Sometimes I ask myself if keeping on playing padel is worth it, if all the sacrifices I have made make sense: separating from my parents, my sister, my grandparents, leaving Argentina, competing every two weeks in a different pace, losing a lot of moments (good and bad) of my wife and three children… Today I have no doubt: absolutely yes. Padel is my way of life and my children's too. If they ask me the same question when the end of my career is near the answer will probably be no, because...

Barcelona are the greatest football team in the world, the greatest for a generation and possibly the greatest of all time.This is the untold inside story of how the best and most loved football team in the world came to redefine how the game is played.We start with the 2011 Champions League final at Wembley, the game that ended the debate about whether Barcelona were the greatest team in the world and began a new one: are they the best ever?We are inside the winning dressing room and insi...

'A must-read for anyone who's doubted Pep's influence, from handing the power to Barça's homegrown crop to never betraying his childhood romanticism of the game' FOURFOURTWO'Balague's insightful biography presents Guardiola as a relentless perfectionist - a man obsessed with the minutiae of football, often unable to switch off' SPORTThis fully updated edition of the international bestseller includes Manchester City's incredible 2017...

El Pibe de Oro. The Golden Boy. Diego Maradona's unwaning shadow looms large over world football. In 2007 the brilliant Argentine chose Lionel Messi as his successor to the famous No. 10 shirt. But you can never be sure that potential will be fulfilled.Three years later, Messi – El Pulga, the Flea – is a European Champion, Olympic Gold Medallist, the most naturally gifted footballer on the planet and a hero to millions of fans across the globe. Champions, reporters and coaches blund...

Lionel Messi is one of the greatest soccer players of his generation. In fact, although still so young, he has been dubbed by many fellow professionals as "The Best Player to Ever Grace the Sport." Most fans are aware of his successes on the field, but in order to truly understand Lionel Messi, you must first understand where he came from. Lionel Messi: An Unauthorized Biography explores Messi's upbringing and details his breakthrough onto the world stage, all the way through his ...

Pelé—legendary footballer and humanitarian—explores the sport’s recent history and shares his most inspiring experiences, heartwarming stories, and hard-won wisdom.“I know in my heart that soccer was good to me, and great to the world....I saw, time and again, how the sport improved countless millions of lives, both on and off the field. For me, at least, that’s why soccer matters.”The world’s most popular sport goes by many names—soccer, football,...

The legendary footballer shares his inspirational life story."For an American soccer kid growing up in the '80s, Pelé transcended the game. From the moment I first saw him standing next to Sylvester Stallone and Michael Caine in Victory , there was only one star for me on that screen. Pelé's exciting memoir revives all the groundbreaking moments of the best there ever was." —Alexi Lalas, journalist, retired profes...

For soccer enthusiasts and sports fans in general, an in-depth look at the life of the beautiful game’s greatest star, Argentine footballer Lionel Messi.Whether you call it soccer, football, fútbol, or the “beautiful game," it is the most popular sport in the world, and Argentine footballer Lionel Messi stands as one of its finest players—not only of his time, but of all time. Admired around the globe for his athleticism, skill, and fierce competitiveness, Messi has, at th...

The definitive award-winning biography of Cristiano Ronaldo - fully updated to include the 2022 World Cup, Ronaldo's explosive exit from Manchester United and his record-breaking transfer to Al-NassrAs the Qatar World Cup opened to worldwide jubilation, Cristiano Ronaldo's second spell at Manchester United reached an abrupt conclusion. It was not to be the fairy tale ending to a glittering career. Instead, over the two seasons, it had snowballed into a toxic stando...

Andrés Iniesta is the Barcelona and Spain legend, rated by the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Paul Scholes as one of the greatest footballers of all time. This is the thinking fan's footballer with a thinking fan's football book.Andrés Iniesta was twelve years old when scouts invited him into Barcelona's famous La Masia academy. Shortly after he joined the club, Barca legend Pep Guardiola remarked of him, 'This lad is going to re...

A brand new biography of Liverpool and Premier League superstar, Fernando Torres, based on one-of-a-kind insider interviews with those closest to him ... and the player himself. This is the story of a kid who wanted to be a rock star but who turned into a football god, the idolised and adopted son of 42 million Liverpool fans across the world. From his birth in Madrid through to his winning goal in Euro 2008 and beyond, the book goes ehind the scenes of Torres' life and career to examine w...

This is the story of the greatest achievement in the history of international football.After decades of failure, Spain won the European Championship in 2008 andthen the World Cup in 2010. At Euro 2012 they became the first team to win three consecutive tournament titles.Graham Hunter was inside the dressing room as the players celebrated after the finals of the World Cup and Euro 2012. His access-all-areas pass at all three tournaments has resulted in remarkable eyewitness accounts and new...