Sir Matt Busby: The Definitive Biography
Published in 2017
Book
Paperback/Softback
384 pages
978-1-78503-207-3 (ISBN)
Description
Sir Matt Busby, the legendary Manchester United manager who saw the team through unprecedented glory, as well as profound tragedy, made the club the global entity it is today.
As a League footballer before WWII, Busby remained at the forefront of the game for four decades and made an extraordinary contribution to football. Busby's emphasis on youth, local players, and a passing attack game set a template that turned just another north football club into what is now the world's greatest football brand. In this definitive biography, Patrick Barclay takes a look back at Busby's phenomenal life and career, including the incredible force of the Busby Babes in the fifties, the tragic Munich air disaster that claimed 23 lives, and Manchester United's historic victory ten years on - becoming the first English team to win the European Cup. Sir Bobby Charlton, Denis Law, Pat Crerand, Nobby Styles and Wilf McGuinness are among the host of witnesses testifying to the qualities that set Sir Matt apart.
This is the story of the greatest figure in football history and his legacy, which will live on forever.
As a League footballer before WWII, Busby remained at the forefront of the game for four decades and made an extraordinary contribution to football. Busby's emphasis on youth, local players, and a passing attack game set a template that turned just another north football club into what is now the world's greatest football brand. In this definitive biography, Patrick Barclay takes a look back at Busby's phenomenal life and career, including the incredible force of the Busby Babes in the fifties, the tragic Munich air disaster that claimed 23 lives, and Manchester United's historic victory ten years on - becoming the first English team to win the European Cup. Sir Bobby Charlton, Denis Law, Pat Crerand, Nobby Styles and Wilf McGuinness are among the host of witnesses testifying to the qualities that set Sir Matt apart.
This is the story of the greatest figure in football history and his legacy, which will live on forever.
Reviews / Votes
"Many new books with a sporting theme are tumbling onto the shelves but I doubt any will be superior to the illuminating and comprehensive biography of Sir Matt Busby by the irrepressible football sage Patrick Barclay The events and emotions are recounted with haunting eloquence by Barclay: a master of his craft." -- Jim Holden * Sunday Express * "Patrick Barclay's magnificent biography of Sir Matt Busby" -- Alan Pattullo * Scotland on Sunday * "`Sir Matt Busby's story has been told many times but, rarely with such perception and scholarly attention to detail' ` a stunning biography ... destined to become a classic of its genre'" -- Patrick Collins "`An outstanding book'" -- Phil Shaw * Backpass * "`Superbly written ... a book all football fans should read.'" -- Michael CrickMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Ebury Publishing
Product notice
Paperback (UK-trade)
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 153 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-78503-207-3 (9781785032073)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Patrick Barclay began his career in football writing with the Guardian in Manchester in the mid-1970s, a few years after Sir Matt Busby had relinquished management and joined the Manchester United board. Barclay became one of Sir Matt's many acquaintances in the newspaper world and in 1994, having moved to the Observer by way of the Independent, attended the unforgettable match against Everton at Old Trafford that swiftly followed the great man's death. In that year Barclay was voted Britain's leading sports writer.
He later worked for the Sunday Telegraph, The Times and the Evening Standard in London before retiring from regular journalism at the end of his tenth European Championship in 2016. He covered nine World Cups. Barclay has written acclaimed biographies of Sir Matt's successors Sir Alex Ferguson (Football - Bloody Hell!) and Jose Mourinho (Further Anatomy of a Winner) and is also the author of The Life and Times of Herbert Chapman.
He later worked for the Sunday Telegraph, The Times and the Evening Standard in London before retiring from regular journalism at the end of his tenth European Championship in 2016. He covered nine World Cups. Barclay has written acclaimed biographies of Sir Matt's successors Sir Alex Ferguson (Football - Bloody Hell!) and Jose Mourinho (Further Anatomy of a Winner) and is also the author of The Life and Times of Herbert Chapman.