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They Don't Teach This: Lessons From the Game of Life
First class honors law degree. 102 appearances for England women’s national football team. First female pundit on Match of the Day. UN Women UK ambassador. Guardian columnist.
All of these achievements belong to Eni Aluko, who, is keen to share her experiences, aiming to inspire readers to be the best possible versions of themselves. Aluko was appointed UN Women UK ambassador with a focus on promoting gender empowerment in 2016, and in October 2018 she was named by Marie Claire as one of ten Future Shapers Award Winners, recognising individuals who are changing women’s futures for the better. She is currently playing football for Juventus in Italy and writing a weekly column for The Guardian.
They Don’t Teach This steps beyond the realms of memoir to explore themes of dual nationality and identity, race and institutional prejudice, success, failure and faith. It is an inspiring manifesto to change the way readers and the future generation choose to view the challenges that come in their life applying life lessons with raw truths of Eni’s own personal experience
All of these achievements belong to Eni Aluko, who, is keen to share her experiences, aiming to inspire readers to be the best possible versions of themselves. Aluko was appointed UN Women UK ambassador with a focus on promoting gender empowerment in 2016, and in October 2018 she was named by Marie Claire as one of ten Future Shapers Award Winners, recognising individuals who are changing women’s futures for the better. She is currently playing football for Juventus in Italy and writing a weekly column for The Guardian.
They Don’t Teach This steps beyond the realms of memoir to explore themes of dual nationality and identity, race and institutional prejudice, success, failure and faith. It is an inspiring manifesto to change the way readers and the future generation choose to view the challenges that come in their life applying life lessons with raw truths of Eni’s own personal experience
482 pages, Hardcover
First published August 29, 2019
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July 2, 2023
A honest, open and powerful portrayal of her career by England and Chelsea (amongst other clubs) star Eniola Aluko, and the lessons she has learned. Throughout it her strong religious faith shines through, with the epigraph from 1 John 4:4.
Around 40% of the book deals with the hostility she faced under Mark Sampson during his time as England manager, Aluko the recipient of comments that the FA’s own report concluded “ discriminatory on the grounds of race.” The book however deliberately begins with a failure - the final day capitulation of Chelsea in the 2014 WSL, when Liverpool won the title having begun the day 3rd, a defeat that was to spur on Aluko and the rest of Emma Hayes’ team to claim a league and cup double the following season, Chelsea’s first trophies.
Since then, I've learnt to to embrace failure, when it comes. It didn't happen overnight, I still get disappointed, that's only human. But I'm never inconsolable like I was that day, because I know that if I fail, a lesson will surely follow. I began to see that failure, disappointment and challenges shouldn't be feared. They are opportunities, necessary steps along the winding road to success. They are life's best teachers.
And there was a lot to learn. As a kid, I was taught to behave a certain way by my parents, coaches, teachers, and preachers. They gave me a set of a guiding principles and morals to live by. But out in the real world, things were different. Life was much messier than I had been taught to expect. I found myself in situations no one had taught me how to deal with. Situations that no one could have prepared me for in advance. These were lessons I had to learn on my own. Lessons they didn't teach.
They don't teach you what to do when you lose your job thousands of miles from home. Or how to deal with a loss so devastating it makes you question your faith. They don't teach how to perform under pressure, or deal with criticism, or fight for change, or stand up to a mighty organisation when it tries to crush you. They don't teach what to do when you are lost and alone in a team, or when the newspapers print half-truths about you. They don't teach how and when to tell your truth.
And they don't teach women how to break through the glass ceiling, or what women of colour experience as a more impenetrable concrete ceiling.
Around 40% of the book deals with the hostility she faced under Mark Sampson during his time as England manager, Aluko the recipient of comments that the FA’s own report concluded “ discriminatory on the grounds of race.” The book however deliberately begins with a failure - the final day capitulation of Chelsea in the 2014 WSL, when Liverpool won the title having begun the day 3rd, a defeat that was to spur on Aluko and the rest of Emma Hayes’ team to claim a league and cup double the following season, Chelsea’s first trophies.
