Ince started his career by joining London side West Ham United as an apprentice in July 1985 and he went on to play for the Hammers with some distinction for four years, making 72 appearances and scoring seven goals.

Having already picked up two caps at England Youth level, in his final two seasons Ince's form was good enough to earn himself a call-up into Dave Sexton's under 21 squad as well attract the attention of a host of top sides.

Amid some degree of controversy, Ince was snapped up by Alex Ferguson, who was trying to build a new side in his image at Old Trafford.

The lure of Manchester United was too strong to turn down and West Ham were not in a position to turn their backs on the £1 million that United were prepared to offer and so, in September 1989, Ince made the move north.

In six seasons at Old Trafford Ince was an integral part of the side that Ferguson built and which finally won the championship in 1992/93. After winning The FA Cup in 1990, Ince went on to claim the 1992 League Cup, though that season ultimately ended in disappointment as Leeds pipped United to the League Championship. 

The following season, however, saw United finally end their 26-year wait for the championship and Ince complete his collection of the major honours that the domestic game has to offer.

United won the first new-look Premier League by ten points from second-placed Aston Villa and then, a year later, won the Double for the first time. 

The 1994/95 season turned out to be Ince's last in Manchester. United won nothing that year as they came second to Kenny Dalglish's Blackburn in the League and lost The Cup Final to Everton thanks to Paul Rideout's header.

Despite continuing to play at the highest level for the Red Devils and England, Ince left as Ferguson looked to reshuffle his side, bringing in fresh new faces such as Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes and David Beckham.

Ince's move to Internazionale in Italy in June 1995 for £7 million still came as something of surprise, as Ince was excelling in the Premier League. A somewhat sceptical Inter crowd were soon won over by Ince's complete commitment to the Inter cause and as such he soon became one of their favourite players. 

In that 1995/96 season Inter failed to challenge for a 14th scudetto, finishing seventh in the championship. Ince, though, had a great first season, playing in all but four of Inter's league matches and that summer he joined up with his England colleagues for Euro 96 where he was an ever-present in Terry Venables' midfield. 

The championships ended in disappointment for Ince as England were knocked out by Germany on penalties after a brilliant match at Wembley.  Ince could not bear to watch the shoot-out, sitting with his back to the action throughout. 

Back in Milan, Ince had another successful season with the nerazzurri, scoring 6 times in 24 matches in the championship - in which Inter finished third - and also playing his part in Inter's run through to the UEFA Cup Final.

Ince scored in the third round second-leg match away to Boavista as Inter swept all before them before meeting Schalke in the Final. 

He didn't play in the away first-leg as Inter lost 1-0 but he returned to the line-up for the home match which the Italians won 1-0 thanks to a goal from Ivan Zamorano.

Penalties were again a heart-breaker for Ince though, as Schalke won 4-1 in the resulting penalty shoot-out.

Despite being offered a new, improved contract by club president Massimo Moratti, Ince decided that after two years away it was time to move home and he left Inter as one of the most successful of English players to have ever played abroad. 

The chance to team up with Michael Owen at Liverpool was another key factor in Ince's return to the Premiership. Playing well and scoring freely for the Reds, Ince was a hero for England in their cruch World Cup qualifier away to Italy.

After suffering a head injury, the image of a bandaged Ince leading England to a heroic 0-0 draw to secure qualification will live long in the memory.

At the end of that first season at Anfield, Ince went to France for the World Cup, only to be denied by penalties once again as England lost to Argentina in the second round. This time Ince took a spot-kick himself but saw his effort saved by Carlos Roa - harsh for a man who had been treated so badly by past shoot-outs.

Ince spent one more year on Merseyside before moving to Middlesbrough for £1 million in July 1999 where he stayed up until last summer, making just short of 100 League appearances.

The 2002/03 season saw Ince go to Wolves and he was an important figure in Dave Jones' side's eventual promotion into the Premier League, playing in all but nine of the Molineux side's league matches.

Paul Ince Factfile 

Nationality: English
Place of Birth: Ilford 
Date of Birth: 21 October 1967 
Height: 5' 10''
Weight: 12 02 
Clubs: West Ham, Man Utd, Inter, Liverpool, Middlesbrough, Wolves 
Position: Midfielder

Year

Club

Apps.

Goals

1985/86

West Ham Utd

0

0

1986/87

West Ham Utd

10

1

1987/88

West Ham Utd

28

3

1988/89

West Ham Utd

33

3

1989/90

West Ham Utd

1

0

1989/90

Manchester Utd

26

0

1990/91

Manchester Utd

31

3

1991/92

Manchester Utd

33

3

1992/93

Manchester Utd

41

5

1993/94

Manchester Utd

39

8

1994/95

Manchester Utd

36

5

1995/96

Internazionale

30

3

1996/97

Internazionale

24

6

1997/98

Liverpool

31

8

1998/99

Liverpool

34

6

1999/00

Middlesbrough

32

3

2000/01

Middlesbrough

30

2

2001/02

Middlesbrough

31

2

2002/03

Wolverhampton W

37

2

Paul Ince - England career

1992/93: Spain, Norway, Turkey (x2), Holland, Poland, USA, Brazil, Germany
1993/94: Poland, Holland, San Marino, Denmark, Norway
1994/95: Romania, Rep of Ireland
1995/96: Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Switzerland, Scotland, Holland, Germany
1996/97: Moldova, Poland, Georgia, Italy, Mexico, Georgia, Poland, Italy, France (sub), Brazil
1997/98: Italy, Cameroon, Chile (sub), Switzerland, Portugal, Morocco, Tunisia, Romania, Colombia, Argentina
1998/99: Sweden, France
1999/00: Belgium, Scotland (x2), Brazil, Malta, (sub), Portugal, Germany, Romania
Total: 53 caps, 2 goals

The Englishmen Abroad series is compiled by James Wright