Italia '90 Revisited: The Players' Stories

by Harry Harris, Paul Gascoigne (Foreword)

Exclusive interviews John Barnes, Bryan Robson, Chris Waddle, Stuart Pearce, Peter Shilton, David Pla, Mark Wright, Des Walker, Paul Parker, Steve McMahon, Terry Butcher, Trevor Steven, Gary Stevens, Neil Webb, Tony Dorigo, Dave Beasant, Steve Bull, David Seaman, Steve Hodge, Chris Woods and Peter Beardsley.The 1990 World Cup remains a cherished memory for English football supporters. From the official World Cup song, World in Motion, released before the tournament all the way through to England's agonising penalty shoot-out defeat to eventual champions West Germany in Turin, the summer of 1990 proved to be a watershed moment for the national game following an horrendous decade which almost saw it banned by Margaret Thatcher's government.The then Chief Football Writer of the Daily Mirror, Harry Harris, was in attendance for the full seven weeks the England squad were in Italy and he was privvy to the many controversies surrounding the squad. Going into the tournament Bobby Robson was an unwilling victim in the nasty tabloid war between Rupert Murdoch's Sun and Robert Maxwell's Mirror. As both tabloids sought to outdo one another, so the England boss was castigated by both. Yet the success of his team soon forced them to accept him as England's best manager since Sir Alf Ramsey and, for all the negative headlines, the mild-mannered Geordie bore no hard-feelings towards the press men.Harry Harris has tracked down Robson's squad for their recollection of the tournament and their memories of some of the controversies. When they returned home they were given a heroes' reception as tens of thousands of fans lined the streets, it was only then that the likes of Paul Gascoigne, Gary Lineker and Chris Waddle realised that their lives would never quite be the same again... this then is the inside story of the summer that changed English football.

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 30, 2020

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Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good insights and a worthwhile read but too much about the press / journalists and not enough about the players. The title suggests its focused on the players but really its about Harry Harris and what journalists got up to while covering the tournament punctuated by incidental player anecdotes.