Since then, I've learnt to to embrace failure, when it comes. It didn't happen overnight, I still get disappointed, that's only human. But I'm never inconsolable like I was that day, because I know that if I fail, a lesson will surely follow. I began to see that failure, disappointment and challenges shouldn't be feared. They are opportunities, necessary steps along the winding road to success. They are life's best teachers.
And there was a lot to learn. As a kid, I was taught to behave a certain way by my parents, coaches, teachers, and preachers. They gave me a set of a guiding principles and morals to live by. But out in the real world, things were different. Life was much messier than I had been taught to expect. I found myself in situations no one had taught me how to deal with. Situations that no one could have prepared me for in advance. These were lessons I had to learn on my own. Lessons they didn't teach.
They don't teach you what to do when you lose your job thousands of miles from home. Or how to deal with a loss so devastating it makes you question your faith. They don't teach how to perform under pressure, or deal with criticism, or fight for change, or stand up to a mighty organisation when it tries to crush you. They don't teach what to do when you are lost and alone in a team, or when the newspapers print half-truths about you. They don't teach how and when to tell your truth.
And they don't teach women how to break through the glass ceiling, or what women of colour experience as a more impenetrable concrete ceiling.
July 11, 2020
Intelligent and thoughtful autobiography.
I've been following women's football in preference to the Premiership since about 2010, and have watched the game go from strength to strength. Eni Aluko is one of the intermediate generation who grew up loving the game but never expected to make a living at it.
The story of this 102-cap England striker could be like many others, but Aluko also talks with insight about her multiple identities: her Nigerian-British upbringing; how her race and Christian faith have affected her path; and about balancing sport with academic study to qualify as a barrister. Kelly Smith should read this then go back and rewrite her dull autobiography Footballer: My Story!
The latter part of the book covers the end of Aluko's England career under manager Mark Sampson. When she raised concerns about a pattern of racial bias and bullying by Sampson, the Football Association embarked on what can only be described as a cover-up. Aluko details the failure of the FA's first 2 "investigations"; the case she took to an employment tribunal - and the settlement she received; and her appearance at a Parliamentary inquiry into sport governance, specifically the FA's handling of her allegations of racism.
Eni Aluko was entirely vindicated, and the FA (eventually) accepted that it had let her down. For me as a fan (and human being!), the most disappointing aspect is the lack of support Aluko received from her white team-mates in the England squad. I no longer see the captain and senior players in the same light. Oh for a English Megan Rapinoe.
(Powerful follow-up interview here https://www.theguardian.com/football/...)
I've been following women's football in preference to the Premiership since about 2010, and have watched the game go from strength to strength. Eni Aluko is one of the intermediate generation who grew up loving the game but never expected to make a living at it.
The story of this 102-cap England striker could be like many others, but Aluko also talks with insight about her multiple identities: her Nigerian-British upbringing; how her race and Christian faith have affected her path; and about balancing sport with academic study to qualify as a barrister. Kelly Smith should read this then go back and rewrite her dull autobiography Footballer: My Story!
The latter part of the book covers the end of Aluko's England career under manager Mark Sampson. When she raised concerns about a pattern of racial bias and bullying by Sampson, the Football Association embarked on what can only be described as a cover-up. Aluko details the failure of the FA's first 2 "investigations"; the case she took to an employment tribunal - and the settlement she received; and her appearance at a Parliamentary inquiry into sport governance, specifically the FA's handling of her allegations of racism.
Eni Aluko was entirely vindicated, and the FA (eventually) accepted that it had let her down. For me as a fan (and human being!), the most disappointing aspect is the lack of support Aluko received from her white team-mates in the England squad. I no longer see the captain and senior players in the same light. Oh for a English Megan Rapinoe.
(Powerful follow-up interview here https://www.theguardian.com/football/...)
July 26, 2021
I’m not a big fan of the sports biography – so many function as puff and promotional pieces for athletes who’ve done well in the world of corporate sport and finish up reinforcing the individualist, gendered and racialised hierarchies of that widespread social practice that has such power. They all too often serve as promotional pieces for those athletes’ corporate connections. However, I had high hopes for this – in part because it deals with high performance sport in women’s football, a game that remains fairly commercially marginal in that high value world, and more so because Eni Aluko had quite clearly taken a stand for social justice within the game, at quite considerable cost.
