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The Accidental Footballer

 13.00

by Pat Nevin

‘A heroic outsider – a pleasure to read.’ – The Guardian

‘A fulsome evocation of football before the Premier League.’ – The i

‘Honest, raw, revealing and very funny. How to live a life and career to the full. Insightful book about the most successful outsider inside football ever…’ – Henry Winter, Chief Football Writer, The Times

The Accidental Footballer: A Memoir

Pat Nevin never wanted to be a professional footballer.

His future was clear, he’d become a teacher like his brothers. There was only one problem with this – Pat was far too good to avoid attention.

Raised in Glasgow’s East End, Pat loved the game, playing for hours and obsessively following Celtic. But as he grew up, he also loved Joy Division, wearing his Indie ‘gloom boom’ coat and going on marches – hardly typical footballer behaviour!

Placed firmly in the 80s and 90s, before the advent of the Premier League, and often with racism and violence present, Pat Nevin writes with honesty, insight and wry humour. We are transported vividly to Chelsea and Everton, and colourfully diverted by John Peel, Morrissey and nights out at the Hacienda.

The Accidental Footballer is a different kind of football memoir. Capturing all the joys of professional football as well as its contradictions and conflicts, it’s about being defined by your actions, not your job, and is the perfect reminder of how life can throw you the most extraordinary surprises, when you least expect it.

About the Author

Starting at Celtic Boys Club, over a 20-year career, Pat Nevin has played for Clyde, Chelsea, Everton, Tranmere Rovers, Kilmarnock and Motherwell. He has won 28 caps for Scotland across a ten-year international career. Nevin was chair of the Professional Footballer’s Association and since retiring as a player has worked as chief executive of Motherwell. He is now a football writer and broadcaster for Radio 5 Live, BBC World Service, Chelsea TV, BBC Sport website, and Ireland’s Newstalk Radio. A voracious vinyl collector, he still loves Indie music and the Arts, and can be often caught DJing at clubs or festivals around the UK.

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Weight 0.3 kg
Dimensions 12.8 × 3.2 × 19.7 cm