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A total of 997 players have represented the England national team at least once over 999 matches in almost 150 years of English international football history, from that first match in Scotland in 1872 to the 100th against Montenegro later this week.

Some of them are legends and some are mere mortals.

Down the years we’ve seen humble local lads shine at Wembley alongside global football superstars and many of those in between.

We’ve seen star strikers bang in the goals with the three lions on their shirts, masters of clean sheets on the international stage and midfield maestros.

We’ve seen pioneers on and off the field, men that have lifted a FIFA World Cup for England and plenty that have come so close to glory.

But who will make it into our list of the top 15 stars to have ever worn the Three Lions shirt?

15. Sir Geoff Hurst

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Coming in at 15 is the only ever player to have scored a hat-trick in a FIFA World Cup final, bringing Sir Alf Ramsey’s team victory over West Germany in 1966, Sir Geoff Hurst.

The former West Ham United man would earn his place on our list for that achievement alone, it’s just a bonus that he recorded a further 48 appearances and 21 goals with the three lions on his chest.

14. Michael Owen

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From one lethal England goalscorer to another and ex-Liverpool, Real Madrid and Manchester United hitman Michael Owen, holder of 89 caps and 40 goals for his nation.

The striker’s international record places him in fourth in the list of the Three Lions’ top goalscorers behind only Jimmy Greaves, Sir Bobby Charlton, leader Wayne Rooney and our next legendary England man.

13. Gary Lineker

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No countdown of England’s top 15 players of all time would be complete without the Three Lions’ highest scorer in major tournaments, Gary Lineker.

The English football icon, who ranks third on the overall goals list, has 10 in World Cups and UEFA European Championships and is also in possession of the Golden Boot from Mexico ’86 – nowadays he’s a regular on the television screens of the nation, mostly on Match of the Day.

12. John Barnes

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Midfield dynamo John Barnes was in every sense an England pioneer both on and off the pitch, overcoming the horrid racist abuse of his time to become the Three Lions’ highest cap holding black player before being surpassed by Ashley Cole.

Barnes was famous for his fearsome shots and free-kicks and Italia ’90 rap, racking up close to a century of appearances and going to four major tournaments, a true English football legend.

11. Paul Scholes

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The man known as the best midfielder of his generation by Pep Guardiola and “the phenomenon” by Brazilian Ronaldo, Man United icon Paul Scholes narrowly misses out on a place in the top ten.

There can be little doubt that the footballing genius should have been capped more than 66 times for his country and should have been the man to lead the Three Lions to that elusive second major tournament triumph but a number of factors prevented that from ever happening.

10. Ashley Cole

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For any outfield player, especially an all-action full-back, to rack up an incredible 107 caps for his nation is a ridiculous achievement.

Only Bobby Moore, Steven Gerrard, David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and Peter Shilton have more as Ashley Cole was the mainstay of his country’s left-back position for a remarkable 13 years – the only thing that will perhaps bug him about his international career is that he never scored for England despite notching 19 times domestically.

9. Gordon Banks

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The goalkeeper for English sport’s finest hour at Wembley in 1966, the late great Gordon Banks is often considered his nation’s best ever goalkeeper.

True, he did pull off probably the greatest save in the history of the game from a powerful Pele header at the 1970 World Cup but he also started between the sticks on the international stage 23 times and remained the optimisation of a humble, nice guy right up until his sad death in early 2019.

8. David Beckham

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Known throughout the world for the global celebrity he became throughout his career and after his retirement, it’s often forgotten that David Beckham featured 115 times for England and 523 times for his various clubs.

Perhaps the stylish midfielder’s greatest moment in a Three Lions jersey came against Greece at home ground Old Trafford where he struck a last-gasp free-kick to secure qualification for the 2002 World Cup. Although, like many of the golden generation, he failed to properly live up to his potential on the international stage.

7. Steven Gerrard

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Speaking of seminal English midfielders who captained their national team, number seven is England’s fourth highest appearance holder (one behind Beckham), Steven Gerrard.

When he began his 14-year and six-major tournaments Three Lions career in 2000, Gerrard was following a long line of great Liverpool and England players and became the best of them all. However, his generation will always be synonymous with failure and the 2005 UEFA Champions League-winning skipper always seemed to save his best form for his club.

