- Paperback: 476 pages
- Publisher: Jonathan Cape Ltd; New edition edition (5 Nov 1998)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0224059548
- ISBN-13: 978-0224059541
- Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 13 x 3.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 411,630 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
Once you could ignore football, avoid the back pages, turn the telly off, leave the pub. Now that's not possible because on 4th July in Turin's Stadio degli Alpi, Gazza cried, England lost and football changed forever. Pete Davies witnessed all of this at first hand. The players, the hooligans, the agents, the journalists, the fans - the full cast of football's rowdy circus. For nine months he had access to the England squad and their manager, Bobby Robson, talking to them freely about their hopes, their fears, their methods and their lives. So this is the real story, the unedited version. All Played Out - the first and last book to give the inside story of the greatest show on earth.
Inside This Book
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I first read this book not long after it was first published and have re-read it several times. On each occasion I have been amazed by the quality of Pete Davies' writing. The excellent narrative and analysis is maintained throughout, offering an 'insiders' guide to what really happened with England at the 1990 World Cup. Davies starts by recounting the deciding qualifier in Poland and the warm-up matches, which highlight the pressure felt by Bobby Robson and the constant media scrutiny of the England team and entourage. The book then takes up the story of what it was like to follow England round Italy for a month. Davies interviews all the key figures and mingles with fans of various nationalities to discuss their experiences.
The essential strength of the book is the honesty and trust Davies received from the England manager and players. They were aware that Davies was not seeking to grab sensationalist headlines for the 'brat-pack' gutter-press back home and also that the book would not be appearing until well after the end of the tournament. This gave the major protoganists in England's tournament the chance to speak openly with the author and the results are fascinating, particularly the interview with John Barnes.
Overall, the book is a terrific reminder of England's most successful overseas World Cup. A more literary and authoritative type of football book than something like Fever Pitch, this is a must for any football lovers bookshelf.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Reading this book almost ten years after the event took place, there's an added poignancy to the story of Paul Gascoigne. Throughout the book, I found myself comparing the then-youthful, cheeky, heart-warming and incredibly talented lad to the headline-hunted, alcohol-ravaged, manic depressive the football world has to come to pity and fear. In retrospect, his destiny was not inevitable. Scenes such as his running off from an interview to play football with children only add to the sense of early promise mishandled and misspent. Many stories remain to be written about Gazza, but this one truly captures the one unmistakable truth: no one seems to have loved the game more than Gazza.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Davies is funny, perceptive and poignant as he describes the extraordinary adventure that was the 1990 World Cup in Italy. It might well be the best book on football ever written.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Masterpiece
Quite simply, this is the best book I have ever read. Never before have I been so touched by the emotion and poignancy of sport. Truly incredible.
Published 11 months ago by Tommy Curran
It wouldn't happen now...
This is the football book that couldn't be written now. Pete Davies enjoyed unparalleled access to the England players, staff and management during Italia 90 in order to write this... Read more
Published 22 months ago by John Moseley
one of the best football books you could read
this is a tremendous book. read it an imagine if a journalist would be given the same level of access to the FA, england boss and players these days! Read more
Published on 19 April 2009 by Macca
The real godfather of football literature
Everybody knows that Nick Hornby invented football literature in 1992. Because before then the likes of Eamon Dunphy, Hunter Davies and, most importantly, Pete Davies had obviously... Read more
Published on 12 Sep 2008 by R. Gardham
Superb and eerily prescient
This isn't just the best football book ever written, it's one of the best non-fiction books ever written. Read more
Published on 1 April 2008 by Mr. B. L. Richardson
THE BEST FOOTBALL BOOK
I'M NOT NORMALY A BOOK READER AS I GET BORED HALF WAY THROUGH MOST BOOKS ,BUT THIS BOOK IS ONE OF THOSE ONES YOU CAN'T PUT DOWN. Read more
Published on 4 Sep 2007 by N. EDMONDS
"The best, the best..."
In terms of subject matter, All Played Out was written long ago and is about England's World Cup journey in 1990. Read more
Published on 16 Aug 2006 by Johnny Centreback
THE best football book ever!
If you were over 7 years old in 1990 you will remember the last truely great World Cup. 2 points for a win, tackles from behind and, ohhhh, the haircuts! Read more
Published on 20 Dec 2005 by Fraser the Frank Fish
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