Books

Reading matter for footie fans

Highly investigative

Football Confidential (BBC Books, £6.99)

Football Confidential, a spin-off from Radio 5's On The Line, unravels the bureaucracy and startling facts that the FA do not want to be made public about Britain's best loved game. Through 16 chapters the authors provide an in-depth insight into the game. Expert analysis reveals the extent to which grassroots football is in disarray, with lawsuits being filed against leagues due to the extent of the injuries being picked up on unplayable park pitches. The book uncovers in one startling chapter the small but dangerous band of hooligans moving into the non-league abyss, determined to wreak havoc on the unsuspecting. Chapter 5 provides the reader with enlightenment into the policing of a major football tournament and illustrates the amount of preparatory work that goes into making a tournament trouble-free. This chapter is made all the more compelling by the way it is written, as it carries extracts from the policemen on the frontline and the plain-clothes spotters whose task is to identify the trouble-makers. However, it is not all doom and gloom as Football Confidential explores the curious link between Alzheimer's and football and how the game is being used in the fight against crime. Football Confidential is a bargain at £6.99 and does an excellent job in providing an insight into what goes on behind the scenes of Britain's national game. It proves that there is more to football than just 90 minutes every Saturday.

John Child