day forty eight
Book Review – The Mixer
The Mixer by Michael Cox (who currently runs the excellent Zonal Marking podcast on the Athletic) was a book that I thought would get boring really quickly. Coming into this book cold, with only an elementary knowledge of footballing tactics, I was not let down.
The Mixer takes you from the early days of the Premier League, and documents the changes that took place on the pitch and off the pitch: for example, how the back-passing rule change impacted teams significantly, or how Arsene Wenger was the first one to bring a complete fitness overhaul to the Premier League. It goes through phenomena like the rise and fall of tiki-taka football, or how false-nines and foreign number tens began to gain prominence in the Premier League.
It strikes a balance between the jargon and the overall narrative, and masterfully explains a complicated tale of tactical evolution through a mix of insightful anecdotes, a deep understanding of footballing history, and an overflowing love for the game.
The Mixer is the perfect book for a passionate fan looking to dig a little deeper into the game that they love and cherish. It will most likely change how you view the current state of the Premier League, and will definitely transform how you view a football match.