Addicted - Hardcover

Tony Adams

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0002187949 ISBN 13: 9780002187947

Publisher: CollinsWillow, 1998

Synopsis

Tony Adams is one of the legends of English football. Inspirational Arsenal captain and winner of a clutch of medals in English and European competitions, he has also nearly 50 England caps. All this despite his drinking problems which made him contemplate giving up the game altogether.

For the first time, Adams writes what it’s like playing with the best players in the game, from Gazza to Dennis Bergkamp, and working with some of the most successful managers, including George Graham, Terry Venables, Glenn Hoddle and Arsene Wenger.

But above all, his story is that of a winner, a man who has brought the intense determination he has shown on the field to his recovery from illnesses off it.

Adams recalls graphically and openly his descent into alcohol addiction, which at one point saw him jailed for drink-driving. Just as he was finding his feet again after the slow rehabilitation process, problems with his marriage surfaced and soon after Adams found himself heading for a divorce. He talks honestly about that traumatic period in his life and also about the pressures and demands of being a top-class footballer in the modern era.

This is a frank and challenging autobiography, a human interest story as well as a football story, of a player willing to go to any lengths to succeed.

About this title

About the Author

Tony Adams was born in 1966 in Romford, Essex. He signed for Arsenal as a schoolboy in 1980. At just 17 years and 28 days, he made his Arsenal debut, the second-youngest player ever. His full England debut came in 1987, when he also became club captain. He has won three League Championship medals, an FA Cup and European Cup-Winner’s Cup medal, captained his country, and was three times Arsenal Player of the Year.
Ian Ridley is football correspondent of the Independent on Sunday and has written a bestselling biography of Eric Cantona. Ian himself is a reformed alcoholic and knows Tony better than any other journalist.

From the Back Cover

Tony Adams is one of the legends of English football. An inspirational captain and winner of a clutch of medals in English and European competitions, he's also amassed more than 50 England caps and been a stalwart of the national team for more than a decade.

But Adams has had his problems over the years. In his early career he was labelled a donkey; he was later jailed after being convicted for drink-driving; left out of England's 1990 World Cup squad; needed 29 stitches to a cut above his eye after falling down a flight of stairs in a night-club; and finally, in the summer of 1996 admitted he was an alcoholic.

In 'Addicted', Adam tells of his life on two levels: on the one hand his drinking problems which made him contemplate giving up the game altogether, and on the other his addiction to the game of football, the pain and joy, and the determination to succeed as a professional following his debut for Arsenal at the tender age of 17.

He recalls vividly his experiences of playing alongside the best players in the world, from Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer to Dennis Bergkamp and Ian Wright. His first-hand insight into the Gazza phenomenon is especially penetrating while at the same time he confronts with refreshing honesty the pleasures and pitfalls of working with some of the most successful managers in football, including George Graham, Terry Venables, Glenn Hoddle and Arsene Wenger.

Above all, this is the story of a winner, a man who has shown the character and mental strength to regain the captaincy of club and country and continues to set new goals in his life.

Edition details

• Publisher: CollinsWillow
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0002187949
• ISBN 13: 9780002187947
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288