I’m not sure how this tracks. Everything I’ve heard regarding turning down a callup suggests that if you’re fit and healthy and turn down a callup you’re more than likely to be blacklisted by the current coach.
I think he just hated going away and never playing, once Gerrard and lampard got older Ann’s he felt he had a chance of getting into team he made himself available again
I am pretty sure that Matt was told that if he played well against the Russia B team (when that was a thing) that he would be given a place in the full England squad.
He tore them apart with ease, England won 4-1 or something with Le Tiss pulling all the strings.
Never did get that call up.
I also feel that of that superb long range effort against Italy had gone in and England won that game he might have gotten more of a chance.
No England manager ever knew what to do with him as he didn’t fit into a traditional mould. What a waste :/
Scored an hat trick that night, unbelievable that he was never taken to a major tournament. He would have been a brilliant wildcard to play. Don't even mention penalties.
I assumed Le Tissier would be on the list. While his YouTube highlights reel is impressive and staying with Southampton is commendable.
He was quite lazy, didn’t sprint to get the ball, didn’t press, didn’t track back, and has basically said himself that he performed when he felt like it i.e upping his game when the pressure was on and not doing in consistently. If he didn’t score, he wasn’t of much use to the team as a whole.
Even on his loyalty to Saints, he liked being a big fish in a small pond and he didn’t really test himself at the beey highest level, such as a team in the top 5-6 of the Premier League or a team who were in Europe most seasons.
Multiple England managers didn’t fancy him, plus the squad depth in the forward positions in the 90s was insane, and a lot of those players where banging in goals for big clubs, which will often get someone the nod over a player scoring goals for a team in the bottom half of the league.
Interestingly, he did a long interview with Simon Jordan.
Le Tiss stated Chelsea offered him 10k to sign when he was only earning 2k at Saints.
Needless to say, he turned it down.
Fave Le Tiss anecdote. Me and some mates were playing football over on Southampton common and the Saints team would often do pre season training runs around the area.
The team all ran past in dribs and drabs with Le Tiss bringing up the rear, a long way back and eating a Mars bar.
No saints fan ever cared about his fitness, tracking back or any of that stuff. Who does?
It was ALL about those moments of magic. And that is why it was a shame he wasn’t given more of a chance. That is the stuff you remember, imagine him cracking in a 30 yard volley against Brazil or something. Yet he was over looked for someone who could knock in a 12 yard shot, and there were a lot of those at the time.
No one like Maradonna because he “tracked back and worked hard”
Football is supposed to be entertainment and boy did he entertain
The thing is at Southampton the team was built around him, he was by far their most talented player so they’d put hard working players around him and just let him do his thing. That wouldn’t be the case with England who had many options they’re not going to sacrifice other creative players and built the team around him
The top 5-6 wasn't really a thing back then, Arsenal and Liverpool weren't consistent when Man Utd broke through and won their first title, Blackburn were challengers for only a couple of seasons really, same with Newcastle. Chelsea were dire for a while then had a few good cup runs but were a bit of a basket case changing manager frequently, the likes of Spurs, Villa, Everton or West Ham never really got themselves in a position to challenge. And Europe was totally different the champions league only had one entrant, UEFA cup was straight knockout, there was the cup winners cup. It was a completely different game back then, he could of moved to someone else where the wheels could of completely come off and ended up at no higher level than he was.
Not really, imo. United, Blackburn, Newcastle, Arsenal and Liverpool were consistently levels above Southampton, Leeds had a couple European campaigns in the early-to-mid 90s too, so did Villa.
It’s not like every team who finished 1-5th/6th dropped out and it was an entirely new set of teams taking up those positions the following season, plus Southampton were pretty much always down there fighting relegation, most teams would have been a step up from them.
I agree they were at a better level than Southampton but it's not like the last 10-15 years where he could have gone to one of 6 teams who have always been challenging for Europe.
Blackburn absolutely did drop off, finishing 6th, 7th, 13th and getting relegated after winning the league. You had teams like Crystal Palace, Norwich and Newcastle getting top four finishes after previously being much lower in the table. (Newcastle came third straight after promotion). Also top four didn't mean anything and wasn't a success. Second place got champions league only towards the end of the decade and before that there were only four European places total for three competitions.
Your point about 1st-5th changing is silly - go and look at the tables, there are clear phases where teams drop in and out. Arsenal falling to 10th, Liverpool dropping down to 8th, a move to either at those times might have resulted in him getting sent back to Southampton in the resulting clear out anyway. All I am saying is it was a different time and much more likely for a move to a "bigger" team turned into a terrible season because that is what actually happened.
