in 1982, after three years with Cologne, Tony Woodcock returned to England to open the 1982-83 season with Arsenal, and this unique book is the result of his decision to keep a diary of his first full year back in English football.

It was a depressing year for Arsenal, and a difficult one for Woodcock, as the club failed to provide the success demanded of it; and Woodcock himself, struggling to re-adjust to the requirements of English football in a new team, found his hard-won international place put at risk by a series of recurring injuries.

But it was a dramatic year too, and full justice is done to both events and characters; two cup semi-final defeats, humiliation at the hands of Tottenham and Walsall, and the sacking of Terry Neill vie for the attention with happier moments like Woodcock's five goals at Villa Park, and the signs of revival under Don Howe.

Woodcock's rare experience of playing for some of the great names in football management and coaching, including Brian Clough, Rinus Michels, Hennes Weisweiler and Don Howe, provide a wealth of illuminating insights, as well as some very entertaining stories. His career with Nottingham Forest, Cologne and Arsenal has partnered him with some of Britain and Germany's outstanding goalkeepers and forwards, and his portraits of Jennings, Shilton, Schumacher, Francis, Muller, Nicholas and Mariner will inform even the most avid fan.

Woodcock's reflections on the nature of English club and international football are made with great authority and in a captivating style that absorbs and fascinates the reader.