Messi v. these football legends go head-to-head to decide who is the Greatest Of All Time! Celebrate the start of the football season with this ideal gift for football fans and perfect for reluctant readers.
The new epic clash in The Football GOAT series written by Matt Oldfield, the bestselling author of Ultimate Football Heroes, and Seth Burkett, a former professional footballer. Get ready for the superstar showdown of Messi v. Ronaldo in the ultimate football debate. Compare all the latest data, including sizzling stats, fascinating facts and awesome stories, then decide which football legend is the greatest of all time.
Matt Oldfield is already one of the authors of the Football Superstars series, which tracks the progression of famous players from "playground to the pitch". This new book takes the ingenious format of an argument between two friends debating the pros and cons of their favourite player. I think this format will really appeal to young readers as it mimics the conversations they already have in the playground.
In looking at who has the claim of Greatest of All Time, the authors look at Messi & Ronaldo's character, skills, statistics, contribution to their club and national teams and more.
I also like that the very first focus of the book when comparing the players is on character. "But first we are going to find out about their characters. That's because skills will only get you so far as a professional footballer." (p26) This is an important fact for our readers to take on board. Too often skilled players of all ages let that skill go to their heads and negatively impact their character.
I am only a casual football fan, and so this book was only mildly interesting for me. But I like the concept and format and think my young readers will love it. The four-star rating is on that basis. This appears to be the start of a new series, and exactly how many players can be put forward for GOAT status before pushing the bounds of credibility remains to be seen.
I live in a football household. It is something that brings our family together. With my two boys, there is always that debate on who is better at football, Messi or Ronaldo? So, I thought this book would be a great way to help my son with his reading, something we could do together through his passion for football.
The layout of this book was perfect for myself and my 13 year old. He has dyslexia so often finds large amounts of text daunting and puts him off reading. This book has a great mix of pictures, facts, stories, and statistics. It is put together in a variety of ways that is not a continuous block of text. Which helped immensely with my sons confidence, concentration, and interest to keep reading.
Each section is fun and engaging whilst being easy to read and understand. I liked how it got you as a reader involved in choosing your winner at the end of the sections. It allowed us to discuss who we believe to be the GOAT from the information it provided us with.
So, who is the ultimate Goat out of Messi and Ronaldo? Well, that's up to you to decide. Ours may be biased because of our loyalty to Manchester United!
This is an entertaining and fun book for any football fan.