The first half tells a compelling story of sports capable young woman, infant migrant to the UK who with her brother found space and standing on the football field and who eventually entered the upper echelons of the game when professional women’s football was still both a novelty and struggling to survive. In that sense this is a rich and compelling tale of precarity.
One of the real strengths and something that marks this apart from many other sports biographies is the way Aluko is clear and direct about competing pressures, about the financial precariousness of professional women’s football and the prospects of a career as a solicitor, as well as the conflicts between the two. In that sense it casts an unfaltering light on professional sport. Even less flattering is her discussion of the instability of employment – the precariousness is not just that they were poorly paid, but that English clubs showed little commitment to women’s teams, considering them easily expendable, while in the USA teams were so insecure that on at least one occasion she found herself transferred to a new team when her franchise closed down mid-season. This is a potent bursting of a romantic bubble of the gilded life of professional athletes.
More compelling is the second half to the book, however, in which she discusses the circumstances of and progress through her complaint against the FA and England women’s team coach Mark Sampson that turned on a series of racist comments made to her and another (Black) team member. Amid the compelling tale of institutional defence of its own (in this case, a neophyte coach against a team stalwart with over 100 England caps) and the increasingly public nature of the complaint, as the issue finished up being considered by a Parliamentary Select Committee, is a much more personal and raw tale of the effects working in such an environment, as well as the costs of 'forgiveness'.
It is here that the importance of the book lies: much as I – a late middle aged, White, professional academic – might aspire to an empathetic understanding what it means to be the subject of, to be continually objectified by, this kind of derogatory culture never knowing when the next attack will come, I can seldom get much insight into living those experiences. Aluko writes well, clearly and in places casting light on the rawness of being in that world while also making clear the importance of her support world – friends, kin, church and quite clearly a powerful sense of a personal relationship with her God – and while there is quite a lot of the individualism expected of the genre, she also celebrates collective action and athletes’ active engagement in their worlds. She provides sharp insight into living and being in that world, that she also discusses in an excellent Studio B, Unscripted session with Afua Hirsch from early 2020. [As an aside, for some reason Yellow Jersey Press decided to publish this in what looks like a large print format only: it’s an odd design and publication choice.]
I’m left with a clear sense of a complex figure who is much more than a high performance athlete, as well as sense of insight into a set of social experiences that my classed, gendered and racialized life mean I am unlikely to ever personally encounter. It is this that makes this stand out among sports biographies.
The first half tells a compelling story of sports capable young woman, infant migrant to the UK who with her brother found space and standing on the football field and who eventually entered the upper echelons of the game when professional women’s football was still both a novelty and struggling to survive. In that sense this is a rich and compelling tale of precarity.
One of the real strengths and something that marks this apart from many other sports biographies is the way Aluko is clear and direct about competing pressures, about the financial precariousness of professional women’s football and the prospects of a career as a solicitor, as well as the conflicts between the two. In that sense it casts an unfaltering light on professional sport. Even less flattering is her discussion of the instability of employment – the precariousness is not just that they were poorly paid, but that English clubs showed little commitment to women’s teams, considering them easily expendable, while in the USA teams were so insecure that on at least one occasion she found herself transferred to a new team when her franchise closed down mid-season. This is a potent bursting of a romantic bubble of the gilded life of professional athletes.
More compelling is the second half to the book, however, in which she discusses the circumstances of and progress through her complaint against the FA and England women’s team coach Mark Sampson that turned on a series of racist comments made to her and another (Black) team member. Amid the compelling tale of institutional defence of its own (in this case, a neophyte coach against a team stalwart with over 100 England caps) and the increasingly public nature of the complaint, as the issue finished up being considered by a Parliamentary Select Committee, is a much more personal and raw tale of the effects working in such an environment, as well as the costs of 'forgiveness'.
