The World of football came to a stand-still in 2020, resulting in millions of football fans watching old re-runs of games and waiting patiently for normality to resume.

Whilst waiting, many of us continued our obsession into the true crime documentaries of mad American killers, who we watch whilst sipping tea and stuffing our faces without a care in the world (hopefully that’s not just me). We’ve also enjoyed shows such as Tiger King in which again we take a view into almost another world in these documentary series’.

This documentary, other world view has also been a part of football in recent years, with the streaming services giving fans an inside look inside of the running of their club with ‘all access pass’ style TV series’. Over the lockdown period, I took some time to re-watch some of them, and in some cases, watched for the very first time.

In this post, I will talk about the ‘big 3′ football documentary series’ that have been released over the past few years, and give an overview (without spoilers), some of my favourite moments and also give my *personal* rating out of 5. To wrap things up, I will also mention briefly some of the other football documentary films or shows I have tuned into in recent weeks, or again some that I am planning on watching.

Let me know how you’ve kept yourself sane over this period of time over on Twitter @NextGoalWinBlog …

Sunderland ‘Till I Die

Sunderland fans may have hidden behind their sofas when news broke in 2017/2018 that Netflix would be making a documentary series on their club and their fight to bounce back from their double relegation and free-fall into League 1. They may still be hiding back there, even after the documentary as spectators watched the shocking drop into League 1 during season 1, and cringed at the Brent-esque nature of new owner and director, Stewart Donald and Charlie Methven in series 2 (not spoilers, if you weren’t aware of Sunderland being in League 1, this show just isn’t for you).

In the first series, we got a deep, inside view of the running of the club, on-field and off-field, as they faced managerial changes, struggling performances on the field and an owner who clearly wanted out and refused to finance the club. In certain scenes, fans were confronting the players and staff at their bemusing and horrendous running of the club. It’s certainly a heart-breaking series for fans of the club, as what starts with such optimism in the first episode turns into a disaster movie by the episode 8 finale.

In season 2, the club have a new owner and a new, positive outlook as they face life in England’s 3rd tier. This series is focussed much more on the personalities of owner and director, with many ‘meme-able’ moments such as Methven trying to get the crowd going and improving the atmosphere to not much success. It appears as though the owners are self-aware of their personality and the presence of the cameras, which both makes the second series more endearing yet also irritating. On the pitch, we see some player personalities come through, with not good consequences. We do get a decent insight into transfer deadline day, as we see some shocking decision making from the owner regarding 1 Irish striker. Ultimately, this season does still contain the emotion and heart-break that season 1 provided, however there is the addition and almost contrived scenes which feel more like scripted comedy than the football club insight many tuned in for. Now, if they are actually like that and all the scenes are genuine, I’ll take back my scepticism, however I’d feel even more sorry for the supporters if they are being run by those 2.

Overall, it’s a great binge-able watch, filled with drama and emotion as well as genuinely laughable moments (unless you’re an actual fan). I genuinely feel bad for the fans, as their passion for the club comes through in waves, and despite the off-field disaster that has contributed to this situation they’re in, the fans show up every week and keep their optimism alive, it’s genuinely what football is about and it brings real drama and feeling. I’d give it 4 our of 5, as in season 1, it’s more detailed and gives the insight, if you’re a proper dweeb who wants to know the complete running of a club, however there are bits and pieces we aren’t privy to. However, in season 2, there is much more humour, however it’s often cringe-inducing and ultimately a bit naff in points. A real good watch that you can plough through in a day or weekend and a real good drama for football fans.

All or Nothing: Manchester City

Pep Guardiola is a footballing genius, and getting an insight into his workings is a real privilege. All or Nothing: Manchester City does just that, following one of the most exciting teams of recent years as they undertake their centurion-season, a record feat and one filled with ups, downs and then ultimately the big up at the end. There is quite a lot of inside footage in this series, which for any major team playing at the top-level is quite surprising, considering how closed off the football world can be, with regards to team-talks and dressing room conversations.

The All or Nothing series’ are a real gem on Amazon Prime, and the Manchester City season gives some real insight to the running of a money-fuelled club being managed by one of the great footballing minds. Watching Pep discuss tactics is often baffling, as he gestures and jumps around, providing information that even the players sometimes are confused by. A manager who wants to kick every ball, and manages the game like he’s playing it on the PlayStation, Pep is a real character, and it’s nice to see that come out in the series.

Admittedly, City don’t quite have the drama of Sunderland, however dealing with big injuries, big signings and big personalities is a tough task, and one we are following. Some players are more reserved, while some take the lime-light and are much more involved, which occasionally misses out on some of the things I would have wanted to see, however the glimpses of the tactical meetings and training sessions is a real treat for a man who plays Football Manager like every game is a Champions League final (don’t judge me).

One of the main things I took away from this was the sense that the multi-million pound footballers actually care. To see some of the passion and drive from the squad is really uplifting and reminds us that despite the obscene finances, footballers do genuinely want to be footballers at the end of the day, and they care about winning.