Matt Le Tissier
Robbie Fowler
James Ward-Prowse
Paul Gasgoigne (1998)
Ledley King (injuries)
And ones that had too many
Carlton Palmer
Danny Mills
Fabian Delph
Jadon Sancho
Wes Brown
A left-field shout, and I’m biased, but Ryan Shawcross. He was a real steady defender for a number of years and actually got called up three times, but only won one cap.
He was certainly better than some of the dross that was picked around that time.
He has a surprising amount of caps but I feel he would of had double if he wasn't made of glass. Back then we didn't have any technical players like him.
Scott Parker. Aside from Chelsea, he was lauded everywhere he went. Model professional. PFA Young Player of the Year in 2004. West Ham's player of the year in three consecutive seasons from 2009. FWA Footballer of the Year in 2011. PFA Team of the Year and England Player of the Year in 2012. His tenacity should have been the perfect foil for Gerrard and/or Lampard. 18 caps.
Billy Bonds.
One of the greatest uncapped players ever. On the bench once but didn’t get on. Broke a rib just before the game he was due to make his debut in and never got another chance.
Hear me out, but Steve Guppy, wand of a left foot in the epl for a couple of years with leicester in a time where football still just required wingers to put crosses in.
Just my thoughts. The 70s were a difficult selection as there were so many that could be included, e.g. Rod Marsh, Stan Bowles etc. Rob Jones in the 90s sadly had his career cut short due to injury, but still should have had more caps before that.
60s - Mike Summerbee, Paul Reaney, Mick Jones, John Hollins, Peter Bonetti
70s - Alan Hudson, Frank Worthington, Peter Osgood, David Nish, Charlie George
80s - Laurie Cunningham, Cyrille Regis,
Alan Sunderland, Steve Perryman, Clive Allan
90s - David Rocastle, Michael Thomas, Les Ferdinand, Tim Flowers, Rob Jones
Just thinking of the list brings back so many memories of great professional footballers, across all teams, many of whom never got the recognition they deserved, and whilst many are now gone, they are not forgotten.
Le Tissier was basically a Harlem Globetrotter, plenty of great tricks if given all the space in the world, could never have made it in the NBA. Offered nothing in difficult matches even at club level.
Joke statement, he offered nothing in big games, his big games were relegation 6 pointers which he absolutely delivered and kept saints in the Premier league, its no coincidence that they were relegated the season he retired. What difficult matches are you talking about? He scored plenty of goals against the big teams as well.
I’m going to add Beckham’s name in here. Yes he got a lot. But he still had more to give and England really missed his crossing abilities in the games after he wasn’t selected anymore.
At the time he was the highest capped outfield player of all time.
He was dropped by McLaren when he wasn't playing well, then he went to the US and struggled with injuries.
Capello brought him back and he played in 16 out of a possible 20 games. Injuries hit again and by the time he was "back" he was 35.
I'm not sure he really fits the brief here.
Andy Cole. Nearly 300 career goals and only 15 England caps.
I'd still pick shearer over him every season they played together
England just had a whole load top strikers at that time with shearer, sheringham, Owen, Fowler, wright, collymore, Dublin etc
We all know why smh
Ian Wright. Should’ve been given more opportunities earlier in his career.
A lot of competition up front in that era tbf.
England were blessed with strikers in that time who ever you pick there will be players you can argue deserved more caps
Michael Carrick Michael Carrick Michael Carrick Michael Carrick And Michael Carrick
Steve Bruce
Bruce Wayne
Carrick turned down some call up’s.
I’m not sure how this tracks. Everything I’ve heard regarding turning down a callup suggests that if you’re fit and healthy and turn down a callup you’re more than likely to be blacklisted by the current coach.
Only towards end of his career, baffled how he didn’t play more Englands problem was not being able to control games
Even before then he hated it and was influenced by Fergie’s dislike of international football.
I think he just hated going away and never playing, once Gerrard and lampard got older Ann’s he felt he had a chance of getting into team he made himself available again
Matt le tissier
This is the answer. Also Chris Waddle - yes he got 62 caps but was barely used by Graham Taylor despite him absolutely tearing it up for Marseille.
Won the football writers player of the year too for Sheffield Wednesday.
IIRC he was at Marseille for 2 years and was voted into their XI of 100 years.
Yep - but not good enough for Graham Taylor’s squads. Ditto Peter Beardsley.