It is here that the importance of the book lies: much as I – a late middle aged, White, professional academic – might aspire to an empathetic understanding what it means to be the subject of, to be continually objectified by, this kind of derogatory culture never knowing when the next attack will come, I can seldom get much insight into living those experiences. Aluko writes well, clearly and in places casting light on the rawness of being in that world while also making clear the importance of her support world – friends, kin, church and quite clearly a powerful sense of a personal relationship with her God – and while there is quite a lot of the individualism expected of the genre, she also celebrates collective action and athletes’ active engagement in their worlds. She provides sharp insight into living and being in that world, that she also discusses in an excellent Studio B, Unscripted session with Afua Hirsch from early 2020. [As an aside, for some reason Yellow Jersey Press decided to publish this in what looks like a large print format only: it’s an odd design and publication choice.]
I’m left with a clear sense of a complex figure who is much more than a high performance athlete, as well as sense of insight into a set of social experiences that my classed, gendered and racialized life mean I am unlikely to ever personally encounter. It is this that makes this stand out among sports biographies.
July 4, 2024
Audiobook read by the author.
Interesting story but felt it dragged in places.
Interesting story but felt it dragged in places.
October 30, 2019
The first half of the book was the usual biography stuff - growing up, personal life, how she got into football and her football career. It was informative, I don't really follow the women's game so I learned about Aluko. But it's not really what I read this book for.
The last 200 or so pages are what makes this book a worthwhile and interesting read - Aluko's battles with the FA and Mark Sampson amidst bullying and racism claims in detailed, chronological order which highlighted how unpleasant that experience must have been for her and the other women of colour in that squad at the time.
The last 200 or so pages are what makes this book a worthwhile and interesting read - Aluko's battles with the FA and Mark Sampson amidst bullying and racism claims in detailed, chronological order which highlighted how unpleasant that experience must have been for her and the other women of colour in that squad at the time.
May 4, 2020
Goes from the exuberance of a youth loving football through a successful career into some challenging times. Insightful and enjoyable.
October 1, 2019
Excellent book, gives a good insight to her life starting out in football and pursuing a legal career. Also something we have always come to know no matter how good your talent is unfortunately if your face doesn't fit you won't get picked. Something a coach from wsl academy team said to my daughter a few years back along with a number of others 11 year old girls before they headed of for trials. Keep working hard and believing in yourself is what he said... For my daughter and these girls they can but when it's playing under a manager for your country a whole different ball game. A great book and a good way for Eni to tell the story of the situation with Mark Sampson and the FA. A read for all ages my 13 year daughter has just started it 🙂
January 20, 2020
For this book, my cousin was the author and it was a great book. Goal after goal for Eniola Aluko as she was the star striker for the England national team as well as the Chelsea FC women's team, but then disaster striked. She had a fallout with her english coach, Mark Sampson. Mark had allegedly been using racist langauage to Eniola and her teammate, Drew Spence. I won't get really into it because it's quite personal. My favorite part in the book is when she talks about how she was so good at scoring, and also how she persevered through identity of being a nigerian-british. I recomend this book for people who are going through major things in there life. This book will really help. This was definitely my favorite autobiography, and I'm not being biased.
February 4, 2020
Ok, so, overall I feel tight giving this book only 3 stars. It was well written and engaging, and I’d recommend a read. Most significantly it ‘deep dives’ into the women’s game in an interesting and insightful way, and made me realise how naive I was about some of the disparity between the men’s and women’s game. My 2 criticisms are that, firstly at points it feels like massive artistic license has been taken (blow by blow accounts of childhood games!) which make you wonder what else has been exaggerated, alongside her detailed analysis of her case against the FA followed by a chapter on how she’s forgiven them...which seems at odds with some of the personal criticism in the book. Overall however I learnt a lot and enjoyed the read.
May 8, 2021
I remember this case well and the type of reporting that was made at the time...non too complimentary to Eniola. As a white woman I have never really understood the covert racism made in comments and this really opened my eyes to it. I am shocked and saddened to what she went through, but not surprised unfortunately.
An honest and open biography that highlights the strength that Eniola gets from her faith. She is very reflective as to what she could have done differently....Twitter! Seriously though she has a grace and restraint that is so admirable in such an awful situation.
