Natural: The Jimmy Greaves Story

by David Tossell

Jimmy Greaves remains the greatest goalscorer in English football history, with a record of 357 top-flight goals that may never be surpassed. Teenage sensation at Chelsea and England debutant at 19, he became - after an unhappy spell at AC Milan - a legend at Tottenham Hotspur. But despite 44 international goals in 57 games, his England career was defined by the heartbreak of missing the 1966 World Cup Final. A shock move to West Ham brought an acrimonious end to his Spurs days and, a year later, he retired from the game, aged only 31. What followed was a desperate descent into alcoholism, followed by a remarkable battle to win back his family and self-esteem. Reinventing himself as a popular TV personality, his instincts in front of camera proved as natural as those in front of goal. Having taken his final drink in 1978, Greaves has remained sober from that day. Drawing on interviews with family, friends, colleagues and opponents, The Jimmy Greaves Story is the definitive biography of one of England's most loved footballers.

361 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 1, 2019

About the author

David Tossell has been a sports journalist for four decades. Long-time head of European Public Affairs for the NFL (National Football League) and former Executive Sports Editor of the Today newspaper, he is the author of 17 sports books. He has been short-listed seven times in the British Sports Book Awards - for Bertie Mee (Best Biography, 2006); Grovel! (Best Cricket Book, 2008); Nobody Beats Us (Best Rugby Book, 2010); Tony Greig (Best Cricket Book, 2012); The Great English Final (Best Football Book, 2014), Natural: The Jimmy Greaves Story (Best Biography and Best Football Book, 2020). He has also been short-listed twice for MCC/Cricket Society Book of the Year.
He has written books on football, cricket, rugby and American football.

Reviews

[Christopher Day · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent biography of a genius. A wonderful balance between the good and the bad times of the life of a man who came back from the brink, and blamed nobody but himself for his problems in life.

Something that the book could have emphasised more is that he set records 4o years ago that have only recently been surpassed - yet he played half of each season playing on mud and sand, with a ball that was like a lump of lead when wet, and with defenders allowed to kick and hack at him with impunity compared to today's game. How many goals would he have scored in today's playing conditions?

[Alan Davies · Rating 3 out of 5]

Straightforward story of a legend

The main thing for me was his courage in overcoming his alcoholism, coming out of a dark period over several years.