The criticism I would have with the series, is that I would probably want even more insight into those board-room meetings where transfers are being arranged and discussed, particularly at this massive money level. Meanwhile, I would want to perhaps have seen ever more from Pep and his methods of training and tactics, however they are obviously unlikely to have ever aired this, it’s just a shame we seem to spend as much time in the boot-room with the kit man, than we do the legendary manager.

Overall, I would give this series a 3.5/5. Arguably, that’s a bit harsh as it is genuinely exciting to see the fly-on-the-wall moments that we are so starved of at the top-level of football. However, I came away from the series wanting a bit more, a bit more drama and insight, as it felt slightly managed to only show the surface of what goes on. Additionally, despite the challenge to reach 100 points, the series doesn’t really have much tension or drama, as we are essentially watching the club stroll to win the league and then keep winning, with little tension for a neutral. Unlike the Sunderland series, this one definitely doesn’t make me feel any real feeling towards Manchester City, and doesn’t particularly draw you in. Watching this series more just washed over me, and despite the intrigue to the major club, I often found myself drifting off to other things whilst watching. Still definitely worth a watch, but don’t expect edge-of-your-seat stuff from this one.

All or Nothing: Tottenham Hotspur

The third documentary series I will talk about is another Amazon Prime All or Nothing season, this time covering Tottenham Hotspur, as they transition from the Champions League final defeat, into the major managerial change from Poch to Jose. This is the most recent of the releases, and again matches the Manchester City series in providing some insight to a major club, and some intriguing fly-on-the-wall moments, although in a fairly managed manner.

In this series, we see the removal of Poch fairly early, as he plays a small role in the series, being removed in the first few moments. This was quite disappointing, and feels like we have been short-changed as the viewer, as many would have liked to see the final few days and what led to the ending of his time at Tottenham. Additionally, this is one of the moments that has been criticised as structured, as it protects both Poch and the club as we are left under the impression the dismissal was without any issues or drama.

From those first few moments, we are then treated to the genius or madness of Jose Mourinho, as he struts into his third Premier League club and immediately sets about creating the club in his image. There are cameras set up in Jose’s personal office, which is quite impressive as I wasn’t expecting anywhere near this closeness and personal invasion in the office of Jose Mourinho of all people. Again, many have commented that Jose is always aware when the cameras are on, and this translates to certain moments which are well-presented to create humorous and intriguing scenes.

There are some great moments that we witness, including personal chats from the boss with the likes of Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Danny Rose which have created varied impressions of the 3 players respectively. Additionally, we do spend a lot of time in the dining room with the players, and always Levy who hovers around in almost every possible opportunity. This is again good insight to the club, however we don’t get the tactical information that Manchester City offered, or the boardroom discussions held in the Sunderland series.

Again, this series is a great watch, however again it could have been so much more. It was unfortunate to not have taken place the previous season and the impressive Champions League run, and instead we watch through an adequate performance from the side, and one that doesn’t have too much drama. It again feels a little bit short-changed, as the Covid break could have given us some more insight rather than the shots of home-workouts and waiting around. It feels like the series quickly skipped the most dramatic change at the start of the year as they dismissed a well-loved manager and appointed a ‘my way of high-way’ coach, and instead we get almost a full episode of zoom workouts.

Overall, I would give this one 3/5, the lowest of the 3 series’, however still would be a recommended watch. There are some really good moments of insight, however it feels like if we went over more than the 1 year, we could have seen so much more. We spend a lot of time on Covid for obvious reasons, however it’s at the expense of other key points of the season. Some of the players come away really positively from the show, such as Kane stating his desire to become a great, and even Eriksen as he waits for a move away. Meanwhile, Dele Alli gets a rough-ride in this one, which is still apparent even without the TV cameras, and Danny Rose comes off as a bit of a clown. This series does feel like the most structured and managed by the club, however to even get access into the dining room feels like it deserves credit, let alone cameras running in Jose Mourinho’s office. So, yeah all 3 are definitely worth settling in to, if you haven’t already.

Others…

There were many others that I haven’t gone into detail with in this post, however I certainly may in the future. Over lockdown, I sat down and re-watched the Take Me Home: Leeds United series, in which we again got the club insight into Leeds United as they just missed out on promotion in 2018/2019. This one again missed out on the insight into the great and fascinating manager Marcelo Bielsa, however it is fairly understandable that he may be more recused in his input. It instead focuses much more on the fans and the passion for the club. In recent months, they have released I believe another special episode or 2 to celebrate the promotion which I am yet to watch, but will be doing very soon.

I have also watched some documentary films which I would recommend; Diego Maradona was a critically-acclaimed film released in 2019, which follows the legend of the game using archived footage from his time in Naples in the 1980s. It’s a real emotional ride as we witness the highs and lows of the games greatest ever character. Also Bobby Robson: More than a Manager on Netflix was a similar emotional ride, as in just 104 minutes we see some great footage of a great manager and the legacy he has left on the game. There are talking heads from the likes of Pep and Jose, as well as Ronaldo who all talk openly about the impact that the great manager had on them.

So, those were just a few of my football documentary recommendations. If I missed any good ones out, please do head over to Twitter (@NextGoalWinBlog) and let me know, I’m always on the lookout for a good watch.