Football Clichés

'A must-have' - The Telegraph

'Book of the Week' - The Independent

'Hilarious' - Sport Magazine

In what other context do football fans use the words 'aplomb' or 'derisory'? Why don't we use 'rifle' as a verb on the other six days of the week? Why do aggrieved midfielders feel the instinctive need to make a giant ball-shaped gesture with both hands after a mistimed tackle is punished?

The more football Adam Hurrey watched, the more he began to spot the recurring mannerisms, behaviours, opinions and iconography that were mindlessly repeated in the football media.

Some cliches are ridiculous, some are quaintly outdated, some have survived through their sheer indisputability. Here, featuring gloriously pseudo-scientific diagrams and the inimitable writing style that made footballcliches.com a smash hit, they are covered in all their glory.

“An entertaining, hilarious dissection of the language of football, complete with diagrams and illustrations. Open your chequebook for a last-ditch transfer swoop. - Sport MagazineHurrey's observations are worryingly accurate and will make you laugh out loud. If you want to know when we're officially in the ' business end of the season' or whether a goal was by a shot being fired, drilled, rifled, thundered, hammered, powered, slammed, rammed, or blasted into the back of the net then Adam is the man to tell us. - outsideoftheboot.comFootball Cliches is a crusade to analyse and dissect the art of the football cliche. The saturation of football coverage has ensured the emergence of a code, to which everyone in football unwittingly adheres. Literally over the moon to be up there with your Jonathan Wilsons and David Conns of the world on the FSF awards shortlist. - Football Supporters' Federation”

An entertaining, hilarious dissection of the language of football, complete with diagrams and illustrations. Open your chequebook for a last-ditch transfer swoop. - Sport Magazine

Hurrey's observations are worryingly accurate and will make you laugh out loud. If you want to know when we're officially in the 'business end of the season' or whether a goal was by a shot being fired, drilled, rifled, thundered, hammered, powered, slammed, rammed, or blasted into the back of the net then Adam is the man to tell us. - outsideoftheboot.com

Football Cliches is a crusade to analyse and dissect the art of the football cliche. The saturation of football coverage has ensured the emergence of a code, to which everyone in football unwittingly adheres. Literally over the moon to be up there with your Jonathan Wilsons and David Conns of the world on the FSF awards shortlist. - Football Supporters' Federation

Adam Hurrey is a London-based football writer. He created the Football Cliches blog in 2007 while working as a TV listings editor and has since contributed articles about the unique language of football to the websites of the Guardian and the Telegraph, among others. He also had trials for Swindon Town as a youngster, but was genuinely rejected for being 'too small'.

'A must-have' - The Telegraph 'Book of the Week' - The Independent 'Hilarious' - Sport Magazine In what other context do football fans use the words 'aplomb' or 'derisory'? Why don't we use 'rifle' as a verb on the other six days of the week? Why do aggrieved midfielders feel the instinctive need to make a giant ball-shaped gesture with both hands after a mistimed tackle is punished? The more football Adam Hurrey watched, the more he began to spot the recurring mannerisms, behaviours, opinions and iconography that were mindlessly repeated in the football media.Some cliches are ridiculous, some are quaintly outdated, some have survived through their sheer indisputability. Here, featuring gloriously pseudo-scientific diagrams and the inimitable writing style that made footballcliches.com a smash hit, they are covered in all their glory.

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