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Tag: England

  • Nations League: Harry Kane sends England to finals

    Harry Kane sealed a stunning late comeback as England booked their place in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals with a 2-1 victory over Croatia at Wembley.

    Two goals in the final 12 minutes from Jesse Lingard (78) and captain Kane (85) sparked scenes of wild celebrations as Gareth Southgate’s men relegated their World Cup semi-final conquerors.

    England were staring relegation in the face themselves when Andrej Kramaric opened the scoring to punish the Three Lions for a host of missed first-half chances.

    But a dramatic late turnaround sees England finish ahead of Spain at the top of Group A4, with a place in the inaugural Nations League finals secured.

  • Rooney to captain England during farewell appearance

    England’s record goalscorer Wayne Rooney will captain the side and wear the number 10 shirt when he comes on to make his farewell appearance, BBC reports.

    Rooney, 33, retired from international football in 2017 but will win his 120th and final cap in a friendly against the United States at Wembley on Thursday.

    Fabian Delph will start the match as captain but will hand the armband to Rooney when the DC United striker comes on as a substitute in the second half.

    Rooney will also get a guard of honour.

    The former Manchester United and Everton forward initially ended his international career with 119 caps and a record 53 goals.

    But the Football Association sees Thursday’s match as an opportunity to “honour” his “record-breaking international career”.

    Rooney will leave the squad before they face Croatia in the Nations League at Wembley on Sunday.

  • Former England, Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole retires

    Former England and Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole announced his retirement from football on Tuesday, bringing the curtain down on a 20-year professional career.

    Cole, who turned 37, last week, made 716 appearances and scored 104 goals for seven clubs and completed his career with Tampa Bay Rowdies in the second-tier United Soccer League.

    “After 20 years as a professional, the time has come for me to hang up my boots. It has been a dream comes true.

    “Whatever is next, I hope the next two decades are as special as my last 20 years as a professional I have been,” he said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Cole went through West Ham United’s youth system.

    Cole made his debut at West Ham aged 17 and became club captain four years later.

    He was regarded by many as one of England’s brightest youth prospects due to his excellent dribbling skills and flair.

    He, however, joined Chelsea FC in 2003, one of a number of recruits brought in following the takeover of the club by Russian Roman Abramovich.

    Cole went on to win prestigious domestic honours at Chelsea, including three Premier League titles and two FA Cups.

    On the international stage, Cole was regarded as a member of England’s ‘golden generation’ which included the likes of Frank Lampard, David Beckham, Steven Gerrard and Rio Ferdinand.

    He scored 10 goals in 56 appearances for the national side between 2001 and 2010, but never quite reached the potential he showed in his youth.

    Cole was often hindered by injuries throughout his career.

    He was selected for the 2002, 2006 and 2010 World Cups, making his final England appearance at the latter tournament in South Africa.

    Cole’s career after leaving Chelsea in 2010 was limited to short uneventful spells at Liverpool, Lille, West Ham, Aston Villa and Coventry City before moving to the United States.

    Having enjoyed a short stint as player-assistant coach at the Rowdies, Cole now wishes to pursue a coaching career in the near-future.

    “I want to stay involved in the game. I feel I can offer a lot as a coach and have really enjoyed the opportunity to undertake some of these duties with the Rowdies.

    “To lend my experience to help other young footballers achieve their dreams, just like I did, is a big passion of mine,” Cole said.

    Reuters/NAN

  • Players should respect Rooney on England return – Southgate

    England manager Gareth Southgate has said players should respect Wayne Rooney on his international return because they need to know “the history of the shirt”.

    Rooney, 33, will earn his 120th and final England cap in the friendly against USA on 15 November.

    The game, now called ‘The Wayne Rooney Foundation International’, will honour the striker and his charity.

    “I think the team totally respect what he did,” Southgate said.

    “I think it is important they respect what the players did in the past.”

    England’s all-time record goalscorer Rooney will come on as a second-half substitute at Wembley but will not captain the side or wear the number 10 shirt.

    The former England captain, who now plays in the United States for DC United, has scored 53 goals in 119 international appearances and last played for England against Scotland in November 2016.

    “We talk to them a lot about that they have the shirt now but it is not their shirt, great players have worn it before them and great players will wear it after them,” Southgate added.

