10 Greatest Footballers Who Were Never Capped For England

9. Kevin Nolan

Big Sam favourite Kevin Nolan may be a controversial inclusion in this list. Though he has forged a successful, respectable career (mostly) in England's top division, no one ever seriously talked him up for England. Well, except the man himself and his favourite manager, of course. Nolan was never the most skillful player but it seems odd that in a professional career spanning 15 years he never got the nod for his country. At his peak, Nolan was a clever attacking midfielder, timing late runs into the box to perfection to dispatch crosses and knock-downs into the net like a low-rent version of Frank Lampard. In the 2003/04 season Nolan nabbed 12 goals from midfield for unfashionable Bolton Wanderers yet when Euro 2004 rolled around he was not even in the conversation. Granted, England's midfield included the likes of Beckham, Scholes, Lampard and Gerrard, but as an option off the bench if in need of a goal, Nolan should have been a shoe-in for the squad. He was surely a better option as a squad player than the perma-crocked Kieron Dyer.