The ex-Southampton, Everton and England striker picks an attack-minded line-up full of players from his Saints days, plus a Stokie blessed with a wand of a left foot
ANTTI NIEMI
“Antti was a magnificent goalkeeper during a good spell we had at Southampton. He was a madman, but keepers are a different breed anyway. On his day Antti was unbeatable, it was insane. I almost included Nigel Martyn, who was with me at Everton.”
JASON DODD
“I made my England debut in 2003 against Australia and our right-back was Gary Neville, who was obviously a top player. I’m going to pick another old Southampton team-mate in Jason, though. He was the captain and leader of our side, with the deepest voice in football. He used to bark loads of orders at me on the pitch, but I didn’t mind!”
CLAUS LUNDEKVAM
“As a defender, Claus was very powerful and quick. He always had a great mentality when it came to training and games, and he led by example. I played at international level with Sol Campbell, and I should also mention him as probably the toughest centre-back I faced at club level in my career.”
DAVID WEIR
“David was a little bit older when I moved to Everton, but he was a master of reading the game. Dean Richards, who’s sadly no longer with us, was a brilliant centre-back too, and someone who could raise the spirit of a room due to his character. He carried that presence onto the pitch.”
WAYNE BRIDGE
“Wayne played in the same era as Ashley Cole and I believe you could have used them both on the left for England, swapping roles. I remember sharing a room with him one pre-season when we were in Scotland. He was pacing around, having heard about a possible switch to Chelsea – I just told him, ‘You’ve got to go for it’.”
PAUL SCHOLES
“Paul is probably the best midfielder ever to play in the Premier League, and a simple selection. In this side, he could do what he did best – sit in front of the back four, collect the ball and start moves. I reckon 99 out of 100 guys that played with Scholesy would choose him in a dream team like this.”
MIKEL ARTETA
“I was spoilt with England, enjoying service from midfielders like Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and David Beckham, but I’m giving the nod to another ex-club-mate in Arteta. He had unbelievable ability on the ball, was a good character and very intense.”
MATTHEW ETHERINGTON
“As a forward, I’m thinking, ‘Which win
