Scott Murray is a freelance journalist who writes for The Guardian, FourFourTwo, Men's Health and Shortlist, amongst others. Prior to this he was the Sports Editor of guardian.co.uk. Scott is the co-author of the football miscellany, Day of the Match.

"... Murray has compiled a guide to the game so simple and effective that any dummy can understand it." (Four Four Two, May 2010) "... offers those who are yet to climb on board the bandwagon a leg up." (ESPN.com)

• Introduction 1Part I: Kicking Off 7Chapter 1: Welcome to Planet Football 9Chapter 2: The Ball Starts Rolling: A Potted History of Football 19Chapter 3: Getting Your Boots On: The Gear You Need 31Part II: Playing the Game 45Chapter 4: Laying Down the Laws 47Chapter 5: Players, Positions and Tactics 67Chapter 6: Honing Your Skills 91Chapter 7: Keeping Fit for Football 115Chapter 8: Coaching, Managing and Leadership 129Chapter 9: Getting the Game On 141Part III: Exploring the World of Football 153Chapter 10: The World Cup 155Chapter 11: Surveying the International Scene 169Chapter 12: The Club Scene 187Chapter 13: Focusing on Famous Clubs 213Chapter 14: Women’s Football 239Part IV: The Fans’ Enclosure: Following the Game 255Chapter 15: Going to the Match 257Chapter 16: Compulsive Viewing: Football on Screen 271Chapter 17: Read All About It! 287Chapter 18: Other Football-based Pastimes 305Part V: The Part of Tens 319Chapter 19: Ten Great Players 321Chapter 20: The Ten Greatest Teams of All Time 331Chapter 21: Ten Great Matches 339Part VI: Appendixes 347Appendix A: Roll of Honour 349Appendix B: Glossary 361Index 369

Scott Murray is a freelance journalist who writes for The Guardian, FourFourTwo, Men's Health and Shortlist, amongst others. Prior to this he was the Sports Editor of guardian.co.uk. Scott is the co-author of the football miscellany, Day of the Match.

"... Murray has compiled a guide to the game so simple and effective that any dummy can understand it." (Four Four Two, May 2010) "... offers those who are yet to climb on board the bandwagon a leg up." (ESPN.com)

• Introduction 1Part I: Kicking Off 7Chapter 1: Welcome to Planet Football 9Chapter 2: The Ball Starts Rolling: A Potted History of Football 19Chapter 3: Getting Your Boots On: The Gear You Need 31Part II: Playing the Game 45Chapter 4: Laying Down the Laws 47Chapter 5: Players, Positions and Tactics 67Chapter 6: Honing Your Skills 91Chapter 7: Keeping Fit for Football 115Chapter 8: Coaching, Managing and Leadership 129Chapter 9: Getting the Game On 141Part III: Exploring the World of Football 153Chapter 10: The World Cup 155Chapter 11: Surveying the International Scene 169Chapter 12: The Club Scene 187Chapter 13: Focusing on Famous Clubs 213Chapter 14: Women’s Football 239Part IV: The Fans’ Enclosure: Following the Game 255Chapter 15: Going to the Match 257Chapter 16: Compulsive Viewing: Football on Screen 271Chapter 17: Read All About It! 287Chapter 18: Other Football-based Pastimes 305Part V: The Part of Tens 319Chapter 19: Ten Great Players 321Chapter 20: The Ten Greatest Teams of All Time 331Chapter 21: Ten Great Matches 339Part VI: Appendixes 347Appendix A: Roll of Honour 349Appendix B: Glossary 361Index 369

Scott Murray is a freelance journalist who writes for The Guardian, FourFourTwo, Men's Health and Shortlist, amongst others. Prior to this he was the Sports Editor of guardian.co.uk. Scott is the co-author of the football miscellany, Day of the Match.

"... Murray has compiled a guide to the game so simple and effective that any dummy can understand it." (Four Four Two, May 2010) "... offers those who are yet to climb on board the bandwagon a leg up." (ESPN.com)

• Introduction 1Part I: Kicking Off 7Chapter 1: Welcome to Planet Football 9Chapter 2: The Ball Starts Rolling: A Potted History of Football 19Chapter 3: Getting Your Boots On: The Gear You Need 31Part II: Playing the Game 45Chapter 4: Laying Down the Laws 47Chapter 5: Players, Positions and Tactics 67Chapter 6: Honing Your Skills 91Chapter 7: Keeping Fit for Football 115Chapter 8: Coaching, Managing and Leadership 129Chapter 9: Getting the Game On 141Part III: Exploring the World of Football 153Chapter 10: The World Cup 155Chapter 11: Surveying the International Scene 169Chapter 12: The Club Scene 187Chapter 13: Focusing on Famous Clubs 213Chapter 14: Women’s Football 239Part IV: The Fans’ Enclosure: Following the Game 255Chapter 15: Going to the Match 257Chapter 16: Compulsive Viewing: Football on Screen 271Chapter 17: Read All About It! 287Chapter 18: Other Football-based Pastimes 305Part V: The Part of Tens 319Chapter 19: Ten Great Players 321Chapter 20: The Ten Greatest Teams of All Time 331Chapter 21: Ten Great Matches 339Part VI: Appendixes 347Appendix A: Roll of Honour 349Appendix B: Glossary 361Index 369