Jamie Vardy

PREMIER LEAGUE CHAMPIONS On 2 May 2016, 5000-1 outsiders Leicester City were confirmed as winners of the Premier League, in one of the greatest sporting shocks in history. This most momentous of victories was fuelled by the goals, determination and desire of one Jamie Richard Vardy, a man who only a few years previously had been stuck in non-league football. Too small to play, too slight to mix it, earning so little that he was being forced out of the game he loved, the odds on what was to follow could not have been longer. Yet after a meteoric rise through the football ranks, Jamie Vardy squared his shoulders against all the naysayers and set the Premier League on fire. By the time Christmas of 2015 rolled around, he had scored in eleven consecutive games, breaking Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy's twelve-year-old record in the process, and Leicester were well on their way to this most stunning of footballing triumphs. In The Boy From Nowhere, bestselling sports writer Frank Worrall traces the true story of how Jamie Vardy went from non-league journeyman to inspirational talisman for Premier League champions Leicester City. This is the incredible tale of Jamie Vardy, the boy who came from nowhere to the top of the world.

The Sunday Times Bestseller and Number 1 Sport Book of 2016 'A tale that's truly inspirational' The Sun An ordinary lad from Sheffield, Jamie Vardy has become known as an against-the-odds footballing hero the world over. Yet a few years ago, things couldn’t have been any more different. Rejected as a teenager by his boyhood club, Jamie thought his chance was gone. But from playing pub football and earning £30 a week at Stocksbridge Park Steels, while still working in a factory, his off-the-cuff performances saw him rise. Jamie had a wild and turbulent youth, but football became his saving grace and, once he filled his boots with goals at FC Halifax Town and Fleetwood Town, he moved to Leicester City. After the miracle of surviving relegation, the team of unlikely outsiders bonded together to achieve the unthinkable: Jamie set the record as the first player to score in 11 consecutive Premier League matches and Leicester beat odds of 5000-1 to become champions. Jamie has now been nominated for the Ballon d’Or, firmly establishing himself as one of England’s leading goal scoring footballers. Not forgetting his roots, however, he has set up the V9 Academy in a bid to find the next big talent from non-league football. Defying all expectations, this is the story of the boy from nowhere who reached the top in his own unflinching, honest words.

"A few years ago, it would have been a brave man who bet on Jamie Vardy becoming one of the most feared strikers in football. Too small to play, too slight to mix it, earning so little that he was being forced out of the game he loved, the odds could not have been longer. In 2007, Vardy was playing non-League football at Stocksbridge Park Steels, earning GBP30 per game and supplementing it with a factory job so dire that his back almost gave out. Having been released by Sheffield Wednesday as a teenager, the indignity was compounded as Vardy was forced to wear an electronic tag after an assault outside a pub. He would frequently have to ask to be substituted and run home to avoid breaking his curfew. A lesser man would have been broken. Eight years later, after a meteoric rise through the football ranks, Jamie Vardy squared his shoulders against all the naysayers and set the Premier League on fire. By the time Christmas of 2015 rolled around, he had scored in 11 consecutive games for Leicester City, breaking Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy's twelve year old record in the process. In The Boy From Nowhere, bestselling sports writer Frank Worrall traces how Jamie Vardy went from playing in a muddy field in Sheffield to being signed by the Foxes for a non-league record of GBP1 million, winning the Championship and terrorising Premier League defences in the process. A real-life rags-to-riches tale that every boy up and down the country dreams of, this is the incredible true story of Jamie Vardy, the boy who came from nowhere to the very top."--Publisher's description.

This inspirational biography for children, written by award-winning author Roy Apps, follows the dream-come-true story of Jamie Vardy and his amazing rise to become a star striker in Leicester City's Premier League-winning side and top England goalscorer. Illustrated with colour artwork by Alessandro Valdrighi, including graphic novel-style panels, this book is perfect for sport-mad girls and boys with a reading age of 7, but will work perfectly well for older readers too. Printed on off-white paper using a reading font approved by the British Dyslexia Association, the Sporting Heroes series brings to life the skill, grit and determination needed to be a world-class sportsperson today. This title is published by Franklin Watts EDGE, which produces a range of books to get children reading with confidence. EDGE - for books kids can't put down.

There's a reason we are drawn to the incredible story of Jamie Vardy's rise from non-league football to become a record-breaking Premier League and England international goalscorer...he's allowed us to dream. In this age of multi-millionaire, Maserati-driving, cosseted footballers, the Leicester City striker is someone we can relate to. He's not so different from the lads we all knew who liked a Saturday night out, worked in a dead-end job and had a talent on the ball that wasted away as age took away any hopes they may have had of playing professionally. The difference is that Vardy did make it against the odds in an historic season with a fairytale team that started out as 5,000-1 underdogs and beat the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal to win the Premier League. Author David Gardner, a senior writer for football.com, goes behind the scenes to reveal the secrets behind Leicester City's miracle season...and how the party started for Jamie Vardy, from the court-imposed electronic tag he used as an ankle guard and his naked training runs all the way to his scoring streak, his WAG wife and his Hollywood future.

THE INCREDIBLE AS-IT-HAPPENED STORY OF LEICESTER CITY’S MARCH TO PREMIER LEAGUE VICTORY In August 2015 bookmakers priced Leicester at 5000-1 to win the Premier League – the same odds as Elvis being found alive. On 2 May 2016, the impossible happened – Leicester won, to ecstatic celebrations in the city and around the world. Relive this remarkable season with Rob Tanner, the Leicester Mercury ’s chief football writer, from the great escape of 2015 to the curtain-closer at Stamford Bridge, via Ulloa’s last-gasp winner at Norwich and Vardy’s stunning volley against Liverpool. Detailing the key matches and turning points, Tanner’s book tells the inside story of Leicester City’s heroic year of triumph – and the players who under Claudio Ranieri’s inspired leadership became the most unlikely champions in football history.

The No.1 football series - over 1 million copies sold! Born and raised in Sheffield, Vardy brightens football matches with his versatility, precision and energy. His 2012 move to Leicester City allowed the striker to prove his thrilling goalscoring and hard-working personality, where he helped the team to win the Championship. Follow the exciting journey of this award-winning striker from Stocksbridge Park Steels to winning the Premier League in 2016 and shining on the international stage. Ultimate Football Heroes is a series of biographies telling the life stories of the biggest and best footballers in the world and their incredible journeys from childhood fan to superstar professional player. Written in fast-paced, action-packed style these books are perfect for all the family to collect and share.