Description

This is the One is a fascinating insight into the mindset and winning temperament of the recently retired Sir Alex Ferguson, the most success manager in English football. When This Is The One was first published in 2007 it was hailed by Michael Crick as 'one of the all-time Manchester United classics' and featured by The Times in their quest to find the 'Best Ever 50 Sports Books'. Written over the course of two eventful and controversial seasons, it offers a unique portrait of Sir Alex Ferguson from Daniel Taylor’s position behind the scenes as a football writer covering Manchester United for the Guardian. During the 2005-06 season, Taylor saw Ferguson at one of the lowest ebbs of his quarter of a century in charge, with a failing team, explosive fallouts with Roy Keane and Ruud van Nistelrooy, a disenchanted fan-base and speculation that he might be forced out of the job. The season that followed demonstrated why Ferguson deserves to be seen as the greatest manager the modern game has produced, with Manchester United deposing Chelsea as Premier League champions and eventually seeing off José Mourinho. Ferguson would later call it the 'greatest achievement' of his time at England’s biggest football club. This Is The One is the close-up, warts-and-all account of what happened during those two helterskelter seasons – the excruciating lows and the exhilarating highs. It is also a fascinating exploration of the many different facets of Ferguson himself, from his infamous 'hairdryer' treatment to the softer, more humane side of the most successful manager in the business.




English Idioms and Phrases Dictionary


Book Description

Idioms are expressions that cannot be understood from their individual words alone, and the English language is full of them—and so is this dictionary: 4,800+ English idioms and phrases with example sentences included for you so as to understand them all. This is the essential idioms dictionary if you want to talk like a native speaker—or just find out more about the colorful phrases you hear and say every day.




Vocabulary 2.0


Book Description

Are you flowing with the word current? How do you react when you come across a new word? It sounds familiar but the affix it carries unsettles you. It has taken a new form, thanks to the compound that has been glued to it. You feel you know the meaning of the word, but still unsure to use it yourself, you badly want to double-check its origin, meaning and usage. Some words you feel are extremely informal and cannot be used unless your dictionary approves of it. Sharing the enthusiasm and curiosity with innumerable word mongers, this book takes a peek into words that have made their way to existence. Not mere existence, but they thrive in the internet and media before by popular academic consensus, they enter the red carpet of dictionaries. Whether you are in the pursuit to increase your wordbank or you are the kind who likes to flaunt around ‘cool’ words or a novice to the world of internet lingo or an expert who looks into how words metamorphose for survival, this book is definitely for you!




Do You Speak Football?


Book Description

'Sparky and very funny... At last, the definitive guide to football phraseology across the world...' Paul Hayward, five-time Sports Journalists' Association Writer of the Year A new edition of a fascinating round-the-world exploration of the weird and wonderful language of football, with new entertaining entries and a foreword by renowned Dutch midfielder (and polyglot) Clarence Seedorf. To speak football is to speak a language of a thousand tongues... In this new and revised global glossary of football words and phrases, discover the rich, quirky and joyously creative language used by fans, commentators and players across the world. From placing a shot 'where the owl sleeps' in Brazil, to what it means to use your 'chocolate leg' in the Netherlands, via 'Anglican' – a phrase adopted by Czechs to describe a disputed goal – and the now ubiquitous 'it's coming home', this comprehensively researched book entertains and informs in equal measure. Discover why a 'café crème' is more than a classic bistro order, what it means when an Indian coach uses his 'brain weapon' and why Dundee United supporters should keep their heads down in Nigeria. With over 750 terms from 89 countries (including 29 ways to describe a nutmeg), this is the definitive guide to the global language of football.




Jumping Sharks and Dropping Mics


Book Description

Gareth Carrol presents a collection of "modern idioms", which have become a part of our vocabulary in the past 50 years or so. In most cases, idioms such as "raining cats and dogs", that colour our everyday communication, are deeply rooted in culture and history. However, just like words, new idioms emerge in language, and many have entered our vocabulary through, TV, movies and the internet. These modern idioms can be dated very precisely. Jumping Sharks and Dropping Mics finds the origins of these idioms, and charts their development.




The Wit and Wisdom of Sir Alex Ferguson


Book Description

When Sir Alex Ferguson announced his retirement as manager of Manchester United in 2013 he called time on the most successful career in football history. During his twenty-seven years at the helm of the world's most famous club, he has shown himself to be a paragon of leadership, an incomparable man-manager and an unparalleled wielder of the notorious hairdryer. Commentating on the game, its characters and its components, Sir Alex is the complete football philosopher. From dealing with narcissistic footballers to demolishing the overinflated egos of opposition managers, this is The Wit and Wisdom of Sir Alex Ferguson.




There and Back Again


Book Description

MAGGIE: In 2019 we gave up the constraints of a frequently frantic existence to live and travel in a campervan for a year; to be in the flow of life; trusting the great mystery of the universe to guide us. We got far more than we expected. The truth is that the truth is stranger than fiction. PETE: On our adventures we encountered sea turtles on a remote island; a mystical prophet woman in an Aborigine rainforest; were bitten by a rare spider; visited most of the Lord of the Rings film locations with uncanny ramifications; collected Maori tea; encountered mysterious Broch energies, and many more weird and wonderful experiences This is: HISstory and HERstory Sit back and come with us on an adventure.




Jeffanory


Book Description

Are you sitting comfortably? Then Jeff will begin ... The universally-loved, award-winning host of Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday and Channel 4's Countdown, and author of the bestselling Jelleyman's Thrown a Wobbly, returns with a Jackanory-style, football-flavoured narrative which gathers together the funniest, weirdest, most tragic, most heart-warming, under-the-radar stories of the football season. The book is stuffed to the gunnels with behind-the-scenes revelations, opinions and personal anecdotes from Jeff, and has a strong leaning towards the absurdities of both the highest levels and the grass-roots of the game. From the Macclesfield goalkeeper booked for using a golf tee to take his goal kicks, to the unintelligible ranting and raving of South American dictator chairmen. Let Jeff be your trusted guide through the madness of the football season, and let Jeffanory supply you with a veritable treasure trove of great anecdotes to take to the pub.




Football FAQ


Book Description

Football FAQ is a fast, furious, and opinionated guide to the world's most popular game, an all-encompassing history that introduces readers to the biggest clubs, the greatest games, the finest players, and the fiercest rivalries. From Sunderland to Seattle, from Berlin to Buenos Aires, Football FAQ delves into every aspect of the sport, tracing its development from a victorious Anglo-Saxon army kicking the heads of their fallen enemies around a field, to the multibillion-dollar industry of today, and every stop in between. Record breakers and giant killers alike file through the pages, illustrating the beautiful game as it is played at every level, from the World Cup Final to the village green, with fully updated commentary on all the world's major competitions, including the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.