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CLOUGH THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY
The Autobiography [ The Autobiography by Clough, Brian ( Author ) Paperback Nov- 1995 ] Paperback Nov- 01- 1995
352 pages, Paperback
First published November 10, 1994
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
November 13, 2024
I know this book is quite old but it was great. Brian Clough was such a fascinating, driven and successful character and this every page of this book is interesting.
The way he writes and talks is not exactly politically correct and I am sure would struggle to get published without some softening these days but that does not take away from an excellent and enjoyable read…and it feels more authentic to someone who remembers him as a football manager and prominent personality.
The way he writes and talks is not exactly politically correct and I am sure would struggle to get published without some softening these days but that does not take away from an excellent and enjoyable read…and it feels more authentic to someone who remembers him as a football manager and prominent personality.
November 14, 2017
I wasn’t sure, and still am not sure, how I was going to review a non-fiction book.
I'm used to talking about plot and character, but that won't work here. I can hardly blame Clough for weak characters and crappy plotting. He is, after all, restricted, seeing as his life is his life. It's not his fault he didn't have a final showdown with big bad Don Revie before he retired. Although, that would have been good.
But I suppose I can talk about general enjoyment and writing style. So that's what I'm going to do. As usual, making most of it up as I go along.
So prepare for that.
Enjoyment
I enjoyed this book. In a ten point scale, it would have been a seven.
It took me longer than expected - seven days - to finish. But that's, I think, because it's non-fiction
What I mean by this is it is not plotted to be a page-turner. At least, not in the same way. There are no cliffhangers at the end of chapters to drag you along. The story is the story, and so there is not that same tug as with a fiction book to page turn.
Brian’s life was his life, and while it was interesting, he will never be able to compete with the lives of Batman and co. Because of his unfortunate drawback of not being fictional.
This, though, I don’t think we can hold against him.
Writing Style
Writing style is as important in an autobiography, as it is in fiction. More so, even, on account of it not having cliffhangers etc. to keep you going.
Anyone can ruin an interesting life by writing about it dully.
Brian Clough avoids this.
Part of this may be down to the fact he had John Sadler writing either with him or, more likely, for him.
Although, the choice of Sadler - who worked for the Sun - as writer does make you question the validity of the book. After all, the News is supposed to be factual, and the Sun has never worried about that.
Regardless of who wrote it, the writing style is very Clough. Plain speaking, accented, friendly and littered with exclamation marks. The latter of which being a horrible writing device, but anyway.
The writing works. It improves the flow and gives the book a Clough personality. Even if there are a lot of digressions as he tells his stories.
This, plus an interesting life, makes for an enjoyable read. But it was never going to be as good as the best fiction.
A 3/5 was always the highest it was ever going to go.
Predictions
There are a couple more things I could write about, outside of general enjoyment. One of them, which I won’t go into in too much detail, is honesty.
I could talk about how Clough claims never to take a bung, despite many official sorts being sure he did. He could be lying, he could be telling the truth, I don’t know, and speculation won’t get us anywhere, so let’s leave it.
One thing I will discuss is his predictions. Written in 1994, and read 20 plus years later, it is clear Clough would never have made a good precog. Fortune telling, then, would never have been for him.
Though I suspect most fortune tellers know what they are saying is nonsense. However they portray it.
Much like writers of the Sun.
Back to Clough.
There are three bold predictions Clough makes in this book that I knew right away were not right.
First - and he mentions this twice - Clough claims he does not believe any side will beat his Forest team’s record of going 42 games unbeaten.
In fact, Arsenal smashed this record in the 03-04 seasons, right before Wenger forgot how to put successful teams together. Or, at the very least, before everyone else learned how to do it better.
Second, he claims of his son, Nigel Clough, that “I don’t think he will choose football management, though. I’m certain he won’t.” Stating the reason ex-footballers become managers is because they are not equipped for other work.
Well, if that’s the case, Bri, your son was less equipped for the outside world than you thought. He went into management in 1998, only a few years after this books publication. He has been doing it now, at the time of writing, for 19 years. Albeit, not as successfully as his father.
The final prediction made is a sad one, and does not fall into the same category as the first two. It involves addiction, something only he can overcome, rather than anyone else.
Being in released in 1994, there were already rumours of Brian Clough and alcoholism, and he moves to address them in the epilogue.
