And Gazza Misses the Final

Classic World Cup clashes brought to life and re-evaluated by two of the writers of the popular Guardian minute-by-minute football blog. Watching each match in real time and reacting to the twists and turns of the action, Murray and Smyth bring you the real stories of the matches as they happened, not the highlights package or rose-tinted version.

From the crowd swarming over the pitch moments before the Brazil-Uruguay classic of 1950 kicked off, to the dubious refereeing decisions that decided England's single triumph at Wembley, this is the history of the World Cup as you've never seen it before. As well as 30 classic moments from other matches, the games given a full report include:

1950

Uruguay v Brazil

1962

Chile v Italy

1966

England v Argentina

England v West Germany

1970

England v West Germany

Italy v West Germany

Brazil v Italy

1974

West Germany v Holland

1978

Scotland v Holland

1982

Brazil v Italy

West Germany v France

1986

England v Argentina

France v Brazil

1990

England vs Cameroon

England v West Germany

1994

Romania v Argentina

1998

Argentina v England

2006

Italy v Germany

2010

Spain v Holland

Rob Smyth has written for the Guardian, Wisden, Intelligent Life, GQ Style, Sports Illustrated and the official Manchester United magazine. He has written three books and was highly commended at the 2009 Sports Journalists Association awards. Scott Murray has written for the Guardian, the Observer, the Evening Standard, GQ, the Blizzard, FourFourTwo and Men's Health. He was sports editor of the website formerly known as Guardian Unlimited, is co-author of Phantom of the Open, a good book about bad golf, and has penned two tomes of football miscellany.

Everyone remembers Gazza's tears, Zidane's headbutt and Maradona's hand of God But do you recall Platt's late 'goal' that nearly sent England to the 1990 final? West Germany beating the Dutch with Total Football of their own in '74? The 1970 final veering from the sublime to the ridiculous with Pele shanking shots into the stand? The goals, the genius, the farces and the fistfights. The men behind the Guardian 's world-famous minute-by-minute football reports - the original and best - bring you the story of the World Cup from 1930 to the present day, as seen through fresh eyes. History unencumbered by received wisdom, Smyth and Murray give you the classic matches as they happened.

Classic World Cup clashes brought to life and re-evaluated by two of the writers of the popular Guardian minute-by-minute football blog. Watching each match in real time and reacting to the twists and turns of the action, Murray and Smyth bring you the real stories of the matches as they happened, not the highlights package or rose-tinted version. From the crowd swarming over the pitch moments before the Brazil-Uruguay classic of 1950 kicked off, to the dubious refereeing decisions that decided England's single triumph at Wembley, this is the history of the World Cup as you've never seen it before. As well as 30 classic moments from other matches, the games given a full report include:1950Uruguay v Brazil1962Chile v Italy1966England v ArgentinaEngland v West Germany1970England v West GermanyItaly v West GermanyBrazil v Italy1974West Germany v Holland1978Scotland v Holland1982Brazil v ItalyWest Germany v France1986England v Argentina France v Brazil1990England vs CameroonEngland v West Germany1994Romania v Argentina1998Argentina v England2006Italy v Germany2010Spain v Holland

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