{"product_id":"the-way-it-was-my-autobiography","title":"The Way It Was: My Autobiography","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom the publisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-expanded=\"true\" class=\"a-expander-content a-expander-partial-collapse-content a-expander-content-expanded\" style=\"padding-bottom: 24px;\"\u003eStanley Matthews was the most popular footballer of his era, the man who epitomised a generation of legendary players: Tom Finney, Nat Lofthouse, Billy Wright and many more. He was the first footballer ever to be knighted, the first European Footballer of the Year (at 41), and he played in the top division until he was 50 - and he will be forever remembered for his performance in the Matthews FA Cup final of 1953, when he inspired Blackpool to victory over Bolton. THE WAY IT WAS is a the fascinating memoir of a great footballer and the remarkable story of an extraordinary life, written in the last months of his life.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe author:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStanley Matthews joined Stoke City in 1930 and played for them until 1947 when he transferred to Blackpool. He won an FA Cup winner's medal in 1953. Late in his career he returned to Stoke, before retiring from the game at 50, having become the first footballer ever to be knighted. He died, aged 85, in February 2000.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e---\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"product_spec\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eHeadline\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e17 x 11 cm\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003ePaperback\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e640 pages\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"product_spec\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eJune 2001\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eEnglish\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"product_spec\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-list-item\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e9781836801771\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Stanley Matthews","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":58436686872957,"sku":null,"price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0271\/5149\/9341\/files\/2026-07-2415.55.51.jpg?v=1784907910","url":"https:\/\/stanchionbooks.com\/products\/the-way-it-was-my-autobiography","provider":"Stanchion","version":"1.0","type":"link"}