The Anatomy of England: A History in Ten Matches

That in itself is great, and when the book sticks to this concept it's a compelling read. Wilson attempts to explain throughout just why and how we are so different from so many of our European neighbours, let alone the South Americans, and why we have traditionally been so slow to adapt to change.

As part of this, he also examines some of the nation's ongoing rivalries particularly with Argentina , some of the more influential figures in the team's history and the negative influence they may have had I was pleased to find that Wilson' hatred of Charles Reep and his refusal to ignore Alf Ramsey's multitude of flaws carried over from his last book , and the cult of personality that built up around certain figures, Paul Gascoigne especially, and why it happened.

The idea of focusing just on these ten matches holds it back a little, though. Too much of the book is given over to details of what happened during the games for my liking - if it came with a DVD where you could watch the games yourself, or even a website with clips uploaded, it wouldn't be so bad, but there's only so often you can read about an English defender losing the man he was marking before you get a little bored and wonder what this really tells us about England's team and its history.

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The book is meticulously researched, admittedly, and I feel the newspaper articles reacting to the games are illuminating the national team's relationship with the media is examined throughout, and rightly so , but I think that the quotes and clippings could have been incorporated into a more free-flowing structure. Still, that's a relatively minor criticism, because Wilson still makes his point well, with more than enough justification. Maybe the frustration comes from knowing that there's a lack of quality, analytical books on the England team around; when somebody comes so close to writing a book good enough to render all others irrelevant, the areas where they fall short stand out that much more.

It's to Wilson's eternal credit that he comes so close though - this paints a full and vivid picture of England's national character and the way it understands and appreciates football, and how this has underpinned and contributed to all its failures and successes.

It's a book that's almost reminiscent of those essay-writing classes you're made to take in college, in that it knows what point it wants to make, explains what the point is, and then makes it in a classic essay etructure although it's obviously more complicated and delicate than that. It doesn't have the same number of eye-opening revelations or fascinating anecdotes that Inverting the Pyramid does, not does it flow quite as well, but it's a worthy follow-up to the greatest football book ever written all the same.

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Apr 06, James rated it really liked it Shelves: Loved reading about the build up to each match possibly more than the match itself. Was pleased with how it focused on matches other than the most famous, or the best wins. I did find the early stages heavy reading as I did not know the protagonists, but the book was written in a way that I was always intrigued with the next piece. Very interesting how attitudes of the public never change.

Book Review: Jonathan Wilson's The Anatomy of England - a History in Ten Maches

Feb 22, Stuart rated it really liked it. A history of the English national side, focusing on ten matches, only 2 of which I can remember Holland 96, Croatia I think Wilson is usually very good at striking a balance between the zonal marking type stuff that can get a bit dry but is worth knowing, and the more typical narrative.

He treads that line very well again here. The focus of each chapter is one of the ten games, but he does a nice job of linking them together. Paul Wakefield rated it it was amazing Dec 25, Stockfish rated it it was amazing Mar 17, Haytham rated it it was amazing Oct 17, Ian Stenhouse rated it liked it Nov 01, Nick rated it really liked it Oct 06, Tafari rated it liked it Nov 16, Mark Critchley rated it liked it May 08, Henry Kurniadi rated it really liked it Apr 03, Chris rated it really liked it Jul 01, Leonard Durac rated it it was amazing Nov 11, Elliot rated it liked it Apr 08, Lee rated it liked it Jul 02, Mike Spendlove rated it it was amazing Mar 24, Aiden Lee rated it it was amazing Jul 08, Hashim Alsughayer rated it it was amazing Jan 09, Middlethought rated it it was amazing Aug 06, Jm rated it really liked it Jun 24, El Hugh rated it really liked it Aug 04, Allen Miles rated it really liked it Aug 11, Sam Gregory rated it liked it Dec 02, Jason Murray rated it really liked it Jun 08, David Crow rated it really liked it May 14, Feb 27, Greg D'Avis rated it really liked it Shelves: Anyone who wants to write about sports should read Wilson's oeuvre.

He does it better than anyone. A History in Ten Matches.

More books by Jonathan Wilson

Buy The Anatomy of England: A History in Ten Matches UK ed. by Jonathan Wilson (ISBN: ) from Amazon's Book Store. Everyday low prices . The Anatomy of England: A History in Ten Matches [Jonathan Wilson] on Amazon .com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Having invented the game.

Angels With Dirty Faces: The Footballing History of Argentina. The Anatomy of Liverpool: The History of Football Tactics.

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