"I jump into a sand pit for a living"
Denis Law, My life in football
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Denis Law, My life in football, London, Simon and Schuster, 2011. ISBN 978-0-85720-084-6
A lovely book which takes us through the career of Denis Law – from wee boy with glasses in Aberdeen to European Footballer of the Year. He played for Huddersfield Town, Manchester City (twice) and Torino but it is as a Manchester United player that he is most remembered, playing the 1960s with George Best and Bobby Charlton. In 1963 he was selected for the Rest of the World team to play against England in the FA centenary match. He was that good!
The book is 250 pages arranged in 16 chapters with at least one picture on every page. The text on each page is the memories that the picture evokes. The pictures tell the story of his life and career.
Alex Ferguson, admitting that Denis was his hero, writes: “He had astonishing physical courage, unbelievably sharp reactions and all the talent in the world”.
Playing for Scotland was clearing extremely important to him. He writes: “This was a time when Scotland had an abundance of terrific players to call on, an era sadly long past”. I was reminded how important the annual England v Scotland games were – an event which has now passed into history.
The book is not superficial and bland. Law is not slow in expressing his opinions. After Manchester United’s European Cup win in 1968, Denis feels that a great opportunity was missed: “I think one or two players, without mentioning any names, should have been replaced. Many of us were still in our prime, and if the changes had been made, I believe we could have been successful for a few more years”.
The brilliant photos make it an excellent coffee table book. The text makes it much more than that. It is an excellent souvenir of a great era of football.