He also tells his side of the story on many issues such as his dismissal from Spurs, the England manager’s job and his tax evasion court case. One of the most controversial but also one of the most fascinating players of the modern game, Joey Barton’s autobiography is an often painfully honest and brave look back at a career which has often been sensationalised by the tabloids. A fantastic book full of hilarious anecdotes about football in the 1980’s and 1990’s, Neil ‘Razor’ Ruddock’s second book is exactly what you would expect from the former Liverpool and Southampton player.

Rhodes’ staccato prose absolutely nails that vivid mix of excitement and apprehension in travelling to football matches and being herded in claustrophobic packs before the era of all-seater stadiums. Of course, the big hitters such as Roy Keane’s book or Robbie Savage’s book are heavily publicised and rightly so as they are not only controversial but highly entertaining. Instead, each chapter contains his thoughts on either a period of his distinguished career or opinions on modern-day questions such as the Messi or Ronaldo debate. Released in 2015, The Second Half book talks about the end of his playing career, move into management and his new career as a television pundit.

When Bellos wrote this, he was Brazil correspondent for The Guardian, and like many daily journalists he has trouble structuring a book. However, Football Against The Enemy remains the only book to take a definitive sweep on world football, and explain how political and cultural issues influence the game across the globe. This is a wonderful and exciting story about family and football inspired by the original 1950s comic strip Roy of the Rovers. A compelling study of two footballing giants, doomed to be remembered differently due to the circumstances of their deaths.

And the startling chapter on East German football says more in a few pages about totalitarian football than most books on the subject. Some of the most mesmerising passages deal with the star’s status as the only free man in the vast prison camp of Stalinist Hungary in the early-’50s. He reminisces about the good old days when footballers worked hard and played hard – a simpler time when money didn’t dominate the game as it does today. If you love football and good writing – and if you don’t, you’re in the wrong list – then this will educate and entertain. Higginbotham doesn’t try to be too controversial within his book and doesn’t name names when he recounts his stories, it’s just simply an honest account of the modern-day footballer.A Chelsea man through and through, his positive opinions and reflections on every aspect of the club shine through, however this book will also appeal to fans of other clubs. Even more remarkable than winning the trust of England boss Bobby Robson and his players was persuading a major publisher to take a gamble on a genre that didn’t yet exist. Sir Alex also breaks down the psychology of management and football strategies at the top-level in a way that a general reader can easily comprehend.

One of the most eagerly awaited football books from one of the most respected pundits at the moment, Danny Higginbotham’s engrossing read hit the shelves in April 2015.Break into the nation’s favourite football series and discover the incredible stories behind the biggest and most successful footballers of all time!