Football Clichés

September 1, 2015
A book about the hackneyed vocabulary of English football (that is, soccer) isn't quite as odd a duck as you might think. Given the exploding popularity of the sport here, chances are someone you know has developed a puzzling allegiance to a Premier League team and now refers to the field as a pitch. Even if you favor the American brand, TV's reliance on commentators such as Ian Darke and Adrian Healey means that the exploits of our players are often narrated (and goals are often said to be scored) with aplomb: not only has England exported its game, it also has exported its cliches. Hurrey has chronicled these remarkably resilient formulations since 2006 on his blog, and here he brings them together under thematic groupings (scoring, defending, anatomy, etc.) with short, funny essays that arenaturallyrife with cliche. ( Danger can also be smelt, but its fragrance has yet to be widely documented. ) Charts and illustrations add visual interest, although, if you're familiar with the game, you'll hear the pundits' soundtrack in your head. Great fun for fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)