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The Match Of The Century Book By Matt Clough Review

THIS ITEM WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW. ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE THE REVIEWER'S OWN.

Reviewed by Victoria Wingrove

On 25th November 1953 in front of over 105,000 spectators, the infamous football match between England and Hungary, dubbed ‘The Match of the Century’, was played at a foggy Wembley Stadium.

A match instigated by Stanley Rous, the secretary of the Football Association, as part of the FA’s 90th anniversary celebrations, it was anticipated to be the pinnacle of a high-profile year of celebratory events. With Hungary, the 1952 Olympic champions with a long run of 24 unbeaten matches, up against an unrivalled England, the founders of football, with their own record of never having lost a home game to continental Europe, it was sure to be a crowd-pleaser. What wasn’t expected was for the match to monumentally change footballing culture for the entire nation in just 90 minutes, shaping the way football is played today.

Throughout this book the author, Matt Clough, confidently guides the reader through the history of football, the relationships between the FA, the England manager, Walter Winterbottom, and the players. He clearly describes how football was perceived both in England and across the world and steps the reader through the matches played by both sides in the years leading up to the clash. The book provides a fascinating insight into the cultural differences and relationship between England and Hungary and describes the journey that brought these two teams together for ‘The Match of the Century’. As you would expect, the match itself is described in great detail, with photos of some of the players and gameplay also included.

Whist the world was still coming to terms with the aftermath of the Second World War, 1953 proved to be an eventful year, not only for football, but for other landmark sporting moments and a variety of other key events and discoveries; Edmund Hilary’s successful ascent of Mount Everest, the sudden death of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin plunging the Soviet Union into chaos, the successful testing of the Polio vaccine by Jonas Salk, the first gender confirmation surgery, the discovery of the double helical structure of DNA, and the introduction of colour televisions into homes. As a backdrop to the England and Hungary football match, the author covers the significance of these and other pivotal events, and the impact they had on the world.

This author clearly has a passion for football and history, this comes across strongly in the way it has been written. I enjoyed reading it though it is heavy with facts and historical information which can be a little difficult to take in. I would recommend it for anyone with an interest in both the history of football, and social and cultural history particularly during the 1940’s and 50’s.

This is the authors second book. Matt Clough is also the author of Lofty, which was published by The History Press in 2019 and was nominated for the Telegraph’s Sports Biography of the Year award.

Rating: 4/5

RRP: £20.00

At the time of writing, this book could be purchased from Amazon.co.uk:
Hardback £17.59 with free delivery
Kindle download £8.54
Buy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Match-Century-England-Hungary-Football/dp/0750998148

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