6. Frank Lampard

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One of the eternal debates of early 21st century English international football will always be about who was better, Gerrard or Frank Lampard and that discussion looks set to carry on into their respective management careers.

In this case, we’ve gone for the latter by placing him at number six on this list of the 15 greatest England internationals of all time. He may have marginally fewer caps than his Scouse counterpart but always seemed to shine that little bit brighter for club and country.

It seemed fitting when they both bowed out of international football at the 2014 World Cup.

Everton fans have reacted to a surprising statistic that shows the club ranks fifth in the list of teams who have faced the least number of shots across Europe’s top five leagues.The statistic provided by David Hughes, who collects date for Opta, reveals that Bayer Leverkusen, Getafe, Real Madrid and Manchester City are the only clubs to have faced a lower number of shots this season.

Indeed, the Premier League champions are the only English team above Everton in the ranking, with Chelsea just behind Everton on 95.

The graphic shows that Marco Silva’s side have faced 94 shots this season, which is surprising considering their goals conceded and position in the table.

Silva’s men have let in 18 goals in 12 league games so far – only five Premier League teams have conceded more.

Everton also sit 15th, just six points above the drop zone, which makes this statistic all the more surprising.

Many of the Toffees supporters have now pointed fingers at Jordan Pickford for letting so many in, as other fans touched on their awful defence from set pieces.

Another follower also pointed to the fact they have had an easy run so far, hence the lack of threat on goal.

Here’s how some of the Everton faithful have reacted…

Krzysztof Piatek first turned the heads of Europe’s top clubs when he signed for Genoa in the summer of 2018, going on to enjoy a prolific six-month spell with the club where he bagged 13 goals in just 19 outings before signing for AC Milan, and now a report from Calciomercato (via This is Futbol) claims Everton could be in the hunt for his signature.

Following on from that sensational run of form, a period that prompted Italian giants AC Milan to come calling with a £30.9m transfer, Piatek only increased his value on one of the biggest stages in Europe – netting a further nine goals over the second half of the season for the Rossoneri.

The Polish international, however, has found life tricky at the start of a brand new campaign at the San Siro – with Piatek’s form wavering slightly having bagged just three goals so far in 2019/20.

A similar figure across the continent, currently plying his trade in the Premier League for Everton, is none other than summer signing Moise Kean – who also had a prolific spell of goalscoring form last season with Juventus.

Unlike Piatek, the Italian forward is still yet to get off the mark for his new club – with issues such as turning up late to a team meeting and exhibiting a drop in confidence seemingly contributing towards some sections of the media already branding him a flop.

The same cannot be said of his counterpart, however, with Piatek already proving he can do the business consistently for a huge side last season and in glimpses this campaign.

Although there are many parallels to be drawn from these two forwards’ starts to the season, it seems like the Pole’s playing style and overall attributes essentially match with what Everton are currently lacking.

Namely, a composed goalscoring touch, athleticism, instinct, great running in-behind and presence – assets that Piatek seemingly has in abundance.

On top of that, the forward is also an ice-cool penalty taker – something that the Toffees have been lacking for quite some time judging by Gylfi Sigurdsson’s recent torrid record from the spot – missing five last season alone.

In comparison, the Milan striker has bagged 15 out of his last 17 penalties – not actually missing one since May 2018 before he moved to Serie A.

When you watch Piatek play, there is a certain calmness and assurance about him, and not just from the spot, with evidence pointing towards the fact that he could be a worthy investment from Everton’s perspective.

Everton fans, would you be interested in a Piatek-Kean swap? Let us know!

After Kieran Trippier made the rather surprising move to La Liga giants Atletico Madrid, a big chance opened up for Kyle Walker-Peters to stake his claim as a real contender for that starting right-back role at Tottenham.

His only genuine competition for the place was of course Serge Aurier, and the Ivory Coast international has built up a reputation for not being the most reliable defensively – the numerous penalties he has conceded are a testament to that.

So when Trippier’s departure was confirmed, Walker-Peters would surely have fancied his chances of stepping into the shoes of the England international and becoming a permanent fixture under Mauricio Pochettino.