I believe there is more to come from Eniola....
An honest and open biography that highlights the strength that Eniola gets from her faith. She is very reflective as to what she could have done differently....Twitter! Seriously though she has a grace and restraint that is so admirable in such an awful situation.
I believe there is more to come from Eniola....
March 3, 2020
I, like Eni, grew up loving football, and I always wondered what it would have been like to get into the sport professionally. This memoir was a window into the world of women's football, as seen through Eni's prolific international football career. I enjoyed reading about how she was able to persevere and ultimately triumph —with the help of her family, mentors, friends and allies, and guided by her faith— through multiple failures and disappointments both on and off the pitch.
January 6, 2020
An amazing story and book about how she suffered racism within Englands women's football.
An amazing journey from her childhood to were she is today her career is fascinating and she talks about her journey and all her obstacles she has overcome.
I read a lot of sports books but this book is truly amazing of her journey.
An amazing journey from her childhood to were she is today her career is fascinating and she talks about her journey and all her obstacles she has overcome.
I read a lot of sports books but this book is truly amazing of her journey.
October 8, 2019
An inspirational read
March 10, 2020
The inspirational life story of a truly exceptional human being.
February 18, 2021
(This review was first published by Soccer America)
There's a heart-breaking passage early on in the autobiography of the Nigerian-born British striker Eni Aluko, when she describes how she temporarily gave up soccer at the age of 9. Excelling as the only girl on her school team during an indoor tournament, she cannot understand why the goals that she scores are greeted with anger from the sidelines. She sees the furious faces of "red-faced men" telling her that she shouldn't be playing, that she doesn't belong in this arena. She doesn't understand why they are railing against her, but it's enough to sap her of all motivation.
This is a rare example from Aluko's life when she doesn't resist, when she doesn't fight back. The rest of this book portrays her struggle to be heard, to be noticed, and to be celebrated for her achievements. It's the flagship story of a woman fighting to be successful in parallel, male-dominated realms -- both as a professional soccer player and as a lawyer. She gets by with more than a little help from her mother, and her faith -- both in God, and in herself.
Would I recommend that you read the whole book? Certainly as a gift for a young and ambitious female athlete, even if the references to God become overbearing after a while. For every pertinent observation along the lines of, "As a black woman, I've spent my whole life learning how to break free of the limitations others impose upon me," there's an irritating homily such as, "As I got older, I began to understand I owed my skills to a higher power." She writes, "To all women, and to black women especially, I want to remind you that education will set you free." Yet such self-empowerment falls paradoxically by the wayside when she claims that the all-knowing, always male God controls all our fates, and that there's nothing we can do about it. "Whatever happens, God has already allowed it to happen." Right.
If you can ignore such contradictions, the book really kicks off in chapter 15 when Aluko takes on the English Football Association (FA), a man-powered bastion of chauvinism, complacency and mediocre management for the past 150 years. After a storied career in the English national team, Aluko feels herself being edged out by new coach Mark Sampson, and begins to document incidents of racism and bullying from Sampson and his coaching staff. After providing supposedly anonymous feedback on the team's unhealthy culture in response to an FA survey, she finds herself dropped from the roster two weeks later. The fight for justice has only just begun, though, and Aluko thankfully never loses sight of that goal.
There's a heart-breaking passage early on in the autobiography of the Nigerian-born British striker Eni Aluko, when she describes how she temporarily gave up soccer at the age of 9. Excelling as the only girl on her school team during an indoor tournament, she cannot understand why the goals that she scores are greeted with anger from the sidelines. She sees the furious faces of "red-faced men" telling her that she shouldn't be playing, that she doesn't belong in this arena. She doesn't understand why they are railing against her, but it's enough to sap her of all motivation.
This is a rare example from Aluko's life when she doesn't resist, when she doesn't fight back. The rest of this book portrays her struggle to be heard, to be noticed, and to be celebrated for her achievements. It's the flagship story of a woman fighting to be successful in parallel, male-dominated realms -- both as a professional soccer player and as a lawyer. She gets by with more than a little help from her mother, and her faith -- both in God, and in herself.