He talks about how his family worries about his alcohol intake and admits it is something he will need to look at it. The penultimate paragraph reads:
“Whatever steps are necessary to set my family and friends at ease, I will take them. No-one is going to be able to brand Brian Clough as a drinker who lost control and could not conquer his habit. I will beat it…”
This is a prediction tinged with sadness. Here was one of the most successful football managers of all time. A man never afraid to step up to a challenge. A man who knocked down obstacles throughout his career and who was determined to do so again with alcoholism.
If anything shows the strength and resolve it must take to overcome addiction it is this. Clough would go on to battle addiction for almost a decade after the release of this book. A fight culminating with a liver transplant in January 2003 that saved his life.
What was written at the time as a message of strength to end the book, now adds a dimension of sadness, given the context.
But, whatever happened towards the end of Clough's life, he will always be remembered as one of the greatest football managers of all time.
Not to mention one of the greatest personalities.
I'm used to talking about plot and character, but that won't work here. I can hardly blame Clough for weak characters and crappy plotting. He is, after all, restricted, seeing as his life is his life. It's not his fault he didn't have a final showdown with big bad Don Revie before he retired. Although, that would have been good.
But I suppose I can talk about general enjoyment and writing style. So that's what I'm going to do. As usual, making most of it up as I go along.
So prepare for that.
Enjoyment
I enjoyed this book. In a ten point scale, it would have been a seven.
It took me longer than expected - seven days - to finish. But that's, I think, because it's non-fiction
What I mean by this is it is not plotted to be a page-turner. At least, not in the same way. There are no cliffhangers at the end of chapters to drag you along. The story is the story, and so there is not that same tug as with a fiction book to page turn.
Brian’s life was his life, and while it was interesting, he will never be able to compete with the lives of Batman and co. Because of his unfortunate drawback of not being fictional.
This, though, I don’t think we can hold against him.
Writing Style
Writing style is as important in an autobiography, as it is in fiction. More so, even, on account of it not having cliffhangers etc. to keep you going.
Anyone can ruin an interesting life by writing about it dully.
Brian Clough avoids this.
Part of this may be down to the fact he had John Sadler writing either with him or, more likely, for him.
Although, the choice of Sadler - who worked for the Sun - as writer does make you question the validity of the book. After all, the News is supposed to be factual, and the Sun has never worried about that.
Regardless of who wrote it, the writing style is very Clough. Plain speaking, accented, friendly and littered with exclamation marks. The latter of which being a horrible writing device, but anyway.
The writing works. It improves the flow and gives the book a Clough personality. Even if there are a lot of digressions as he tells his stories.
This, plus an interesting life, makes for an enjoyable read. But it was never going to be as good as the best fiction.
A 3/5 was always the highest it was ever going to go.
Predictions
There are a couple more things I could write about, outside of general enjoyment. One of them, which I won’t go into in too much detail, is honesty.
I could talk about how Clough claims never to take a bung, despite many official sorts being sure he did. He could be lying, he could be telling the truth, I don’t know, and speculation won’t get us anywhere, so let’s leave it.
One thing I will discuss is his predictions. Written in 1994, and read 20 plus years later, it is clear Clough would never have made a good precog. Fortune telling, then, would never have been for him.
Though I suspect most fortune tellers know what they are saying is nonsense. However they portray it.
Much like writers of the Sun.
Back to Clough.
There are three bold predictions Clough makes in this book that I knew right away were not right.
First - and he mentions this twice - Clough claims he does not believe any side will beat his Forest team’s record of going 42 games unbeaten.
In fact, Arsenal smashed this record in the 03-04 seasons, right before Wenger forgot how to put successful teams together. Or, at the very least, before everyone else learned how to do it better.
Second, he claims of his son, Nigel Clough, that “I don’t think he will choose football management, though. I’m certain he won’t.” Stating the reason ex-footballers become managers is because they are not equipped for other work.
Well, if that’s the case, Bri, your son was less equipped for the outside world than you thought. He went into management in 1998, only a few years after this books publication. He has been doing it now, at the time of writing, for 19 years. Albeit, not as successfully as his father.
The final prediction made is a sad one, and does not fall into the same category as the first two. It involves addiction, something only he can overcome, rather than anyone else.
Being in released in 1994, there were already rumours of Brian Clough and alcoholism, and he moves to address them in the epilogue.
