O'Neill represented Northern Ireland over sixty times, playing alongside George Best and captaining the side at the 1982 World Cup, where they reached the quarter-finals. I have a level of earned respect for that opinion but not a lower-leaguer who wouldn’t know what it is like to win a medal. You are going to West Ham and expecting to win, whereas the previous year trying to beat Bristol Rovers was a struggle. He would say something to you on a Monday, contradict himself on a Friday and you would believe both. From his upbringing in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, and thoughts of being a lawyer, to being spotted by Nottingham Forest and moving to England.

Now, for the first time, Martin O’Neill reflects on one of the most varied and interesting football careers in the British Isles. Written with his trademark honesty and humour, On Days Like These is one of the most insightful and captivating autobiographies and a must-read for any fans of the beautiful game. There are some nice stories in here, but I would have liked to hear more about what Clough was like or what life was like in Glasgow, but he focuses on what happened on the pitch, which is fine. Not surprisingly for a man of Martin O'Neill's intelligence, this one was written by the man himself. Yes he has achieved alot in both playing and management and yes I learnt alot of facts I was unaware of but it was written in such a limp and unexciting way.On Days Like These is an insightful and captivating autobiography, and a must-read for all fans of the beautiful game. Martin delves into relationships with family, team-mates, managers, chairmen and those who played under him. Written with his trademark honesty and humour, On Days Like These is a brilliantly written account of Martin’s years in football from one of its most respected and astute voices. However, at times it felt a little rushed - for example, both his early professional career and how he felt when he won the league with Nottingham Forest seem to be covered very briefly.

It gets too similarly paced toward the managerial side of life and a brief, short sentence structure soon follows in what becomes a highlights reel.He takes as much care telling the story of his period as manager of Wycombe Wanderers as he does his much more heralded spells in charge of Leicester City and Aston Villa. Martin tells of his exhilarating highs and painful lows; from the joys of winning trophies and promotion to making the difficult decision to retire as a player, boardroom drama, relegation scraps and being fired. The spirit, the determination, the passion and drive … My last breath on this earth is when those things will leave me.

He demonstrated a unique ability to harness all the best attributes of his mentor with a more understanding approach to players that took him from lower league management right to the top end of the game. It would be unfair, as some have suggested, to depict O’Neill’s memoir as a score-settling exercise. As a manager he took Leicester City to two League Cups, Celtic to seven trophies, and the Republic of Ireland to the European Championship in 2016. Martin O’Neill is widely regarded as one of the most respected figures in football with a career spanning more than 50 years. He talks about his years with Celtic, where the team won seven trophies and reached the UEFA Cup Final in 2003, and at Aston Villa, where he achieved three consecutive top six Premier League finishes.

What the reader gets is very high-level account of his career, brushing over the nitty gritty with whole seasons get summed up in a paragraph and years in a matter of pages.

I got the impression that the book is either heavily edited or rushed, meaning that he was working to very tight deadlines. Martin O’Neill speaks honestly about the decision to retire as a player, and making the transition to manager. This is something of a whistle stop tour through the life of the author within the world of football so not entirely an autobiography but more a list of highlights and some lowlights. With all that considered, I was looking forward to an in-depth account of his career in sport, however I felt a bit let down by this.O'Neill has been one of the more interesting characters in football over the years and so it's no surprise that this is one of the better football autobiographies I have read.