Would I recommend that you read the whole book? Certainly as a gift for a young and ambitious female athlete, even if the references to God become overbearing after a while. For every pertinent observation along the lines of, "As a black woman, I've spent my whole life learning how to break free of the limitations others impose upon me," there's an irritating homily such as, "As I got older, I began to understand I owed my skills to a higher power." She writes, "To all women, and to black women especially, I want to remind you that education will set you free." Yet such self-empowerment falls paradoxically by the wayside when she claims that the all-knowing, always male God controls all our fates, and that there's nothing we can do about it. "Whatever happens, God has already allowed it to happen." Right.
If you can ignore such contradictions, the book really kicks off in chapter 15 when Aluko takes on the English Football Association (FA), a man-powered bastion of chauvinism, complacency and mediocre management for the past 150 years. After a storied career in the English national team, Aluko feels herself being edged out by new coach Mark Sampson, and begins to document incidents of racism and bullying from Sampson and his coaching staff. After providing supposedly anonymous feedback on the team's unhealthy culture in response to an FA survey, she finds herself dropped from the roster two weeks later. The fight for justice has only just begun, though, and Aluko thankfully never loses sight of that goal.
June 20, 2022
Before I read this book, I only knew Eniola Aluko as someone who had at some point played for the England women's national team, and I knew that I had seen her on TV analyzing soccer once or twice. Her memoir is exceptionally well-written, detailed, and thorough, and I really enjoyed learning so much about her life and her career. I loved all of the lessons she included, especially ones relating to new doors opening after other ones close, and how failure is always life's biggest teacher. Her fight against the FA and Mark Sampson was eye-opening and fascinating, as well. I only briefly remembered seeing something about the fight on Twitter, and was astonished to see how far back it led, and how deep it really was.
POPSUGAR 2022: A book you know nothing about.
POPSUGAR 2022: A book you know nothing about.
May 11, 2023
Eniola read her autobiography well. I enjoyed listening to her tell her story while taking a jog or doing the dishes. The soccer/football stories were interesting, she did not feel the need for play by play analysis, which I appreciated. She faced many hurdles in her life, and she is an impressive and determined person. It sounds like her mom imparted much of that strength, and I presume her mom's story is likely just as interesting.
The last third of the book is suspenseful and often disturbing - that she experienced the comments and moments on her soccer team as she did is unsettling and upsetting. But she persevered, and the world is better for it.
Easy but very good read, highly recommend. 👌
The last third of the book is suspenseful and often disturbing - that she experienced the comments and moments on her soccer team as she did is unsettling and upsetting. But she persevered, and the world is better for it.
Easy but very good read, highly recommend. 👌
May 13, 2022
Wow, I added this to my 'TBR' a really long time ago. I can't remember what sparked that as it is primarily a football memoir, and there were many parts which really did not appeal to me. However, it was very readable and I did not mind too much.
This is the memoir of Aluko, covering her childhood in Birmingham (she went to the school next door to the primary I work in!), her footballing career and her tackling of systemic issues in women's football. She certainly has done a lot to change the game for the better and she writes openly about the challenges she faced with this. It was easy to follow her journey and I learnt a lot about the issues within the sector.
This is the memoir of Aluko, covering her childhood in Birmingham (she went to the school next door to the primary I work in!), her footballing career and her tackling of systemic issues in women's football. She certainly has done a lot to change the game for the better and she writes openly about the challenges she faced with this. It was easy to follow her journey and I learnt a lot about the issues within the sector.
September 22, 2025
I am sad to say I didn’t know about the tribunal, but I wasn’t surprised.
I thought it was a really interesting read and very different to the sort of book I would usually pick up as a non fiction choice. The author is a hugely successful woman who has been able to drive herself to achieve great things. I get the impression that this book has been written with a young adult audience in mind, with a view to inspire, to inform and encourage. I enjoyed it and took a lot from the hyphenated identity discourse which I think is an interesting one. It’s a straightforward read which deals with some challenging themes but in a straightforward style.
