The extraordinary memoir of Paul Lake, the greatest English footballer to never make the national team.
Paul Lake was born in Manchester in October 1968. He signed schoolboy forms for Manchester City FC in 1983, and made his senior debut against Wimbledon four years later. Capped several times at England under-21 level, he was selected for Bobby Robson's Italia '90 training squad. Later that year, and shortly after being handed the City captaincy, Paul suffered a serious knee injury. In 1995, following countless operations and a long spell of rehabilitation, he was forced to retire from the game. He went on to qualify as a sports physiotherapist, working for a number of football clubs in the north west. In March 2010 he was appointed Ambassador for Manchester City in the Community.
His tale is one of incredible neglect, which makes for fascinating
reading on a sporting, but mostly human level.
*The Sports Diaries*
Best football autobiography ever? Unquestionably
*Metro*
It's the best book I've read for a long time....Beautifully,
powerfully written, it is particularly raw and unsparing...
*The Mirror*
...an astounding football autobiography.
*The Guardian*
I'd be frightened to put a price on his head these days ... Paul
was as good a young player as I've ever worked with.
*Howard Kendall*
Without question, he is the best young player I have ever worked
with
*Mel Machin*
You would class Paul in the top bracket. I always likened him to
Colin Bell - he had that great ability to get up and down the
park.
*Tony Book*
It was like having one of your mates playing for City. He would've
captained England. No question. He was - and remains - one of
us
*Noel Gallagher*
Paul Lake was the most gifted in the group of young players who
brightened Manchester City up for fans in the 1980s who were pining
for the glory days to return...his is an inspirational human
story
*The Guardian*
His memoir - I'm Not Really Here - spares nothing in the raw
details of what Lake endured. A football read even more harrowing
than an England player's World Cup diary
*Sport*
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