Recommended Reading - Behind the Curtain
A number of people (you know who you are) disturbingly pay attention to what I read and sometimes use that knowledge when picking books for themselves. It has been pointed out to me, with some justification, that I have been rather slack in keeping that part of the site updated. Consider this post an attempt to make up for that, and also an attempt to get back on track. Here, for your delectation, is a quick recommendation of one of the books I’ve recently finished.
Behind the Curtain: Travels in Eastern European Football by Jonathan Wilson is a fascinating book covering the authors travels throughout Eastern Europe and his impressions of football in a number of the countries he visits. For each country Wilson provides a brief history of football in the country, often covering the golden era such as the 50s in Hungary or the 70s and early 80s in Poland, before dealing with how football has changed in the country since the fall of the Communism. Overall it’s a depressing picture of leagues in turmoil and corruption rife, with the occasional bright point of a national team qualifying for a major tournament (Slovenia) or actually performing well at one (Croatia). Sometimes it’s particularly depressing, for example with Hungary looking back on a golden era which they can never hope to emulate but which is also regarded as a failure to achieve it’s full potential.
Wilson was recently nominated for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year for his new book Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Football Tactics, another book I intend to read. He writes some fascinating articles on guardian.co.uk and can also be heard on a semi-regular basis on the Football Weekly podcast.