Shades of Blue

About the Book

The life of a Manchester City legend and the story that shook football.

David White was born in Manchester in 1967 with football flowing in his veins. Driven by his football-mad dad, David’s prodigious talent was spotted early and he soon signed coveted schoolboy forms for Manchester City, the team that he’d supported since boyhood. A meteoric rise through the club’s ranks led to his first-team debut at the age of eighteen, and he continued to light up Maine Road’s right wing for the next eight years. It was a career that would take him to the heights of playing for his country.

But David’s performance on the pitch was frequently blighted by a lack of confidence and consistency, traits that baffled his fans and family. Only David knew the real reason behind his struggles. Only David knew who had shot his confidence to pieces. Only David knew that, aged just eleven, he had been sexually abused by his football coach, Barry Bennell.

Shades of Blue tells the story of David’s extraordinary life: his passion for football, the drama of his games and his fight to outrun the shadow of that early abuse. Having spent years feeling that he had to conceal his secret in order to protect his father and his football career, it is only now that David has felt able to give a full and honest account of his life – one with a powerful message that aims to repair the damage at the very heart of the sport.