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How to Be an Ex-Footballer
How to Be an Ex-Footballer
Dec 21, 2024 9:58 PM

Author:Peter Crouch

How to Be an Ex-Footballer

Shortlisted for the Sports Entertainment Book of the Year at the British Sports Book Awards

The funniest man in British sport - Metro

Peter Crouch is a comedy genius - Daily Mail

Often recruited before they've worn long trousers, today's footballers become superstars who earn huge amounts without ever learning much about the world beyond the training ground. Coddled by their support teams, everything is done for them. They live their lives in the glaring media spotlight, yet only really develop one life skill - how to kick a ball better. Then inevitably, when age catches up with them or injury strikes, these man-children are thrown out into the real world, utterly defenceless apart from their multi-million-pound bank accounts.

So what do these Peter Pans, whose careers end just as most people's are getting going, do with the rest of their lives? Crouch speaks from his own experience and discusses with fellow former professionals too - just how do you safely release a near seven-foot striker back into the wild?

Peter goes in search of the answer to what his second career might be and encounters stories far more bizarre than anything you'll find on the pitch. From the pleasure and pain of management to the lessons we can learn from Jamie Carragher and Joe Cole on not going to seed. From those staying in the sport - the diehard veterans, coaches, managers, owners and of course the legion of pundits, to those moving on to pastures new. Peter talks to entrepreneurs, men of the cloth, eco warriors, artists, private detectives and budding actors, as well as those who've lost their way in addiction, crime and NFTs.

When the final whistle blows, it's still all to play for.

Reviews

However overpaid and preening you might assume Premier League footballers to be, think again. They're worse, according to this amusing insider's account

—— Sunday Times Sports Book of the Year

Who knew that a footballer could be funny? ... What you realise, as you laugh out loud, is that football has been taken too seriously by too many people for too long... Most other football books wither by comparison

—— Daily Mail Sports Book of the Year

As someone who's been there, done it and got the ill-fitting T-shirt, Crouch is well placed to shed light on the bizarre world of the modern player in a funny, down-to-earth way... He made his name on the pitch ... but with this book, Crouch proves he is a good sport off it, too

—— Jade Craddick , Sun

On his way to being a national treasure... most enjoyable

—— Daily Telegraph

The funniest man in British sport

—— Metro

Peter Crouch is a comedy genius

—— Daily Mail

One of the funniest human beings on the planet

—— Romesh Ranganathan

Very funny on almost every page, wonderfully self-deprecating and very sharp on the ludicrous behaviour of the modern player

—— Sunday Times

I'm not a big book reader, I'm just not. And I've skimmed through this already and thought 'I'm gonna really, really, really, really like this. Seriously, I'm really gonna like it

—— Chris Moyles

I've never read a sports book before, but it is really funny

—— Alex Jones

Good footballers come and go but comedy genius - that's for life

—— Johnny Vaughan

I've read a good number of books by footballers, both for business and pleasure, and this is easily one of the best, mainly on the grounds that it's incredibly funny

—— Ben Machell , The Times Magazine

One of the funniest books ever

—— Shortlist

Incredibly funny

—— Jilly Cooper

Endearing and very funny

—— Choice Magazine

Full of terrific anecdotes and unexpected confessions

—— Daily Express

Sarah Pearse's The Sanatorium is a knockout. Mesmerizing, lyrical prose contrasts starkly with the dark story events in this debut thriller set at a remote luxury hotel in the Swiss Alps. Tense, claustrophobic, with a horrific connection between past and present that is utterly unpredictable - I loved this book!

—— Karen Dionne, author of THE MARSH KING'S DAUGHTER

It's hard to believe this is a debut novel, given how masterfully Sarah Pearse writes. The setting is starkly chilling, the characters are smart and vulnerable, and as you turn the pages, the slow creep of claustrophobia sets in . . . Highly recommended.

—— Sarah Pekkanen, co-author of THE WIFE BETWEEN US

A chillingly vivid thriller in a fantastic setting - you can almost feel the icy Alpine wind on your face as you turn the pages.

—— T M Logan, bestselling author of THE HOLIDAY

A tense page-turner.

—— Sunday Times Style magazine

One of the most eagerly awaited debuts of the year.

—— Sunday Express magazine

The nail-biting suspense and spooky atmosphere of Sarah Pearse's thrilling debut novel kept me reading until late in the night. I loved Sarah's masterful descriptions of the Alpine setting, the creepy history of the hotel, and the growing sense of danger as the hapless characters are cut off from the outside world by a massive storm . . . just as the realisation dawns that a deranged killer is on the loose.

—— Ann Gosslin, author of THE SHADOW BIRD and THE DOUBLE

Tense, claustrophobic and chilling in every sense of the word.

—— Tammy Cohen, author of WHEN SHE WAS BAD

Dark and suspenseful - I had shivers running down my spine as I read this chilling thriller.

—— Good Housekeeping

An addictive, creepy and twisting read. The perfect gothic story for a cold February night.

—— Stylist

An eerie, atmospheric novel that had me completely on the edge of my seat.

—— Reese Witherspoon, for Reese's Book Club

[A] menacing, creepy debut [...] There are echoes of Hitchcock and du Maurier, but Pearse has her own distinctive, emotional voice - one to be admired.

—— Daily Mail

Tense, chilling and full of surprises.

—— Sun, Pick of the Week

Locked-room mysteries a la Agatha Christie are proving to be very popular right now, and this one doesn't disappoint.

—— Prima

This atmospheric chiller has a few shocks up its sleeve.

—— Crime Monthly

A mix of whodunnit and psychological thriller with hints of horror, this fine debut [...] is smartly structured and often powerful.

—— Sunday Times

Spooky, chilling and claustrophobic.

—— Observer

This impressive debut is a twist on the classic locked-room mystery in a wonderfully eerie Gothic setting. Its sharp prose builds suspense through a series of twists that will send an Alpine chill up your spine, building to an unpredictable finale. This clever, compelling thriller deserves to be a bestseller and marks out Sarah Pearse as one to watch.

—— Sunday Express S Magazine

Want a book that's going to leave you chilled to the bone? This is it!

—— Fabulous Magazine

Sarah Pearse's chilling debut is making waves. The Sanatorium certainly has an eerie, cinematic appeal [...] With whispers of The Shining in setting and The Girl on the Train in pace.

—— Vanity Fair

I absolutely loved The Sanatorium - it gave me all the wintry thrills and chills. It was just wonderful.

—— Lucy Foley, bestselling author of THE HUNTING PARTY and THE GUEST LIST

Genuinely scary and deliciously atmospheric, and one of the best books of 2021, this international bestseller is guaranteed to give you goosebumps.

—— Woman & Home

What a page-turner! Like Agatha Christie crossed with Scandi noir, and doing with Swiss mountains what Jane Harper books do with the Australian outback. Loved it, and can't wait for the next Elin book!

—— Andrea Mara, author of ALL HER FAULT
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