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A review by sfian
The Quality of Madness: A Life of Marcelo Bielsa by Tim Rich
4.0
As a Leeds season ticket holder, it was practically the law that I read this book. Unfortunately, I don't read that much about football, especially non-English football, so two thirds of the book, as player after player, team after team, situation after situation were name-checked, I struggled. It was all jyst a bit too dry.
Don't get me wrong, the history of Argentina, the Bielsa family history and the scene-setting were all interesting. Some points had me chuckling, others reading out loud to my (non-football fan) wife.
It's the final third that interested me most, though, even though there's less of that scene-setting, a sudden propensity for strange pop culture references and some stories that I had heard - and which underline Bielsa's character - missing. (For example, the players being made to litter pick so they got an inkling of how much their fans had to work to be able to watch football.)
The book was also probably written too soon. Bielsa's second season at Leeds is covered, but only almost in passing. Delaying publication and updating the text just a few months later would result in a much happier ending.
Don't get me wrong, the history of Argentina, the Bielsa family history and the scene-setting were all interesting. Some points had me chuckling, others reading out loud to my (non-football fan) wife.
It's the final third that interested me most, though, even though there's less of that scene-setting, a sudden propensity for strange pop culture references and some stories that I had heard - and which underline Bielsa's character - missing. (For example, the players being made to litter pick so they got an inkling of how much their fans had to work to be able to watch football.)
The book was also probably written too soon. Bielsa's second season at Leeds is covered, but only almost in passing. Delaying publication and updating the text just a few months later would result in a much happier ending.