If you are the kind of adult for whom “superb dribbling skills” conjures up a three-month old baby or a boxer dog, then Ultimate Football is not aimed at you.

If, on the other hand, you are a 10-year-old boy with a great passion for trivia, this is the numero uno reference tome of the year. It’s all here: UK Cup winners since 1950, match reports from famous tournaments, potted profiles of past heroes, listings of the top international teams.

For complete devotees there is an excavation of football’s medieval past and a brief history of the “game as we know it”, an outline of rules and rule changes, a run-down on what position does what and tips on how to succeed.

Different game formations, top stadia, a history of the World Cup and quick looks at such byways as the women players of the US are all frothed together in true Dorling Kindersley style: bright, tight clear illustrations and racy text.

What more could anyone ask? Well, I still am hazy on the offside rule, but then I am the wrong kind of adult. Victoria Neumark