I thought it was a really interesting read and very different to the sort of book I would usually pick up as a non fiction choice. The author is a hugely successful woman who has been able to drive herself to achieve great things. I get the impression that this book has been written with a young adult audience in mind, with a view to inspire, to inform and encourage. I enjoyed it and took a lot from the hyphenated identity discourse which I think is an interesting one. It’s a straightforward read which deals with some challenging themes but in a straightforward style.
August 29, 2021
I really enjoyed reading this, I had to stop while reading this, to look up her Nigerian roots, her father and Brother, way more familiar with Sone Aluko because he played for Super Eagles but I never knew he had a sister who was a football champion and a father who was a politician.
There are indeed lessons that they don't teach and Eni tries to show them through her stories, does it mean that reading this book automatically bestows us with those lessons, No, but it shares an interesting perspective that is needed in our own challenges, learning and unlearning journey.
There are indeed lessons that they don't teach and Eni tries to show them through her stories, does it mean that reading this book automatically bestows us with those lessons, No, but it shares an interesting perspective that is needed in our own challenges, learning and unlearning journey.
July 6, 2023
What an incredibly hard working woman/athlete/lawyer/pundit (!!). Thoroughly enjoyed learning about Eni’s achievements to date and she shed light, in her own words, on both the positive and negative experiences during her footballing career. Despite the awful situations she’s endured, she articulated and reflected on these with respect and professionalism throughout. She’s an inspiration and role model for the next gen of kiddos that’s for sure
May 17, 2023
Gripping memoir of Aluko’s life so far. I read it in one sitting. Without giving anything away, Aluko details the horrendous racism she was subjected to in her footballing career and shares her life lessons with us. Brilliant, funny and insightful.
June 21, 2020
Good book
August 3, 2020
Don't usually read autobiographies or books about football, so was really new but I loved this book so much!!!!
February 22, 2022
"Unafraid, unapologetic, defiant and willing to take a stand to drive through change", this is how Eni and this book are. Anyone with a bit of interest for the world of sport should read this book.
March 2, 2024
god bothering but good
October 13, 2024
Audiobook: interesting listen. More interesting when it got to the challenging and appalling emotional and racist behaviour that unfortunately Eni was exposed to in her England career.
February 16, 2025
Really enjoyed this book, more than I thought I would. I’m that into football, but still got a lot from it . It’s well written, encouraging, , interesting and inspiring.
August 9, 2024
A Chelsea legend, sharing her truth- the truth.
February 17, 2024
Aluko is a former England footballer and has 100 caps and 33 goals. She also represented Great Britain in 2012 Olympic Games. She is a pundit and columnist and holds first-class honours in law. Aluko shares her childhood and career up to now with a focus on the various challenges she has faced in her life. This includes being a woman in a male-dominated sport, that he family was split between the UK and Nigeria, and her challenge of balancing football and studying for a degree and a career in law.
Her passion for football shines through and her perseverance in the face of challenges from funding organisations, balancing her work as a lawyer with being a footballer, and fighting for better pay and conditions in the FA. She explains the difficulties she has faced in her professional relationship with her manager on the England team and her decision to leave England to pursue a career at Juventus in Italy and then to build a new career by developing her media experience as a pundit and writer.
Aluko’s faith is a strong guide and support for her throughout her memoir and the setbacks or unexpected challenges are often seen through a religious framework. This was at times hard for me to read and understand, not being a religious person, but she is candid about how important her belief system is and it gets her through some highly taxing and stressful situations.
Her passion for football shines through and her perseverance in the face of challenges from funding organisations, balancing her work as a lawyer with being a footballer, and fighting for better pay and conditions in the FA. She explains the difficulties she has faced in her professional relationship with her manager on the England team and her decision to leave England to pursue a career at Juventus in Italy and then to build a new career by developing her media experience as a pundit and writer.
Aluko’s faith is a strong guide and support for her throughout her memoir and the setbacks or unexpected challenges are often seen through a religious framework. This was at times hard for me to read and understand, not being a religious person, but she is candid about how important her belief system is and it gets her through some highly taxing and stressful situations.
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