Graeme Le Saux: Left Field

A former Southampton, Blackburn, Chelsea and England full-back, the erudite and engaging Graeme Le Saux is far removed from the archetypal British footballer. His distinctive commentary on all the major issues in football, on the pitch and beyond, promises to challenge everyone's perception of the game in this country.

Graeme Le Saux made an outstanding international debut for Terry Venables' new-look England side in a 1-0 win over Denmark at Wembley in March 1994, becoming the first Channel Islander ever to be capped for England.

After joining Chelsea direct from Jersey, where he used to spend his Saturdays on his father’s fruit and vegetable stall, his career flourished under the guidance of Kenny Dalglish at Blackburn Rovers where they won the Premiership title in 1994-95. Graeme transferred back to Chelsea in 1997 for a record fee of £5.5 million before joining Southampton in 2003. He retired as a player in 2005.

In his book, Le Saux addresses the gay slurs that dogged his career – including the infamous Robbie Fowler exposure – how he was vilified by a minority that labelled him a Guardian reader and too smart for football, and life at Stamford Bridge before Roman Abramovich millions changed the club and the game. His thoughtful manner and views on the modern game (he is now consulted for comment regularly by BBC, ITV, Sky and Channel Five) are expanded upon here, with particular focus on the huge amounts of money in top-flight football, players’ agents and the spiralling debts of countless football clubs.

As a player, Le Saux was always seen as different – someone who broke the mold, an individual with his own agenda who sought more to life than playing 90 minutes of football. His insight into the game is informed by those experiences.

Reviews

‘Refreshingly honest’ Observer Sports Monthly

‘An engrossing and candid take on the lot of the affluent Premiership footballer.’ FourFourTwo magazine

About the author

Graeme Le Saux was born in Jersey in 1968. He started his career at St Paul's before moving to Chelsea in 1987. In 1993 he switched to Blackburn Rovers where two years later he won the Premier League title. Le Saux was capped 36 times for England; his last appearance came in 1999. He played for his country in the 1998 World Cup. On retiring as a player in 2005 he worked briefly as a pundit for the BBC.

Oliver Holt has been Chief Sports Writer at The Mirror since April 2002. He collaborated with Stan Collymore on the ex-footballer's acclaimed autobiography, published in 2004.