He talks about how his family worries about his alcohol intake and admits it is something he will need to look at it. The penultimate paragraph reads:
“Whatever steps are necessary to set my family and friends at ease, I will take them. No-one is going to be able to brand Brian Clough as a drinker who lost control and could not conquer his habit. I will beat it…”
This is a prediction tinged with sadness. Here was one of the most successful football managers of all time. A man never afraid to step up to a challenge. A man who knocked down obstacles throughout his career and who was determined to do so again with alcoholism.
If anything shows the strength and resolve it must take to overcome addiction it is this. Clough would go on to battle addiction for almost a decade after the release of this book. A fight culminating with a liver transplant in January 2003 that saved his life.
What was written at the time as a message of strength to end the book, now adds a dimension of sadness, given the context.
But, whatever happened towards the end of Clough's life, he will always be remembered as one of the greatest football managers of all time.
Not to mention one of the greatest personalities.
July 21, 2025
I love football, am of an age in which I was steeped in the game from 1969 onwards, and so knew and admired Clough's Derby and Nottingham forest. I loved his 1978 - 1980 Forest team. And yet - hated this book. Ive read many good football books, examples being Gary Imlach's book about his father Stewart "My Father and other Working Class Heroes", and "Two Brothers" (about the Charlton brothers), or "The Footballer Who Could Fly" ....all three of which were terrific reads.
This was not.
It was ghost written by Jeff Sadler, of the Sun. It shows. It reads like an overlong Sun article, and written in "the style of" a caricature Clough persona - all bluff "A bloody spade is a spade!" , with very little depth or change of tone. People and things are dismissed out of hand with very little explanation at times... for example , his boyhood hero Len Hutton ...."I was to meet him....years later, and he was such a let down. He bored me to tears".
Written in 1994, this now feels like a book from another era. Poor Justin Fashanu, dismissed with a derogatory homophobic term, and then a later paragraph attempting to justify his dislike of the player: "I was getting phone calls telling me that Fashanu was frequenting a particular club well known as a meeting place for homosexuals. That in itself didnt bother me too much. It was just that his shiftiness , combined with an articulate image that impressed the impressionable, made it difficult for me to accept Fashanu as genuine and one of us."
Eh? So... because the lad was not comfortable in "coming out" , and given the response in 1980s , 1990s (and still today) if he had, who could blame him,? - it all feels a bit homophobic. And of course incredibly jarring, given the later fate of Justin Fashanu.
Sadly - I really liked Clough, and his teams , but felt increasingly irritated by both him and this book.
This was not.
It was ghost written by Jeff Sadler, of the Sun. It shows. It reads like an overlong Sun article, and written in "the style of" a caricature Clough persona - all bluff "A bloody spade is a spade!" , with very little depth or change of tone. People and things are dismissed out of hand with very little explanation at times... for example , his boyhood hero Len Hutton ...."I was to meet him....years later, and he was such a let down. He bored me to tears".
Written in 1994, this now feels like a book from another era. Poor Justin Fashanu, dismissed with a derogatory homophobic term, and then a later paragraph attempting to justify his dislike of the player: "I was getting phone calls telling me that Fashanu was frequenting a particular club well known as a meeting place for homosexuals. That in itself didnt bother me too much. It was just that his shiftiness , combined with an articulate image that impressed the impressionable, made it difficult for me to accept Fashanu as genuine and one of us."
Eh? So... because the lad was not comfortable in "coming out" , and given the response in 1980s , 1990s (and still today) if he had, who could blame him,? - it all feels a bit homophobic. And of course incredibly jarring, given the later fate of Justin Fashanu.
Sadly - I really liked Clough, and his teams , but felt increasingly irritated by both him and this book.
November 3, 2020
I don't often read football biographies as they are often rushed out, celebrity books but Brian Clough was such a big figure when I was first watching football in the 70's and 80's and, always good with an opinion or quote I thought this might be an honest work and give some insight into the man and the manager.
Maybe it was written too soon after he retired but it read more as BC the TV personality, playing OBE rather than BC the person. He doesn't go much into his personal and family life (which is fair enough, I guess) but the footballing side offers little depth. Big events aren't given much depth, few people in the game are covered more than a 2 line opinion often with little corroboration.
