How to Be an Ex-Footballer

Product Information

You get built up to be this, and you think, ‘Just take it all with a pinch of salt, because next week someone’s going to tell me how bad I am, because I’ve not scored.’” The source material is promising. How do you cope with life after one of the best jobs possible and the twin highs of competition and earning almost unfathomable amounts of money? Many footballers don't cope well at all, with almost 40% going bankrupt within five years of retirement. Time on their hands can also leave time for various addictions to creep in. Those facts are mentioned, but this book is more about the more entertaining things footballers have gone on to do, whether it's a career in art or releasing their own range of condoms. Talking about what we learn at school, the former Liverpool and Tottenham player said: “I don’t know why we’re not taught about mortgages or bank accounts, but we’re taught Pythagoras Theorem. I’ve never used that in my life, but I’d love to know these other things, life skills, if you know what I mean.” The former Liverpool and Spurs player added: “I totally understand the buzz, and when you’re in it every single day, it’s hard to get out of that.”

How to Be an Ex-Footballer - Hardcover - AbeBooks

Peter goes in search of the answer to what his second career might be and encounters stories far more bizarre than anything you'll find on the pitch. From the pleasure and pain of management to the lessons we can learn from Jamie Carragher and Joe Cole on not going to seed. From those staying in the sport - the diehard veterans, coaches, managers, owners and of course the legion of pundits, to those moving on to pastures new. Peter talks to entrepreneurs, men of the cloth, eco warriors, artists, private detectives and budding actors, as well as those who've lost their way in addiction, crime and NFTs. For the unprepared it can be daunting prospect hanging up your boots. It is sobering to learn that ‘around 40% of ex players go bankrupt in the first 5 years after quitting, a 3rd get divorced.’ Similar to his previous two books, and in his typical comedic charm style, Peter provides anecdotes from his playing days to shed light on some of the characters he has encountered behind the scenes of some of English football’s biggest clubs. So walk with me into the dressing-room, to find out which players refuse to touch a football before a game, to discover why a load of millionaires never have any shower-gel, and to hear what Cristiano Ronaldo says when he looks at himself in the mirror. Who knew that a footballer could be funny? ... What you realise, as you laugh out loud, is that football has been taken too seriously by too many people for too long... Most other football books wither by comparison * Daily Mail Sports Book of the Year *

Football star turned bestselling author Peter Crouch joined The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky to talk about his fourth book, How to be an Ex Footballer. It’s still good, but gets confusing when he’s reciting a conversation (in the first person) with another ex-pro, whilst referring to himself as Peter Crouch. It gets a bit messy.

How to Be an Ex-Footballer - Penguin Books UK How to Be an Ex-Footballer - Penguin Books UK

Otherwise, it’s a really interesting look into a number of other peoples post-football careers and pretty touching at times too.Speaking about one ex-pro who changed paths, Peter recalled a trip to the cinema with his wife, Abbey Clancy. “We were watching the film The Theory of Everything. Amazing film, but I just wasn’t expecting a Chelsea centre-half to be in it! I was sitting with Abbey and it was a great film and then the doctor came in, and I said: ‘That’s Frank Leboeuf!’ And she said: ‘I don’t care.’ And I said, ‘No, seriously, that is definitely Frank Leboeuf!’ And she said, again, ‘I don’t care in the slightest.’ I've read a good number of books by footballers, both for business and pleasure, and this is easily one of the best, mainly on the grounds that it's incredibly funny -- Ben Machell * The Times Magazine * This was a decent book and certainly there were some touching moments as well as laugh out loud moments. In his new book, which was released yesterday (13th October), the former England striker goes in search of what footballers do when they leave the game and find themselves thrown into the real world. Peter told Chris: “This is just about me being in football for 20 years. Every single day, that’s all I’ve ever known, and then… bang, you’re just thrust into something else. And lots of players that I interviewed for this book have gone into weird and wonderful things. Not just punditry or coaching or management. There’s a varied array of jobs that people have gone into.” However overpaid and preening you might assume Premier League footballers to be, think again. They're worse, according to this amusing insider's account Sunday Times Sports Book of the Year