50 Teams That Mattered - Tapa blanda

4 out of 5 stars - 'While many of the usual suspects make Hartrick's insightful rundown of those who made an indelible footprint on the game, it's the less celebrated club sides that provide most intrigue.' Four Four Two Magazine 'You can open this book anywhere, and learn something, and that's intensely joymaking. At heart, 50 Teams is an eclectic, chronological amble in extremely well-informed and pleasantly eloquent company, through the history of football, beginning with its humble amateur origins and concluding with the relentless professionalism of today.' SBNation.com 'This is a hefty beast and represents a couple of years of Hartrick's life and you can feel his heart and soul on each page. Buy it and I guarantee you will be still reciting facts to your friends and family in six months time.' theballisround.co.uk

The tapestry of football is littered with the stories of teams who have changed the game forever. From a group of friends and co-workers in Sheffield forming the first football 'club' in 1857, right up to the modern day with Spain's World Cup winner's of 2010, this book covers 50 of the most noteworthy in fascinating detail. As well as the usual suspects such as Manchester United, Inter Milan, Barcelona, Brazil and Ajax, there are also the stories of Blackburn Olympic, Corinthian FC, Eintracht Braunschweig and Enfield Town. Each chapter covers one team's moment in history and the impact they had on the game, from football's first athletes to its biggest failures, from the first team to lay claim to the title of the best in the world to the natural and beautiful evolution of the passing game, this is a book that even a reader with only a passing interest in football will enjoy. Tragedy, financial boom and bust, true greatness and some of sport's most emotional moments are all within, time to see how the beautiful game has made its way to becoming the monolith it is today.