Contenders: Heskey
Saturday, 10 January, 2009
The Wigan forward had a hand in three England goals in 2008 and received praise from all quarters.
During 2008, Fabio Capello awarded caps to 35 players in ten games as England won eight, drew one and lost one. Today we look at Emile Heskey's impact.
Age 30
Date of Birth 11.01.78
Caps in 2008 5
Career Caps 50 Career Goals 5
Wigan Athletic
Eleven months after his last cap against Russia, Emile Heskey made his first international appearance under Fabio Capello in the Czech Republic friendly at Wembley Stadium in August.
He replaced Jermain Defoe at half-time and had a hand in Joe Cole’s late equaliser. A David Bentley corner
caused chaos in the Czech area.
John Terry won the first header, before Heskey and Wes Brown somehow combined at the edge of the goal to work the ball across to Cole and he prodded home from close range to rescue a draw.
Heskey’s impact in that second half prompted Capello to call upon the Wigan striker’s services on four other occasions throughout the year, all in World Cup Qualifiers.
He was once more called from the bench against Andorra as Joe Cole continued his knack of saving England with a second-half brace.
Heskey’s first start under Capello came in England’s memorable 4-1 win over Croatia in Zagreb where he was involved in another England goal. With England 1-0 up through Theo Walcott, Gareth Barry began a second-half move and Heskey, Wayne Rooney and Frank Lampard combined to create the opportunity for Walcott to smash the ball into the bottom corner.
The Wigan front man had another assist in the next Qualifier against Kazakhstan. England were 4-1 up in the final minute when Heskey flicked the ball into Defoe’s path and he raced clear to make it five.
Although injury has somewhat interrupted his year, the 30-year-old has been in impressive form in 2008 and his tall, strong frame, combined with his unselfish approach has earned him plaudits throughout England’s qualifying campaign.
Quotes
“It's nice to see the manager still has faith in me and wants to put me in the squad.
"The coaching has been very good, they go over the specifics really well and they make sure everything is nailed down.
"I'm just enjoying my football at the moment, you have to really because it will pass you by very quickly you know. I know some people who are coming to the end of their careers and they say you've just got to enjoy every minute of it.
"I never gave up, and that was shown when I got back into the squad for the two [Euro 2008] qualifiers with Israel and Russia. You can never give up, you just have to hang in there and keep performing and hope that the manager comes knocking."
Emile Heskey