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Unfortunately for the £9m-rated ace, that just didn’t turn out to be the case.

He played just three times in the Premier League for the north London side, and all of those appearances came in the first three games of the season, when he featured against Aston Villa, Manchester City and Newcastle respectively.

And then in the January transfer window, even despite new manager Jose Mourinho not having any other specialised cover for the position, the decision was taken to allow Walker-Peters to leave the club on loan.

But his short spell at Southampton – disrupted of course by the ongoing situation surrounding football – has been nothing short of a nightmare.

Missing football!? There’s still plenty of Spurs discussion going on in the Vital Tottenham Forum! Click here to get involved!

He played 73 minutes in the 2-1 defeat to Burnley in the top-flight, but has been named on the bench twice, and not even in the match-day squad on the other two occasions.

The fact is Walker-Peters had a great chance to really establish himself as another Spurs academy product to make a name for themselves in the first-team.

But even with the door being opened by Trippier’s exit, he fluffed his chance big time, and his lack of action for the Saints speaks volumes. The time has come for Spurs to be ruthless with him this summer.

Meanwhile, Spurs must beat the competition to sign this French starlet.

A recent report from the Daily Mirror has revealed some key information regarding the long term future of Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.

What’s the word?

Klopp has transformed the Reds since he was given the reins in 2015 and that certainly hasn’t gone unnoticed across the footballing world.

The German has established himself as one of the best in his field during his time with both Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool, and it seems he could have a chance to cement his legacy at international level.

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Indeed, according to the Daily Mirror, there is growing enthusiasm in Klopp’s homeland to see the 52-year-old succeed Joachim Low as manager of the German national side.

And, intriguingly, Klopp views the opportunity to manage the national side as a natural development in his career.

The same report goes on to reveal Klopp has privately hinted that Liverpool is likely to be his final job in club management.

Ominous Murmurs

While the news does not provide anything concrete to detail a time when Klopp will ideally want to move on to pastures new, the information presented does indeed make for ominous reading.

That Lowe’s contract with the German national side ends in 2022 combined with Klopp’s desire to leave club management at the end of his Liverpool stint suggests everything is in place for all parties – with the likely exception of Liverpool – to get what they want.

With no desire to embark on another role in club management, one can only assume that the Germany job is the one Klopp will be eager to take up when he departs Anfield.

After everything he’s achieved on Merseyside, though, Klopp would surely leave as a true legend of the club – and with the supporters’ blessing – should he decide to leave two years before his contract expires in 2024.

A lot of Crystal Palace fans are raving over a dramatic thriller against Liverpool which was played six years ago at Selhurst Park.

The club posted highlights of the game, in which recently promoted Palace were battling for safety and had to face the Reds who were fighting for the league title against Manchester City, via BBC Sport. No one could have expected the 90 minutes that the footballing world was about to see, as Liverpool eventually held a 3-0 lead and the away end were singing for them to score more.

However the final ten minutes saw a historic comeback as a deflected strike from Damien Delaney gave the club the faintest of hope, before a brace from Dwight Gayle including an 88th minute equaliser meant the South London side salvaged a draw and damaged Liverpool’s chances of winning the title.

The great comeback made Selhurst Park erupt and gave the Palace faithful a very memerable night under the lights in the division. The game is now dubbed ‘Crystanbul’ as the comeback was similar to Liverpool’s in the Champions League final in Istanbul.

Here is what fans had to say following the tweet:

Crystal Palace fans was the biggest comeback in the club’s history? Comment below!

Loads of Tottenham Hotspur fans are buzzing after an interview with Gareth Bale was shared by Daily Hotspur on their Twitter page.

The former Lilywhites man referred to himself as a Spurs fan when asked what it was like watching the Champions League final against Liverpool last year, branding it a bit disappointing.

The north London club were defeated 2-0 by the Reds with goals from Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi sinking the Spurs ship on the night.

Indeed, Bale was watching his old side suffer but it is his comments that have given THFC supporters a buzz.

The 30-year old became a fan favourite at White Hart Lane, scoring 56 goals and providing 58 assists in 203 appearances in all competitions across six seasons with the club, according to Transfermarkt.

