World Cup 2014 - Biographies

Published: 7 May 2014

Rio Ferdinand

Former England captain played for England 81 times before retiring from international football in May 2013
Earned first full England cap at the age of 19
Played centre-back for England in 2002 and 2006 World Cups
At club level he has played for West Ham, Bournemouth, Leeds and Manchester United, who he has been with since 2002
Broke the British transfer fee record and became the world’s most expensive defender twice, firstly moving from West Ham to Leeds for £18m, and then from Leeds to Manchester United for £30m
At Manchester United he has won the Premier League six times, the League Cup twice, the FA Community Shield five times and the UEFA Champions League once

Brad Friedel

Alan Hansen

Former central defender enjoyed a glittering career with Liverpool
Helped Liverpool to eight Division One and three European Cup titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups and six Charity Shields
Managed by Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan and Kenny Dalglish at Anfield, he also won 26 caps for Scotland
Joined Match of the Day in 1992 and retires after the World Cup after 22 years of service

Thierry Henry

FIFA World Cup winner for France at the 1998 World Cup. Also won Euro 2000 and 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup
Received the first of his 123 caps for France in June 1997
Prolific striker scored 51 goals for his country making him France’s all-time top scorer
Enjoyed spells at AS Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, Barcelona and New York Red Bulls
Arsenal’s all-time leading scorer with 228 goals in all competitions
Nominated for the FIFA World Player of the Year twice and was named the PFA Players' Player of the Year twice

Kevin Kilbane

Former Preston North End, West Bromwich Albion, Sunderland, Everton, Wigan Athletic, Hull City, Huddersfield Town, Derby County and Coventry City player
Made his Republic of Ireland debut in September 1997 and featured in the 2002 World Cup where his team were eliminated in the knockout stages against Spain
Played 66 consecutive competitive international games and accrued 110 international caps
Currently a columnist for the Irish Daily Mail and appears regularly on Radio 5 live, Football Focus and Match of the Day

Mark Lawrenson

Former Liverpool and Ireland defender
Started his playing career at Preston North End before signing for Brighton & Hove Albion
Joined Liverpool in 1981 for a then club transfer record fee and went on to win five league titles, two FA Cups, three League Cups and the European Cup
Retired from football in 1992 after earning 39 caps for the Republic of Ireland
Works as a co-commentator and pundit on Football Focus, MOTD2 and Radio 5 live

Neil Lennon

Currently manager of Celtic and the longest continuous serving manager in the top division of Scottish football
During his playing career he played for Manchester City, Crewe Alexandra and Leicester City before making over 200 appearances as a midfielder for Celtic
Won the Scottish Premier League with Celtic five times and was an integral part of the team that reached the UEFA Cup Final in 2003
Made 40 appearances for Northern Ireland over an international career spanning nine years

Gary Lineker

Ex-England captain made 80 appearances for his country
Scored 48 goals for England putting him second on the all-time list, just one behind Sir Bobby Charlton
Top scorer at the 1986 World Cup with six goals, making him the only English player to win the Golden Boot award
At club level, he played for Leicester City, Everton, Barcelona, Tottenham Hotspur and Japanese team Nagoya Grampus Eight
Joined the BBC Sport TV team in 1995, appearing on Sportsnight, Football Focus and Match of the Day
Presented BBC’s flagship football show Match of the Day since 1999

Danny Mills

Former Leeds United, Manchester City and England right-back
Made his England debut in May 2001 and was chosen as England's first choice right-back at the 2002 World Cup
Announced his retirement from football in August 2009 after earning 19 caps for the national team
Has worked as a pundit and commentator on Radio 5 live's football coverage since 2009

Phil Neville

Former Manchester United and Everton player
Won 59 caps for England
At Manchester United he won premier league 6 times, FA Cup 3 times, UEFA Champions League and Intercontinental Cup
Former coach of England U-21s before becoming 1st team coach at Manchester United

Pat Nevin

Played for Clyde, Chelsea, Everton, Tranmere Rovers, Kilmarnock and Motherwell as a right winger
Won 28 caps for Scotland and was selected for the European Championships in Sweden in 1992
Made his final appearance for Scotland in 1996 and retired from league football in 2000
Former chief executive of football at Motherwell between 1998 – 2002
Since retiring has worked as a pundit for BBC Scotland’s Sportscene, Channel Five and Radio 5 live and features regularly on Match Of The Day

Tony Pulis

Current Crystal Palace manager
Obtained FA coaching badge aged 19
Awarded UEFA 'A' licence aged 21 – youngest professional player ever to obtain qualification
Seventeen-year career as a defender playing for Bristol Rovers, Newport County, Bournemouth and Gillingham

Jason Roberts

Recently retired striker played for several clubs including Bristol Rovers, West Bromwich Albion, Wigan Athletic, Blackburn Rovers and Reading in a career spanning 17 years. He also played for the Grenada national team
Made his professional debut for Bristol Rovers in August 1998 before moving to West Bromwich Albion in 2000
Played for Grenada in qualifying campaigns for the 2006 and 2010 World Cup
Regularly features on Radio 5 live football output and Match of the Day

Robbie Savage

Former Crewe Alexandra, Leicester City, Birmingham City, Blackburn Rovers, Derby County central midfielder
Made his international debut for Wales in 1995 and retired a decade later having attained 39 caps
Retired from professional football in May 2011 to concentrate on a media career
An occasional pundit during his playing career, he began to work more regularly in the media during the 2009-10 season.
Now features as a pundit and commentator on Radio 5 live’s football coverage, on 606, Match of the Day and Football Focus

Clarence Seedorf

First player to have won the UEFA Champions League with three different clubs (four in total)
Currently manager of AC Milan
Played 87 times for the Netherlands – scoring 11 goals
At club level, has played for Ajax, Sampdoria, Real Madrid, Internazionale, AC Milan and Botafogo
Was a BBC Sport football pundit at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa and the 2012 UEFA European Championship in Poland and Ukraine

Alan Shearer

Former Southampton, Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United striker
Amassed 283 league goals in his playing career and 379 in all competitions
Won the Premier League title in the 1994-95 season with Rovers
He won 63 England caps and played at Euro ’92, ’96 and 2000 and the 1998 World Cup
Retired in 2006 and joined the BBC as a football pundit on Match of the Day, Match of the Day 2 and Football Focus

Chris Waddle

Former professional footballer and manager
Earned 62 caps for England between 1985 and 1991, including the 1986 and 1990 World Cups and the 1988 European Championship
Former winger for Newcastle, Tottenham, Marseille, Sheffield Wednesday and Sunderland
Waddle played semi-professionally for Hallam FC last year at the age of 52

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