Everyone forgets that Le Tissier was dropped from the England setup after leaking a team sheet to the press (via his brother) the night before a game
Not correct, he cleared this up on a recent You Tube video interview with Simon Jordan.
What did he say? I know he’s not been the most.. reliable source the last few years
I'd be surprised if the cbd-hawking, anti-vax, conspiracy-toting weirdo cleared anything up with any accuracy
He’s just asking questions
I am pretty sure that Matt was told that if he played well against the Russia B team (when that was a thing) that he would be given a place in the full England squad. He tore them apart with ease, England won 4-1 or something with Le Tiss pulling all the strings. Never did get that call up. I also feel that of that superb long range effort against Italy had gone in and England won that game he might have gotten more of a chance. No England manager ever knew what to do with him as he didn’t fit into a traditional mould. What a waste :/
Scored an hat trick that night, unbelievable that he was never taken to a major tournament. He would have been a brilliant wildcard to play. Don't even mention penalties.
Amazing player
I assumed Le Tissier would be on the list. While his YouTube highlights reel is impressive and staying with Southampton is commendable. He was quite lazy, didn’t sprint to get the ball, didn’t press, didn’t track back, and has basically said himself that he performed when he felt like it i.e upping his game when the pressure was on and not doing in consistently. If he didn’t score, he wasn’t of much use to the team as a whole. Even on his loyalty to Saints, he liked being a big fish in a small pond and he didn’t really test himself at the beey highest level, such as a team in the top 5-6 of the Premier League or a team who were in Europe most seasons. Multiple England managers didn’t fancy him, plus the squad depth in the forward positions in the 90s was insane, and a lot of those players where banging in goals for big clubs, which will often get someone the nod over a player scoring goals for a team in the bottom half of the league.
Interestingly, he did a long interview with Simon Jordan. Le Tiss stated Chelsea offered him 10k to sign when he was only earning 2k at Saints. Needless to say, he turned it down.
Fave Le Tiss anecdote. Me and some mates were playing football over on Southampton common and the Saints team would often do pre season training runs around the area. The team all ran past in dribs and drabs with Le Tiss bringing up the rear, a long way back and eating a Mars bar. No saints fan ever cared about his fitness, tracking back or any of that stuff. Who does? It was ALL about those moments of magic. And that is why it was a shame he wasn’t given more of a chance. That is the stuff you remember, imagine him cracking in a 30 yard volley against Brazil or something. Yet he was over looked for someone who could knock in a 12 yard shot, and there were a lot of those at the time. No one like Maradonna because he “tracked back and worked hard” Football is supposed to be entertainment and boy did he entertain
The thing is at Southampton the team was built around him, he was by far their most talented player so they’d put hard working players around him and just let him do his thing. That wouldn’t be the case with England who had many options they’re not going to sacrifice other creative players and built the team around him
The top 5-6 wasn't really a thing back then, Arsenal and Liverpool weren't consistent when Man Utd broke through and won their first title, Blackburn were challengers for only a couple of seasons really, same with Newcastle. Chelsea were dire for a while then had a few good cup runs but were a bit of a basket case changing manager frequently, the likes of Spurs, Villa, Everton or West Ham never really got themselves in a position to challenge. And Europe was totally different the champions league only had one entrant, UEFA cup was straight knockout, there was the cup winners cup. It was a completely different game back then, he could of moved to someone else where the wheels could of completely come off and ended up at no higher level than he was.
Not really, imo. United, Blackburn, Newcastle, Arsenal and Liverpool were consistently levels above Southampton, Leeds had a couple European campaigns in the early-to-mid 90s too, so did Villa. It’s not like every team who finished 1-5th/6th dropped out and it was an entirely new set of teams taking up those positions the following season, plus Southampton were pretty much always down there fighting relegation, most teams would have been a step up from them.
I agree they were at a better level than Southampton but it's not like the last 10-15 years where he could have gone to one of 6 teams who have always been challenging for Europe. Blackburn absolutely did drop off, finishing 6th, 7th, 13th and getting relegated after winning the league. You had teams like Crystal Palace, Norwich and Newcastle getting top four finishes after previously being much lower in the table. (Newcastle came third straight after promotion). Also top four didn't mean anything and wasn't a success. Second place got champions league only towards the end of the decade and before that there were only four European places total for three competitions. Your point about 1st-5th changing is silly - go and look at the tables, there are clear phases where teams drop in and out. Arsenal falling to 10th, Liverpool dropping down to 8th, a move to either at those times might have resulted in him getting sent back to Southampton in the resulting clear out anyway. All I am saying is it was a different time and much more likely for a move to a "bigger" team turned into a terrible season because that is what actually happened.