He broke many supporter’s hearts by moving to Real Madrid, and has since netted 105 times and made 67 assists in 249 games in all competitions for Los Blancos, as per the website.

Nevertheless, these fans were buzzing when they heard his comments, with some predicting a return to Tottenham:

Missing football!? There’s still plenty of Spurs discussion going on in the Vital Tottenham Forum! Click here to get involved!

Loads of Newcastle United fans have reacted to a report from The Sun that football supporters face random ballots for match tickets next season due to the global pandemic crisis.

As per the outlet, the Premier League’s chief medical officer Mark Gillett has predicted that there are unlikely to be any capacity crowds allowed for all of the 2020/21 campaign.

Gillett says that ‘the public health situation is not going to change in the next six to 12 months’, suggesting that games will be played behind closed doors until at least November.

However, clubs have been briefed that fans may be welcomed back in vastly-reduced numbers during the second half of the 2020/21 term.

Teams are unable to sell season tickets for next season, knowing that there is little chance of fans being able to attend matches before Christmas.

Reduced capacities is one possible outcome but there is also the possibility that no supporters will be allowed into any stadia until a pandemic vaccine is in widespread use.

These Magpies reacted to the news on Twitter as it could affect them:

Geordies, what do you make of the news? Comment below!

Plenty of Newcastle United fans have been lauding a claim about the prospective takeover in the North East from The Shields Gazette following responses on their weekly feature ‘Toon Trending Topic’ from a couple of their writers.

Journalists Liam Kennedy and Jordan Cronin were asked a variety of questions about the proposed deal between Mike Ashley and the Saudi-led consortium and came up with some answers that were lauded by several members of the Toon faithful.

For example, when asked if they believe that the deal will get the ‘green light’, Kennedy claimed: “I have seen or heard absolutely nothing to suggest it will not be given the green light. It is my understanding the piracy issues were ironed out a little while back.”

Indeed, issues with the piracy television channel beoutQ were raised by the World Trade Organization (WTO), who ruled that Saudi Arabia were behind the service, which also provides streaming that offers illegal access to sporting events, including games from the Premier League, as per The Guardian.

However, Kennedy suggests that these issues were dealt with a while ago, leading some NUFC supporters to laud his claim.

One Magpie even said that he is ‘confident it will be announced tomorrow’ after reading the claims, but only time will tell if he is correct.

Check out the rest of the reaction on Twitter:

Geordies, do you think the takeover will be announced soon? Comment below!

Timo Werner looked set to be joining Chelsea next season after a shock swoop earlier this month, but an update Julian Nagelsmann could send Blues fans crashing back to earth.

The RB Leipzig manager could have also handed Liverpool a boost in their fading hopes of signing the German star. In an interview with Sport1 (via Sportsmole), Nagelsmann has said he expects Werner to leave the club but nothing is set in stone just yet.

“The transfer is not fixed, you have to emphasise that,” he said on the Chelsea move. Frank Lampard’s side have activated the forward’s release clause and have agreed personal terms, but it seems there are still some dots left to be connected.

After months of speculation surrounding a potential Anfield move, Werner shocked the footballing world by agreeing terms with Chelsea (via BBC Sport). The man who admitted he wanted to play under Jurgen Klopp and felt he would be a ‘good fit’ for the Reds instead reportedly decided to join one of Liverpool’s Premier League rivals.

As a result, many Liverpool fans were naturally heartbroken whilst the Blues are rubbing their hands together as they await his arrival. But could a spanner have been tossed into the works following Nagelsmann’s latest comments?

It seems unlikely that Liverpool will be able to rectify any mistakes made along the way of this rollercoaster journey which has ultimately led to a dead end. The current financial climate in football has been tough on multiple clubs and the Reds may simply not have the funds to make the move happen.

Chelsea, however, have done brilliant business in coaxing Werner to London, with the transfer all but completely signed off. It will be a double heartbreak for Kopites if the move goes ahead but it seems like Lampard has done enough to get his man, despite Nagelsmann’s latest comments.

How do you feel about Nagelsmann’s update, Blues fans? Join the conversation in the comments below…