The Keeper: A Life of Saving Goals and Achieving Them

by Tim Howard

Overview

In this inspiring, down-to-earth memoir the revered goalkeeper and American icon  idolized by millions worldwide for his dependability, daring, and humility recounts his rise to stardom at the 2014 World Cup, the psychological and professional challenges he has faced, and the enduring faith that has sustained him.

In The Keeper, the man who electrified the world with his amazing performance in Brazil does something he would never do on a soccer field: he drops his guard. As fiercely protective about his privacy as he is guarding the goal on the field, Howard opens up for the first time about how a hyperactive kid from New Jersey with Tourette’s syndrome defied the odds to become one of the world’s premier goalkeepers.

The Keeper recalls his childhood, being raised by a single mother who instilled in him a love of sports and a devout Christian faith that helped him cope when he was diagnosed with Tourette’s in the fifth grade. He looks back over his fifteen-year professional career—from becoming the youngest player to win MLS Goalkeeper of the Year to his storied move to the English Premier League with Manchester United and his current team, Liverpool’s Everton, to becoming an overnight star after his record-making performance with the United States Men’s National Team. He also talks about the things closest to his heart—the importance of family and the Christian beliefs that guide him.

Told in his thoughtful and articulate voice, The Keeper is an illuminating look at a remarkable man who is an inspirational role model for all of us.

The Keeper is illustrated with two 8-page color photo inserts.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062387370
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/12/2015
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	374,323
Product dimensions:	5.31(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.74(d)

About the Author

Tim Howard is the goalkeeper for Everton in the English Premier League and the U.S. men's national team. He previously played for the MetroStars in Major League Soccer and for the storied Manchester United. In July 2014, he broke the record for most saves (fifteen) in a World Cup game. He also works as a soccer broadcaster on NBC's weekly coverage of the EPL.

Table of Contents

Author's Note ix

Part 1 USA vs. Belgium: Pregame 3

In New Jersey, Anything Is Possible 9

Goals That Mattered 19

My Own Private Soccer Academy 35

"It Will Take a Nation of Millions to Hold Me Back" 43

Like Nowhere Else 55

Growing Up 65

"We've Got Our Eyes on You" 75

"To Whom Much Is Given" 85

Part 2 USA vs. Belgium: Warning Shots 101

"You're Not in America Anymore, Son" 103

The Longest Season 121

Benched 129

#24 141

Like Coming Home 151

Part 3 USA vs. Belgium: Nothing Gets Through 165

Gold Cup 169

Slaying Dragons 181

"Look at Me Now, Poppa" 195

"Can We Get Beyond This?" 215

Part 4 USA vs. Belgium: Still Alive 223

Divorce 225

Moving Forward 237

Changing the Scoreboard 245

Broken 251

New Faces 257

World Cup Training 265

Team USA 273

Making History 285

Game of My Life 295

Epilogue 303

Acknowledgments 307

Editorial Reviews

Thanks to its honesty, The Keeper is one of the best sports memoirs I’ve read recently.” — Daily Beast

“Inspiring and compulsively readable.” — People Magazine

From the Publisher

Thanks to its honesty, The Keeper is one of the best sports memoirs I’ve read recently.

Daily Beast

Inspiring and compulsively readable.

People Magazine

Thanks to its honesty, The Keeper is one of the best sports memoirs I’ve read recently.

William O'Connor