    “That lineage and heritage of the shirt and the team is important to me because I think whether you join a club or (play for) your country you need to know the history of that shirt and the importance of it – then you are not playing for the name on the back but for the crest on the front.”

  • Man Utd Luke Shaw agrees new deal at Old Trafford

    Man Utd Luke Shaw agrees new deal at Old Trafford

    Manchester United left-back Luke Shaw has agreed a new five-year deal with the Red Devils, worth a reported £150,000 per week.

    The 23-year-old England international’s current contract was set to expire next summer, BBC reports.
    Shaw’s progress has been disrupted by poor form and fitness issues, limiting him to only 75 appearances, but he has been a regular for United this season.
    Recent performances earned Shaw – who joined United from Southampton for £27m in 2014 – an international recall.

  • England must always take fight to opposition – Dier

    England must always take fight to opposition – Dier

    Eric Dier believes England should maintain their combative approach as they progress under Manager Gareth Southgate, after the side’s impressive victory, over Spain in the UEFA Nations League this week.
    England stunned their hosts 3-2 in Seville on Monday after Dier had set the tone for a brilliant first-half performance from the visitors.
    Dier had some feisty challenges on Sergio Busquets and Sergio Ramos in the opening 15 minutes.
    Dier was shown a yellow card for his tackle on Spain captain Ramos but he said it was important to ensure Spain were knocked out of their rhythm early.
    “Once we start the game, it’s every man for himself and we have to put our foot down, put a marker down,’’ Dier told British media.
    “We have to be aggressive, be on the front foot and show that nothing is going to intimidate us.
    “Ramos is a great example; he does everything so well but at the same time he puts his foot down and he’s not going to be bullied.
    “We have to be the same way.’’
    Southgate’s side are building a reputation as a possession-based outfit but Dier reckons the ability to win physical battles will be equally as important to their long-term prospects.
    “It’s just a question of being smart at the right times,” Dier added.
    “Obviously, it was frustrating Spain, frustrating the crowd. I think it’s just maturity, really, knowing when to win fouls, when to take your time,’’ Dier said.
    Reuters/NAN

  • I am better equipped for England now – Chelsea's Barkley

    Chelsea midfielder Ross Barkley says he is better equipped to make an impact at international level after earning his first England call-up in two years.

    The 24-year-old has been recalled by Gareth Southgate for the Nations League games against Croatia and Spain.
    Barkley set up the opener and scored the second in Chelsea’s 3-0 Premier League win at Southampton on Sunday.
    “I feel much more mature and I’m ready to show what I’m capable of what I’ve shown in spells,” he said.
    Barkley, who has 22 caps, is in the England squad for the first time since May 2016, having been overlooked by Southgate as he struggled with form and fitness last season.
    He did not play for seven months at former club Everton because of a hamstring injury, which needed surgery in August 2017, five months before he joined Chelsea for £15m.
    A brief return to action followed his move to Stamford Bridge, only for Barkley not to play under Antonio Conte between 31 January and 13 May.
    Barkley, who only played 131 minutes in the Premier League last season, says he has worked hard to regain full fitness and is enjoying the benefits under new boss Maurizio Sarri.
    The midfielder’s claims for an England recall were pushed by the Italian manager, who said after Sunday’s game he expected the Liverpool-born player to become “very important for the England national team”.
    “Everybody develops at different rates,” Barkley, who made his Everton debut aged 17 in 2011, said.
    “I understand my football better now, more than I ever have understood it before. I’m happy, confident and going in the right direction.
    “I feel I’m better equipped now. I’ve had expectations on me from a young age and I’ve dealt with them.
    “I’ve been through difficult spells but I’m coming out of it a better player. I’ve worked on my weaknesses defensively and worked on my attacking strengths.
    “I think I’m becoming a better all-round player.”
    BBC

  • John Terry: Five defining moments of Chelsea legend

    John Terry: Five defining moments of Chelsea legend

    October 1998. A close-cropped teenager by the name of John Terry steps onto the pitch for the first time as a Chelsea player.

    Twenty years later and five months after his final appearance, the 37-year-old has announced his retirement.
    Here, we look back at the moments that defined the career of the former Chelsea and England captain.

