So the dust has settled, Rooney's gotten over his hangover and things are getting back to normal for the fans. Except, of course, that the man everyone loves to hate is now officially the greatest player the English game has ever seen. Or is he? It takes more than goals to secure your spot in the footie hall of fame, you know.
We've been arguing for three days about the players on this list. More than one heated discussion has ended up in someone sulking off for a solitary lunch, unwilling to leave Stuart'Psycho' Pearce off the list. And our resident five-a-side goalie won't speak to anyone because we didn't include Gordon Banks. But hey - there are only five spots, and after much deliberation these are the players we picked...
Captain of the 1966 World Cup-winning team and the greatest defender Pele ever played against (Pele's words, not mine), Bobby Moore might well be the finest English player of them all. His quick thinking was responsible for two goals on that legendary World Cup Final day - the first, from a free kick, for Geoff Hurst's equaliser, and the second setting up the famous'some of the crowd are on the pitch' strike at the end of the game.
When Moore retired from international football in 1973, he held 108 caps. No outfielder would equal this record until David Beckham in 2009.
Position: midfielder. International goals: 49. Sorry, Wayne, but that's even more impressive than scoring 50 as an out-and-out striker.
In 1966, England won the World Cup. Sir Bobby Charlton, one of the finest midfielders ever to don a pair of footie boots, also won the Ballon d'Or (European Footballer of the Year). By this time, he had cemented his reputation as an extraordinary player, having appeared in two previous World Cup competitions. The Munich air disaster survivor would go on to appear in a European competition and one more World Cup. A true legend.
The man who is now known as Posh Spice's husband used to be a talismanic figure in the England squad. He's on this list for his influence as a captain, wearing the iconic number 7 shirt, and for the part he played in some of the most decisive moments in recent footballing history.
Who could forget Beckham's role in our favourite victory since 1966, the 5-1 smashing of Germany at Munich in qualifiers for the 2002 World Cup? Or the free kick that took the team to the Finals, two minutes into injury time against Greece? Yes, he might be remembered now as a style icon and not an old-school midfielder, but behind that perfectly-groomed face is the brain of a footballing general.
The only English striker ever to win the Golden Boot in a World Cup, Lineker defined football for a generation. His equaliser against West Germany in Italia'90 probably caused more pints and plates of dinner to be spilled than any other moment in sporting history.
Football's Mr Nice, Lineker never received a yellow or red card. And at 48 international goals, one behind Sir Bobby Charlton, he scored his way onto this list with ease.
50 goals. 29 years of age. Say what you like about his hair, the stats speak for themselves. No, Rooney hasn't scored many of his 50 in tournament finals, but without the 30 he's netted in qualifiers we wouldn't have got there anyway.
Sometimes infuriating, sometimes blindingly brilliant, the youngest-capped, youngest-scoring England striker is now our most prolific. Hats - and international caps - off.
What do you think of our choices? Should we have swapped our attacking lineup for a stronger back four? Let us know on Facebook and Twitter!
Date Posted: Friday 11th September 2015
Author: Yazmina Wallace
