Red Card

By Mel Stein

Rossetti goes to Moscow, taking his twelve-year-old daughter Emma along for the ride. It is a decision he lives to regret.

Newly crowned FA Cup-winners Hertsmere United desperately need an infusion of new blood. A certain Dimitri Murganev, the top scorer in the Russian second division last season, looks very attractive. But once in England the truculent Murganev proves strangely disappointing, especially to ex-Hertsmere player Mark Rossetti who, having witnessed the Russian’s performance on home turf, had been keen to recommend him – and his less-than-bargain asking price – to the club.

Then another Russian star, the Gazza of the East, comes on offer. Perhaps a Russian team mate could put Murganev back on form? So Rossetti goes to Moscow once more. He has barely been there a week when Emma and Murganev’s family vanish into Moscow’s cold, thin air…

Written with the authority of an author who, as Paul Gascoigne’s personal business manager, knows the game from the inside, Red Card is another page-turning thriller and a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the business that is football.