    Family and personal life

    He Is married to Toni (née Poole). In 2009, Terry was named “Dad of the Year” after he came top of a poll of UK adults in a Daddies Sauce survey.
    Terry’s older brother, Paul (born 1979), is a former professional footballer, having notably played for Dagenham & Redbridge and Yeovil Town.
    Terry was a Manchester United supporter growing up.
    Terry is one of a very small group of footballers to have been paid more than £1 million for their autobiography. His deal with publisher HarperCollins was negotiated in 2004 by Chris Nathaniel of NVA Management.
    In 2016, Terry paid the £1,600 funeral costs for an eight-year-old Chelsea fan with leukemia who died from an unsuccessful bone marrow transplantation.

    The breakthrough

    After making his debut for Chelsea in a League Cup tie against Aston Villa in 1998, it was in an unlikely setting where Terry really first caught the eye.
    Towards the end of the 1999-2000 season, he went on loan for six games to Nottingham Forest, who were managed at the time by ex-England midfielder David Platt.

    A first brush with controversy

    In September 2001, Terry was one of four Chelsea players fined by the club following a drinking binge in a hotel packed with American tourists grieving over the terror attacks on New York City’s twin towers at the World Trade Center, BBC reports.
    The incident happened 24 hours after the attacks and the drunken behaviour took place at a hotel near Heathrow Airport, which was packed with American citizens stranded by flight cancellations.
    The group included Terry, Frank Lampard, Jody Morris and Frank Sinclair. Chelsea’s Uefa Cup game that night against Levski Sofia had been called off as a mark of respect to the victims of the 9/11 attacks.
    Chelsea’s then managing director, Colin Hutchinson, condemned the behaviour as “totally out of order” and said they had each been fined two weeks’ wages.

    Captain at the double in 2010

    Terry’s first two league titles under Jose Mourinho have often been seen as workmanlike, but the third in the double-winning season of 2009-10 was anything but.
    The title was clinched with an 8-0 thumping of Wigan on the final day, meaning Chelsea ended the season on 103 league goals. Carlo Ancelotti’s side were the first team since Tottenham in 1961 to score three figures in the top flight.
    Terry was once again integral, playing in 37 of the 38 league games and making more than 50 appearances in total.
    He only managed two league goals but both were vital. The first was the only goal in a 1-0 victory over Manchester United, who finished as runners-up. And the other was a late winner in a 2-1 success against Burnley.
    It helped Chelsea to become just the seventh club to claim the league and FA Cup double.

    Extra touch from Terry

    In 2005, Terry became the first defender – and the first Chelsea player – to be named the Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year.
    He was recognised after helping the Blues to just their second top-flight title, while his part in Chelsea’s run to the Champions League semi-finals saw him named the Uefa club defender of the year. He would go on to receive that recognition again in 2008 and 2009.
    Honours
    Chelsea:
    Premier League: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2009–10, 2014–15, 2016–17
    FA Cup: 1999–2000, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12
    Football League Cup: 2004–05, 2006–07, 2014–15
    FA Community Shield: 2005, 2009
    UEFA Champions League: 2011–12
    UEFA Europa League: 2012–13
    FA Cup runner-up: 2001–02, 2016–17
    Football League Cup runner-up: 2007–08
    FA Community Shield runner-up: 2006, 2010, 2012, 2015
    UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2007–08
    UEFA Super Cup runner-up: 2013
    Individual:
    Chelsea Player of the Year: 2000–01, 2005–06
    Premier League Player of the Month: January 2005
    PFA Players’ Player of the Year: 2004–05
    PFA Team of the Year: 2003–04 Premier League, 2004–05 Premier League, 2005–06 Premier League, 2014–15 Premier League
    FIFA FIFPro World XI: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2009
    UEFA Club Defender of the Year: 2005, 2008, 2009
    UEFA Team of the Year: 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009
    FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 2006
    PFA Team of the Century (1997–2007): 2007
     

  • Former England captain, John Terry retires from football

    Former England captain, John Terry retires from football

    Former England and Chelsea captain John Terry has retired from football.