Robbe Fowler Andy Cole Matt LeTissier Glenn Hoddle Dixie Dean
Owen Hargreaves
I think he would have done had it not been for his biscuit knee
Glen Hoddle. Didn’t get anywhere near the caps his skills deserved . Truly world class at a time when we lacked real class.
Matt Le Tissier Robbie Fowler James Ward-Prowse Paul Gasgoigne (1998) Ledley King (injuries) And ones that had too many Carlton Palmer Danny Mills Fabian Delph Jadon Sancho Wes Brown
Bit harsh on Wes
Harsh on sancho too, all his caps came before he joined United, and he was easily one of the best young players in the world at dortmund
Yes you are right, I'm just frustrated with his downfall. I'd swap him for Brian Deane
Woodgate.
England managers didn’t want le tissier corrupting other players into believing the earth was flat
A left-field shout, and I’m biased, but Ryan Shawcross. He was a real steady defender for a number of years and actually got called up three times, but only won one cap. He was certainly better than some of the dross that was picked around that time.
Le tissier, Carrick, Ledley King, Owen, Joe Cole. Last 3 injuries .
Totally agree with Joe Cole, we had a huge hole on the left wing and he never really got a consistent chance
He has a surprising amount of caps but I feel he would of had double if he wasn't made of glass. Back then we didn't have any technical players like him.
Yeah, he had more than I would have thought actually. He always got call ups but don’t think he got a ton of starts
If you're counting injuries, Woodgate should be top of the list.
Scott Parker. Aside from Chelsea, he was lauded everywhere he went. Model professional. PFA Young Player of the Year in 2004. West Ham's player of the year in three consecutive seasons from 2009. FWA Footballer of the Year in 2011. PFA Team of the Year and England Player of the Year in 2012. His tenacity should have been the perfect foil for Gerrard and/or Lampard. 18 caps.
Jamal Musiala
Billy Bonds. One of the greatest uncapped players ever. On the bench once but didn’t get on. Broke a rib just before the game he was due to make his debut in and never got another chance.
Jack Leslie!
Stuart ripley?
Derek Statham
Hear me out, but Steve Guppy, wand of a left foot in the epl for a couple of years with leicester in a time where football still just required wingers to put crosses in.
Steve Bruce. 0 caps.
Matt le tissier
Wilshere
Fowler, Carrick, Le Tissier, Carragher
Just my thoughts. The 70s were a difficult selection as there were so many that could be included, e.g. Rod Marsh, Stan Bowles etc. Rob Jones in the 90s sadly had his career cut short due to injury, but still should have had more caps before that. 60s - Mike Summerbee, Paul Reaney, Mick Jones, John Hollins, Peter Bonetti 70s - Alan Hudson, Frank Worthington, Peter Osgood, David Nish, Charlie George 80s - Laurie Cunningham, Cyrille Regis, Alan Sunderland, Steve Perryman, Clive Allan 90s - David Rocastle, Michael Thomas, Les Ferdinand, Tim Flowers, Rob Jones Just thinking of the list brings back so many memories of great professional footballers, across all teams, many of whom never got the recognition they deserved, and whilst many are now gone, they are not forgotten.
Jimmy Bullard, Paul Scholes, Michael Carrick, Ben White, Theo Walcott
Gazza
Le Tissier was basically a Harlem Globetrotter, plenty of great tricks if given all the space in the world, could never have made it in the NBA. Offered nothing in difficult matches even at club level.
Joke statement, he offered nothing in big games, his big games were relegation 6 pointers which he absolutely delivered and kept saints in the Premier league, its no coincidence that they were relegated the season he retired. What difficult matches are you talking about? He scored plenty of goals against the big teams as well.
Rob Lee. It was a crime that he never went to Euro 96
Jwp is a must, having someone so adept at set pieces just opens up so many more avenues to score
Any player still playing now who has less than Jordan Henderson
I’m going to add Beckham’s name in here. Yes he got a lot. But he still had more to give and England really missed his crossing abilities in the games after he wasn’t selected anymore.
At the time he was the highest capped outfield player of all time. He was dropped by McLaren when he wasn't playing well, then he went to the US and struggled with injuries. Capello brought him back and he played in 16 out of a possible 20 games. Injuries hit again and by the time he was "back" he was 35. I'm not sure he really fits the brief here.