Product Description

In an era of superstar prima donnas, Stuart Pearce's total commitment on the pitch earned him the affection of football fans everywhere, who nicknamed him Psycho. He will forever be remembered for two penalties - one missed and scored - for England, but there is so much more to him than that. This book reveals the fascinating story of one of football's greatest personalities. PSYCHO is as honest and straightforward as the man himself.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28382 in Books
• Published on: 2001-08-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 448 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review

The BBC's Barry Davies said on the commentary, "What a penalty! What a great penalty!" It was not a great penalty; it was a shite penalty but the goalkeeper had gone the wrong way.

The penalty in question was against Germany in the 1996 European Championship, and the blunt assessor of its merit was the penalty-taker--international stalwart and sometime England captain Stuart Pearce. Since 1990, when he missed a penalty that ushered in England's exit from the World Cup, Pearce and spot-kick calamity had been inextricably linked in the public's mind. England's battling left-back had buried that hoodoo in spectacularly emotional fashion against Spain in the previous round, and it's typical of this diffident, self-possessed player that one match later he was dismissing the plaudits.

Backbone of the defence and a regular in the line for the treatment table--from his days as a part-time electrician playing for non-league Wealdstone to his Indian summer in the Premiership with current club West Ham--Pearce's career has been a sustained battle to overcome the limitations of his body and blunt the more extravagant abilities of the flair players who lay siege to his goal week in, week out.

In a story of extraordinary achievement--and equally conspicuous misfortune and failure--as both player and manager, Pearce recalls the legends and also-rans he has met along the way, offering no-nonsense portraits of the likes of Brian Clough, Glenn Hoddle and Rudd Gullit, and an insider's take on the realities of the professional game. The fans who have cherished his do-or-die on pitch heroics may find Pearce's real-world motivations surprising.

Psycho is an entertaining, revealing portrait of an English sporting icon--with Pearce on his love of punk music, his short-lived career as a juvenile delinquent and tales of a hen called Chicken Kiev, as an added bonus.--Alex Hankin

Stephen Moss, Guardian
'Typically honest'

Review
'Rightly a big seller because the former England captain has had a long and varied career and has always displayed a nice line in dry humour' (David Lacey, Guardian )

'Unputdownable ... Pearce's honesty shines through' (Sarah Edworthy, Daily Telegraph )

'Typically honest' (Stephen Moss, Guardian )

Customer Reviews

Psychos honesty and devotion to football is an inspiration
I found this book to be an easy yet compelling read, which I found very hard to put down. Although Pearces personal experiences have been fairly ordinary - apart from the famous penalties - his insight on his colleagues is vey interesting. I found his view that he was the 'nearly man' of football dominated the book and surprised me. He is not the 100% hard man I had anticipated - far from it. Overall a great yet light read.

A footballer's dream read
This is certainly not just another football autobiography. The reason that this one in particular is so interesting is that the best bits (most of the book) are about when Pearce played for Wealdstone, meaning every amateur footballer can easily relate to it. Pearce must be one of the most charismatic players to have played for England and he writes with humour, wit and lucidity, making it un-put-downable. Long but well worth sticking to.

Psycho - Legend
An absolutly fantastic book giving you a view of Psycho's entire career. He really gets you emotionally involved. You will barely be able to put it down. Not only does it teach you all about Stuart Pearce himself but also thousands of other things about the sport in general.