The biggest omission for me is over his relationship with Peter Taylor. It's difficult from the book to work out why they ended up working together either at all, or for so long - most mentions are pretty negative Taylor being money-orientated, making BC do things he didn't want to, being lazy, the bizarre incident when Taylor wanted them both to go back to Derby...but after Taylor died he writes of his regret at not making peace and he obviously was devastated by his passing.
It would have been interesting to get his views on more of the players he worked with - he is full of praise for some from his early days but anyone from the mid 80's onwards only merit mentions of their shortcomings - maybe an indication that he had fallen out of love with the game.
All in all, it felt like a contractual obligation rather than something he wanted to write.
Maybe it was written too soon after he retired but it read more as BC the TV personality, playing OBE rather than BC the person. He doesn't go much into his personal and family life (which is fair enough, I guess) but the footballing side offers little depth. Big events aren't given much depth, few people in the game are covered more than a 2 line opinion often with little corroboration.
The biggest omission for me is over his relationship with Peter Taylor. It's difficult from the book to work out why they ended up working together either at all, or for so long - most mentions are pretty negative Taylor being money-orientated, making BC do things he didn't want to, being lazy, the bizarre incident when Taylor wanted them both to go back to Derby...but after Taylor died he writes of his regret at not making peace and he obviously was devastated by his passing.
It would have been interesting to get his views on more of the players he worked with - he is full of praise for some from his early days but anyone from the mid 80's onwards only merit mentions of their shortcomings - maybe an indication that he had fallen out of love with the game.
All in all, it felt like a contractual obligation rather than something he wanted to write.
May 17, 2018
The way I had discovered Brian Clough was actually through pure coincidence; I'd been browsing a variety of YouTube videos of esteemed managers and interviews, when I found one with Clough - A Calendar Special, so it was called. I remember being struck, as soon as Clough opened his mouth, by the way he seemed to control the room with what he said. Once he began to talk, other people listened. The more videos I watched, the more I realised that perhaps the most fascinating aspect about him was his unpredictability; you never knew what he was going to say next. And you could be sure that in most cases it was something controversial. He was indeed a inimitable character, one which will most likely never be seen in the footballing world again.
Although Clough was terribly brash and conceited, his career as a player, and a manager, stands to be seen. As Muhammed Ali once said, "It's not bragging if you can back it up", and Brian certainly could. He and Peter Taylor achieved unprecedented success during their managerial partnership at Derby and Nottingham Forest, ensuring that they're both forever engraved in the annals of footballing history.
Clough's autobiography was as good as I'd expected it to be, let's leave it at that. It's difficult to review a non-fiction book, but for anybody who respects Brian Clough and appreciates all the work he put into his forty-year career in football, it's a purchase you won't regret.
Although Clough was terribly brash and conceited, his career as a player, and a manager, stands to be seen. As Muhammed Ali once said, "It's not bragging if you can back it up", and Brian certainly could. He and Peter Taylor achieved unprecedented success during their managerial partnership at Derby and Nottingham Forest, ensuring that they're both forever engraved in the annals of footballing history.
Clough's autobiography was as good as I'd expected it to be, let's leave it at that. It's difficult to review a non-fiction book, but for anybody who respects Brian Clough and appreciates all the work he put into his forty-year career in football, it's a purchase you won't regret.
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July 3, 2020I read this book because I am interested in the history of British Football, and Clough was in the middle of all that. Clough presents as a very proud and somewhat selfish guy-- always focused on what he wanted and the hell with the rest of you. Being raised on American sports like baseball, it was interesting seeing how British teams operate. We get pictures of the effect gambling and drink have on the sport, and get an inside view of the egos involved. Clough presents himself as an angry, unhappy man who, despite his accomplishments, always wanted more.
September 1, 2020
Keep it simple....put good players into natural positions, ensure they are relaxed & results will follow. This straightforward approach sounds easy but this only provides an overview of one of the most successful managers in English football. One of the best football books I’ve read from one of my favourite managers.
A very easy read, couldn’t help but hear Mr Clough’s voice as I read each word. Highly recommended for any football fan
A very easy read, couldn’t help but hear Mr Clough’s voice as I read each word. Highly recommended for any football fan
April 21, 2021
Despite being written in the mid-nineties, this book stands up well and is a very entertaining read. Cloughie was one of our great characters and you can easily imagine him narrating his book.
If you have seen the Damned United, this is an excellent accompaniment and provides the detail on the other parts of his career.
