Masters of Modern Soccer

This excerpt is from an advance uncorrected copy proof Copyright © 2018 Grant Wahl

When did I know for sure that I was going to love writing this book? The moment came early, on the first question of my first interview with Manchester City centerback Vincent Kompany. I had never met Kompany before, but I had admired him for years, and during my initial research for this book his name had come up repeatedly when I asked my journalist friends around Europe to nominate players who combined world-class talent and accomplishment with a high degree of intelligence and insight in interviews about the sport. My question was sim- ple enough: What does the term the modern game mean to you?

Kompany considered the topic briefly and answered. "I think the term modern football just means that every single aspect of the game has improved," he said. "Players are quicker now. They try to play quicker and see the pass quicker. Players try to be more technical. Players are more physical. Maybe they're not tougher, because that sometimes has to do with their background, but the physical attitudes have definitely increased. So the modern game is all about an improved version of what it used to be."

What followed in that first interview was an hour-long discussion about the sport that left me exhilarated-and looking forward to more opportunities to speak to Kompany and the other figures in this book. The results of those interviews are in the following chapters. Everything they shared with me I will pass on to you.

It's easy to be cynical about modern soccer. For some observers, "the modern game" speaks mostly to the influence of money and commercialization on the sport, which is undeniable. To the critics, the apotheosis of modern soccer was probably the moment in July 2017 when the players of Manchester United and Real Madrid, on a promotional preseason tour in the United States, all high-fived a guy in a red-wigged Ronald McDonald costume before kickoff in an NFL stadium

GRANT WAHL is one of the world's leading soccer journalists. He joined Sports Illustrated in November 1996 as a reporter and was promoted to his current position of senior writer in October 2000. He is also a contributor to Fox Sports television, where he does insider segments, essays, and longform video stories. Wahl's last book, The Beckham Experiment, was the first soccer book to make the New York Times Best-Seller List.

"Marrying first-rate reportage with stylish writing, Grant Wahl demonstrates why he's considered the dean of U.S. soccer writing-a master of modern soccer, so to speak. This book has the weight and depth to appeal to hardcores, and the smart analysis to captivate the casual fan. Soccer's answer to Men at Work."
-JON WERTHEIM, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED EXECUTIVE EDITOR

"Grant Wahl is a master of modern soccer writing and this book is a Rosetta stone for anyone who wants to fully understand the contemporary game. It's a user's manual to how the game is (or ought to be) played, coached, managed, and watched. Everyone interested in soccer-fans, youth coaches, even top professionals-will gain fascinating insights from some of the game's finest craftsmen, one of whom is Wahl himself."
-STEVE RUSHIN, AUTHOR OF STING-RAY AFTERNOONS AND COLUMNIST FOR SPORTS ILLUSTRATED

"I started it taking off at LAX and finished it landing at JFK. It's an incredible peek behind the curtain into the way players, coaches, and technical directors see themselves and their jobs. These entertaining and candid profiles help explain some of the complexities and mysteries of the beautiful game and the people who inhabit it."
-ALEXI LALAS

"Reading Grant Wahl on soccer is always a pleasure. Hardly anyone else gets so much access to players, thinks so hard about what he hears, and tells it so well. No hype here-just insights into top-class professionals, by a top-class professional."
-SIMON KUPER, COAUTHOR OF SOCCERNOMICS