    Terry, 37, has been without a club since leaving Championship side Aston Villa in the summer.
    The defender made the announcement on his Instagram account, saying: “After 23 incredible years as a footballer, I have decided now is the right time for me to retire from playing.”
    Terry, who earned 78 England caps, left Chelsea in 2017 after two decades at the London club.
    He won five Premier League titles, five FA Cups and a Champions League title in his time at Stamford Bridge, becoming the club’s most decorated player.
    The centre-back also won five league cups and a Europa League in more than 700 appearances for Chelsea.
    Terry spent the 2017-18 season at Aston Villa and his last game as a professional was the 1-0 Championship play-off final defeat to Fulham in May.
    He left Villa Park when his one-year contract expired and turned down a move to Spartak Moscow last month, despite reportedly having a medical, saying it was not right for his family.

    A career of highs and lows

    Terry made his debut as a 17-year-old against Aston Villa in the League Cup in October 1998, and scored his first goal for the club in an FA Cup sixth-round tie against Gillingham in 2000.
    However, the following year Terry was one of four Chelsea players fined two weeks’ wages by the club following their behaviour at a hotel in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in the United States.
    He was integral to the Blues claiming both the Premier League title and the FA Cup in 2009-10, making more than 50 appearances as Chelsea became just the seventh club to do the double.
    However, he was twice stripped of the England captaincy, before being banned for four matches and fined £220,000 for racially abusing QPR defender Anton Ferdinand.
    He also missed the 2012 Champions League final, in which the Blues beat Bayern Munich on penalties, through suspension.
    Terry scored four goals in 35 league games as Chelsea claimed the Premier League in 2014-15, but has found his playing time limited under Antonio Conte.
    He joined Aston Villa on a one-year deal and played 36 times, scoring once, in his final season as a footballer as the Birmingham club finished fourth in the Championship before losing in the play-off final.

    Terry’s farewell statement

    In his Instagram post, Terry made a statement thanking his family for their support.
    It read: “As a 14-year-old, I made my best and biggest decision: to sign for Chelsea Football Club. Words will never be enough to show how much everyone at the club means to me, in particular the fans.
    “Right from the outset they have given me total support, on and off the pitch, and I have a tremendous bond with them.
    “We achieved so many great memories together and I couldn’t have succeeded without you. To me, you are the best fans in the world. I hope I have done you all proud wearing the shirt and the armband.
    “My club career and heart will always belong to Chelsea, but I am grateful for my loan spell at Nottingham Forest in 1999, which was invaluable for my development as a young player.
    “And I also want to say a huge thank you to Aston Villa for giving me the opportunity to play at such a big club and captain it throughout the 2017-18 season.
    “It was a privilege to represent such a renowned football club with great fans.
    “I look forward to the next chapter in my life and the challenges ahead.”
    BBC

  • I can’t rule out Championship players – Southgate

    I can’t rule out Championship players – Southgate

    England boss Gareth Southgate says he may have to look to the Championship for players as the pool of homegrown talent in the Premier League is getting “smaller and smaller”.

    Southgate said that the number of English players playing in the top flight has dropped to 30% this season.

    He expressed “concern” at the lack of opportunities for young players and says a lot of players “will be lost”.

    “It has really serious repercussions for our national team,” said Southgate.

    England reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in July.

    Since featuring at the World Cup, midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek, 22, has only played 22 competitive minutes for Chelsea.

    Southgate included him in the 23-man squad for September’s fixtures against Spain and Switzerland, while Stoke goalkeeper Jack Butland was also selected despite playing in the Championship.

    “I can’t rule out players in the Championship now as our pool is getting smaller and smaller,” said Southgate.

    “One of our biggest concerns is playing time for English players, shown by a number of the squad that came with us to Russia not getting opportunities to play. More concerning is that young players that may be coming through to challenge are not getting opportunities to play.”

    England’s Under-20 and Under-17s both won their respective World Cups in 2017 and Southgate says the “talent is there”.

    “The missing piece is this transition from youth football to senior football,” he continued.

    “There is still this link between 17 to 21 where the bridge into first-team football and the financial power of the Premier League has a big impact.

    “I think it’s worth us having that debate and getting people around the table to discuss that missing piece. If players are as good as any young players around the world, then that opportunity needs to be there.”

    He added: “If we are encouraging young players about entering academies, we are selling them the dream and there’s an ethical element there too.”

    BBC