Showing posts with label bookreview. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bookreview. Show all posts
Saturday, September 02, 2017
Ring Of Fire: Liverpool FC
This was a brilliant read but somehow I never got to posting. The book is actually the second in a series by the writer, where the first series captured the end of a 2 decade dominance of LFC in the 1990s.
Now covering the first decade of the 21st century, the book interviews huge personalities like Carragher, Houllier, Hamann, even so-called traitors such as Owen, Torres, and lesser known players like Riera.
What i really like is how it helps you understand the players' minds, and also gives a peek of what the dressing room looks like. You get to understand the intensity behind Carragher, how he makes up for his lack of talent with sheer grit and determination, and how this insane passion is also probably what is preventing him from going to management, as the emotions will probably drive him crazy.
You get to hear Owen/Torres' side of the story, of how desperate Owen was to get back to Anfield, or how Torres was seemingly played out by Daglish.
You get to appreciate legends such as Steve Heighway, not only a successful player, but also responsible for bringing through homegrown talents of Fowler, Carragher, Gerrard and Owen.
Finally you also get to appreciate the corporate side of things, to get an understanding of why then-Chairman Rick Parry sold the club to the American pair of Tom Hicks and George Gillett.
While the following decade has only brought one trophy so far, I hope there are more to come, and regardless of what happens, it will still make for fascinating reading. Hopefully a third book will come out eventually!
Sunday, April 23, 2017
Gerrard

A most fascinating read about one of Liverpool’s very own born and bred talent, following stevie G from his schooling days until his second champions League final.
Gerrard recounts all the interesting details in his career, from how his toe almost got amputated due to a rusty fork, to the always under-achieving England squad, and not forgetting the treble under Gerard Houllier and the miracle in Istanbul under Rafa.
What comes across is his passion for the game, in how he always wants to take games by the cuff, up till how his blood boils whenever he fails to make it into the starting XI. Easy to see how he managed to get himself sent off in the 1st minute of being subbed on against Real Madrid.
Gerrard's respect for other players is also apparent, but he also doesn't refrain from criticizing others, such as El Hadji Diouf, whom he claims let the team down in the season just after Liverpool had managed to reach the dizzy heights of second place.
While the book ends on a positive note with new American owners promising new investments and a new stadium, unfortunately we all know that it nearly ruined Liverpool, and Gerrard was left to rue his decision to turn down Chelsea. Second in the Premier League was as far as he could go under 3 different managers, and Liverpool has been in the wilderness ever since.
Still, the book offers great insight into his career and family, but unfortunately there was just no happy ending in his career as a player.