It is tinged with sadness at the way his final season ends - he mentions it several times in the book.
He was a one-off and this book really captures the essence of the man.
If you have seen the Damned United, this is an excellent accompaniment and provides the detail on the other parts of his career.
It is tinged with sadness at the way his final season ends - he mentions it several times in the book.
He was a one-off and this book really captures the essence of the man.
December 27, 2025
An interesting and regularly amusing read from one of the biggest characters English football has ever known.
There are a few somewhat out of date opinions expressed, but nothing seemingly malicious, and it seems to be a very honest memoir.
There are a few somewhat out of date opinions expressed, but nothing seemingly malicious, and it seems to be a very honest memoir.
October 4, 2017
Loved it, straight talking, no nonsense.
Don’t make them like him anymore.
Don’t make them like him anymore.
April 22, 2019
Very enjoyable
If you like football and grew up in the 1980's you'll get a lot out of this. Very interesting indeed.
If you like football and grew up in the 1980's you'll get a lot out of this. Very interesting indeed.
July 4, 2021
Excellent book
Excellent record of Brian Clough's career, told in his own words.
Would highly recommend to anyone interested in football who lived through this time.
Excellent record of Brian Clough's career, told in his own words.
Would highly recommend to anyone interested in football who lived through this time.
February 27, 2023
Great read and wonderful story. A complicated man who tries to tell his story with insight and humor.
January 19, 2024
Honest. Fascinating. Bold.
March 1, 2024
Simply the best to do it
July 24, 2024
Thoroughly good read from old big head
June 19, 2015
Written in a relatively colloquial style befitting the straight talking man, it really captured the essence of his career and life. The emphasis is placed where he clearly found the most importance, as it should be. While this left you wanting more information on certain aspects and incidents, it felt like his perspective, his story.
There are no long descriptions of matches, even entire seasons pass without mention. It is more about the personal relationships with his family, the boardroom staff, and the players.
Even as a 27 year old, with no memory of him as a manager during my life, it is really a tremendous insight into a fascinating man, and the evolution of the English game.
There are no long descriptions of matches, even entire seasons pass without mention. It is more about the personal relationships with his family, the boardroom staff, and the players.
Even as a 27 year old, with no memory of him as a manager during my life, it is really a tremendous insight into a fascinating man, and the evolution of the English game.
December 3, 2010
The legend himself. I'm not one for autobios, but I'm a footballer and a football fan, and I loved Cloughie's perspective of the game from then and the (almost) present. His story provides a bit more clarity to 'The Damned United.' Seriously give this a read if you're ever interested football behind the scenes, management, stories of success and failure -- on and off the pitch.
July 27, 2011
Good stuff and well written but I don't think it goes into enough detail about his time with Taylor and the trouble at Derby, Leeds and Notts Forest. He never really seems able to let his guard down and admit some of his greatest mistakes. Also has dated a bit, especially his claim that no tem would match his 42 game unbeaten run...
August 9, 2011
Excellent account by one of the finest coaches who ever lived. Be warned that this version does not cover the alcohol years and the demise, but is still worthy of a read. Only Clough can give the rationale and the techniques, his beliefs and values, that drove so many of his brilliant decisions.
November 17, 2016
Always good for a reread, this is Cloughie at his most controversial. He is of course absolutely appalling about Hillsborough, but I can't bring myself to hold it against him, so wonderful is the rest of it. Clough was above all a great entertainer, and this book proves it
November 11, 2010
if you like football,you'll like this.
July 28, 2011
One of the better sporting autobiographies, young man. Not necessarily a classic but well worth the read for any football fan.
January 15, 2013
It's a god review of a good manager
November 23, 2013
Riddled with classic Clough stories from arguably the greatest managerial career of all time. A wonderfully stubborn man
October 1, 2015
brian clough, the manager england never had, and he proved it time and again from derby threw forest via leeds, he entertained and will always been remembered.
September 12, 2017
Brian Clough's autobiography is a must read for every fan of English football. You cannot understand the modern managers and the players without Clough's insider views. It is an honest account of his times as a player and successful manager of Derby and Nottingham Forest. He reflects on his successes, triumphs, failures as well as on friendship, family and tragedy with candor and tenderness. He reveals himself as opinionated, brash with an unrivaled ego. Despite being over the top in his self adulation you find yourself lapping it all up with delight.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews