When looking for the best football books, we'd actually steer clear of ones written by footballers.

It’s a generalisation, of course, but just look at the books they write. Wayne Rooney’s My Story So Far, released when he was just 20 years old, was unsurprisingly bereft of insight or interest. Ashley Cole famously made no friends when he wrote in My Defence about how he’d nearly crashed his car after being offered a paltry £55,000 a week by Arsenal.

And it’s not just the players. Taylor Parkes’ evisceration of Lovejoy on Football (written by Tim the TV presenter, not John the fictional antiques dealer) is a more startling literary accomplishment than the book could ever hope to be.

Get more eloquent people to write about football, though, and there are countless fascinating stories to tell. So forget the cash-in autobiographies and unwanted opinions, we’ve compiled a list of the best football books that will appeal to all fans of the beautiful game, no matter which team you support.

Upvote any you'd read and enjoyed, or have on your must-read list.



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Once you have put down these books, these are the best football boots