Flying Over an Olive Grove by Clive Nicholson, Ralph Nicholson and Mark Metcalf (Red Axe Books, £19.99)

FLYING Over an Olive Grove is the true story of a working-class boy who, as one of the greatest players of his time, went on to win every football prize going before he went on to coach around the world.

What makes it different from all the other football biographies is that Fred Spiksley was born in 1870, 15 years before the FA introduced professionalism into the sport.

The struggle to finish an apprenticeship and hold down a job so he would have something to fall back on, the precarious nature of professional contracts in an era when clubs and leagues were being set up and failing and the moments of brilliance on the pitch, overshadowed by personal weaknesses off it, are all here. Spiksley was a football hero ahead of his time.

His life mirrors the development of the game, the class struggle of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, two world wars and the rise of fascism. Throughout, the football world he inhabited is contrasted with that of today.

The life of players, clubs and stadia have undoubtedly changed but this book clearly demonstrates that the life of the fan appears far more constant and the voice of the supporter and the love of the beautiful game infuses every paragraph.

While the book does contain editorial and proof-reading errors, that doesn’t stop the excellence of the writing and research about a truly remarkable life from shining through.

It’s a timely reminder of why football is called the beautiful game and a fitting epitaph to an extraordinary man.

• Nicolas Lalaguna is the author of A Most Uncivil War.