It’s been a very long time since I last posted here — apologies for that. But I’m glad to say it’s been for a very good reason.
The success of this blog, and the support from readers like yourself and followers on social media, gave me the confidence to write a book. Many of the stories that first appeared here have since grown into full chapters, enriched by interviews with the people who lived them or those who knew them best.
Once Upon a Time in La Liga is a collection of 18 remarkable stories from Spanish football. It begins in Santander, with two Racing teammates who staged a humble yet courageous protest against the Franco regime, and ends amid the glorious carnival of Cádiz, where we meet the local icon who gave his beloved Cádiz CF their stirring and very unique anthem.
In between are tales of rebellion and resilience — from the Real Sociedad director who defied ETA to the mother who took on Galicia’s drug cartels. There’s the footballer who saved himself — and a Jewish orphan — from a concentration camp, and another who became a Nazi spy. There’s the eccentric commentator who invented tiki-taka, and the boy abandoned as a child who grew up to become a generational, if rebellious, talent.
We look at Johan Cruyff’s bizarre spell with Levante in Segunda and meet the Paraguayan winger who became a Spaghetti Western star.
Plus many more — and, oh yeah, a brilliant foreword from the amazing Sid Lowe.
I owe a huge debt of gratitude to everyone who has followed, shared or commented on this blog over the years. Without your generosity and enthusiasm, this book would never have happened.
Once Upon a Time in La Liga is now out in all the usual places. I also have a limited number of copies that I can personally sign and dedicate, at the standard retail price of £16.99 plus postage to wherever you are. If that’s of interest, just drop me a message here.
And if you’ve read it already — or do so in the future — I’d love to hear what you think. I’ll leave you with what a few other people have had to say…
