Yesterday Steven Gerrard announced that he was hanging up his international football boots. The Liverpool midfielder who captained the England squad for this summer's 2014 FIFA World Cup will not hit the pitch again wearing an England football shirt. This shock announcement leaves Roy Hodgson the decision of who will replace him, particularly after the disappointment of the squad's recent World Cup performance.
The latest England 2014 home jersey is sleek white football shirt manufactured by Nike. This shirt was launched in preparation for the 2014 FIFA World Cup campaign and made a single appearance in Brazil. However, after the teams early exit the focus of this shirt will now turn to the Euro 2016 qualifying rounds, but a different captain will be leading that team. Support the new captain and the team and order this football from Soccer Box today.
Career of the Former England Captain
It is fair to say that Steven Gerrard has had a successful football career. He is a midfield player that has exhibited unusual loyalty to a single club and his country. Gerrard joined the Liverpool youth squad in 1987, he made his 1st team debut in 1998 and has remained a solid, loyal and dependable member of the team to date. He was named Liverpool captain in 2003 and has retained that honor to date.
Gerrard's club career has included wining the FA Cup twice, the League Cup three times, and the UEFA Champions League once in 2005. To date he hasn't had the honor of winning the topflight Premier League trophy, however, his loyalty to his club makes him one of the most admirable football players in the world.
Playing at an international level is one of the biggest honors available to any football player. Gerrard was 1st called up to wear the England football shirt in 2000, and has had 14 years and 114 appearances of international stardom. In fact he is the 3rd most capped England player in the history of the squad behind Peter Shilton and David Beckham at 125 and 115 caps respectively.
It would have been fantastic if Gerrard could of retired on a high, but at 34 years old and with 6 major football tournaments under his belt it was always a possibility that the 2014 FIFA World Cup would be his last. The team wearing the England 2014 home jersey did not live up to expectations in Brazil, in fact the team's tournament was over after just 2 disappointing games.
England's 1st match against Italy resulted in a 2-1, loss their 2nd game against Uruguay ended with the same disappointing result and ensured that they could not qualify for the later stages of the tournament. Against Costa Rica, in their final World Cup match England managed a 0-0 draw to secure a single consolatory point. Not the blaze of glory that Gerrard would of hoped to end his career on, but many years of loyal, determined service to the national team will ensure Steven Gerrard is always remembered as one of the greatest England players of all time.
A Fitting Replacement
With the UEFA European Championship qualifying campaign due to begin in September Roy Hodgson does not have months to choose a suitable replacement. So who might be wearing the captain armband alongside their England football shirt heading into the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign?
There are a couple of obvious choices for Hodgson to consider, and then some bright young hopefuls that may be more worthy of the prestigious black captain armband.
Obvious choices to don the captain armband alongside the England 2014 home jersey are striker Wayne Rooney and goalkeeper Joe Hart. Both have several years of service, and international tournaments worth of experience but neither has excelled, and both were questionable additions to the 2014 FIFA World Cup squad.
Jack Wilshere, Gary Cahill and Jordan Henderson are all being touted as alternative options. Wilshere has had injury worries and may not be a favored choice of Hodgson, whereas, Cahill is more likely to be at the top of his list as a strong-center back with great work ethic and commitment to the squad.
Jordan Henderson would be a brave choice, he was certainly one of the team highlights at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and has experience of captaining the England Under-21 squad. However, does he have enough senior team experience and respect to captain the squad for a major tournament, one at which the fans will be demanding an improved performance compared to what was displayed in Brazil?
Only Roy Hodgson can decide on Steven Gerrard's replacement, you can get ready for Euro 2016 qualifying and shop for an England football shirt at Soccer Box while stocks last.
