'Football history at its best' SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY
'Hugely moving... a very good book indeed' FOUR FOUR TWO
'Kuper is an original, sophisticated and adventurous writer. The story he has to tell... is fascinating and pressing' SUNDAY TIMES
In FOOTBALL AGAINST THE ENEMY Simon Kuper crossed the globe in search of the links between football, politics and culture. In AJAX, THE DUTCH, THE WAR he skilfully pieces together an alternative account of World War II. He looks at the lives of the footballers who played for the Dutch club, the officials and the ordinary fans during this tumultuous period and challenges the accepted notion of the War in occupied Europe. With almost 80 per cent of Amsterdam's Jewish Corner wiped out during the war, the long-held belief that, by and large, half the Dutch population had some kind of link to the Resistance has, of late, come into question.
Kuper explores this issue and looks deeper into the role of football across Europe in the years both preceding and following the War. The result is a compelling and controversial account of the War, seen through the lens of football.
- ISBN10 1409136477
- ISBN13 9781409136477
- Publish Date 21 July 2011 (first published 16 January 2003)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Orion Publishing Co
- Imprint Orion (an Imprint of The Orion Publishing Group Ltd )
- Format Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
- Pages 288
- Language English