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The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw
The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw
Oct 5, 2024 3:25 AM

Author:Paul McGuigan,Paolo Hewitt

The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw

Robin Friday was an exceptional footballer who should have played for England. He never did. Robin Friday was a brilliant player who could have played in the top flight. He never did.

Why? Because Robin Friday was a man who would not bow down to anyone, who refused to take life seriously and who lived every moment as if it were his last. For anyone lucky enough to have seen him play, Robin Friday was up there with the greats. Take it from one who knows: 'There is no doubt in my mind that if someone had taken a chance on him he would have set the top division alight,' says the legendary Stan Bowles. 'He could have gone right to the top, but he just went off the rails a bit.' Loved and admired by everyone who saw him, Friday also had a dark side: troubled, strong-minded, reckless, he would end up destroying himself. Tragically, after years of alcohol and drug abuse, he died at the age of 38 without ever having fulfilled his potential.

The Greatest Footballer You Never Saw provides the first full appreciation of a man too long forgotten by the world of football, and, along with a forthcoming film based on Friday's life, with a screenplay by co-author Paolo Hewitt, this book will surely give him the cult status he deserves.

Reviews

A story of shattered dreams, hedonism and a short life lived very much to the full . . . this is one of the essential modern football books

—— FourFourTwo

It has a magical atmosphere and is easily the most compulsive soccer biography you'll ever read

—— Melody Maker

A terrific read

—— Daily Mail

Poignant, funny and tragic

—— The Scotsman

Myler tells each story with vigour and diligence

—— Daily Telegraph

Despite not being a particular fan of the sport of boxing, Kevin Mitchell's compelling knowledge of the personalities involved in the fight game in the 20th century, coupled with a staccato writing style got my attention quickly and kept it to the very last page... Overall a really high recommendation as one of my favourite sports books for some time'

—— thebookbag.com

'It's an enthralling, eye-opening read, even for those with no interest in the sport'

—— Timeout.com

Lurid and fascinating tale of the powers behind the scenes in New York, then capital of the boxing world.

—— The Review

A colourful romp through Georgian London and its scoundrels and chancers

—— Daily Mail

Genuinely funny

—— Richard Williams

Made me chuckle

—— Mark Cavendish

Hilarious behind-the-scenes anecdotes

—— Glasgow Herald

An irreverent and funny take on cycling’s biggest race from a man who has seen it up close every year since 2003

—— Lesley McDowell , Glasgow Herald

I found his behind-the-scenes look at the famous race both highly amusing and telling in equal measure

—— Johann Lamont , Scotland on Sunday

Cycling at its best is fiercely cosmopolitan and internationalist, Boulting provides the kind of commentary the sport deserves, and will need if it is to fulfil its undoubted potential to reach out and grow

—— Mark Perryman , The Huffington Post
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