England vs Scotland: Classic combined XI
England vs Scotland is the oldest rivalry in international football, with the two nations playing the first ever officially recognised international fixture way back in 1872.
Only an estimated 4,000 people attended the game held at a cricket ground near Glasgow, but international football as we know it was born in that moment.
Both nations have produced countless incredible players over the near 150 years since.
Here’s a look at an England and Scotland combined all-time XI…
1. Gordon Banks (GK)
England caps: 73
The late Gordon Banks kept goal for England in the 1966 World Cup, and is responsible for one of the greatest saves of all time when he somehow turned a header from Pele over the bar in the tournament four years later. He sadly passed away in 2019.
2. Gary Neville (RB)
England caps: 85
Gary Neville was the first of Manchester United’s famed ‘Class of ’92’ to break into the senior England setup and went to five major tournaments, starting with Euro ’96. He was a proven winner at club level and one of the best full-backs of his generation.
3. Alan Hansen (CB)
Scotland caps: 26
Even though he remains one of the greatest Scottish players of all time, Alan Hansen played relatively sparingly for Scotland during an eight-year international career and famously missed out on the 1986 World Cup. But he won eight league titles and three European Cups for Liverpool.
4. Bobby Moore (CB)
England caps: 108
The legendary Bobby Moore is the only England captain to lift a World Cup trophy, presented with the Jules Rimet trophy after the 1966 final against West Germany at Wembley. Only 51 when he died in 1993, he was the third player in history to reach 100 caps for England.
5. Ashley Cole (LB)
England caps: 107
There is a strong argument to suggest that Ashley Cole is the best left-back England has ever produced, and he was effectively an automatic pick for the national side for 12 years. He made his 100th appearance in a prestige friendly against Brazil in 2013.
6. Graeme Souness (CM)
Scotland caps: 54
Graeme Souness was one of the best midfielders in the world at his peak with Liverpool in the early 1980s, helping the Reds win three European Cups during his time there. With Scotland, he went to three consecutive World Cups in 1978, 1982 and 1986.
7. David Beckham (CM)
England caps: 115
No England midfield felt complete without David Beckham between 1996 and 2009, with the ex-Manchester United and Real Madrid star the country’s most capped outfield player of all time when he retired. He also captained the team on 59 occasions.
8. Bobby Charlton (AM)
England caps: 106
Bobby Charlton was England’s leading goalscorer for 45 years after he retired from international duty in 1970. The World Cup winner was world class for club and country throughout the 1960s and was nominated for the Ballon d’Or nine times in total, winning it in 1966.
9. Kenny Dalglish (FW)
Scotland caps: 102
Kenny Daglish is a Liverpool legend as both a player and a manager and is also Scotland’s joint all-time leading goalscorer, as well as the only Scottish player in history with more than 100 senior international caps. He was at World Cups in 1974, 1978 and 1982.
10. Denis Law (FW)
Scotland caps: 55
The man who shares the title of Scotland’s top goalscorer with Dalglish is Manchester United legend and 1964 Ballon d’Or winner Denis Law. He scored the opening goal when Scotland famously beat reigning world champions England at Wembley in 1967.
11. Wayne Rooney (FW)
England caps: 120
A debutant at 17, Wayne Rooney is both England’s most capped outfield player of all time and leading scorer with 53 goals in 120 appearances. It was a rollercoaster international career, but his injury in Euro 2004 will always a huge ‘what if’ moment for England fans.
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