Masters of Modern Soccer: How the World's Best Play the Twenty-First-Century Game [Paperback]

How do some of soccer’s smartest and most accomplished figures master the craft of the game? This in-depth analysis of modern soccer reveals how elite players and coaches strategize on and off the field to execute in high-pressure situations.
 
“A worthy addition to any soccer fan’s shelf.”—The Wall Street Journal

In Masters of Modern Soccer, America’s premier soccer journalist, Grant Wahl, reveals what players and managers are thinking before, during, and after games and delivers a true behind-the-scenes perspective on the inner workings of the sport’s brightest minds. 
 
Wahl follows world-class players from across the globe, examining how they do their jobs and gaining deep insight from the players on how goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and forwards function individually and as a unit to excel and win. He also shadows a manager and director of soccer as they juggle the challenges of coaching, preparation, and the short- and long-term strategies of how to identify and acquire talent and deploy it on the field. 
 
These central figures share the little details that matter, position by position:
 
• Attacking midfielder Christian Pulisic explains why he wears his soccer cleats a size too small to make his first touch even better. 
• Forward Javier “Chicharito” Hernández reveals the Mexican national team’s secret synchronized patterns that create space for him in front of the goal. 
• Defender Vincent Kompany tells you why his teammates’ pressure on the ball means he can defend hilcd