An England International call-up can be one of the great honours of a player’s career. League form, recent achievements and an impressive start to a campaign can all be catalysts for a phone call from the England boss and a place in the squad.
Here are five players who received England call ups, won a cap or two, but failed to cement a regular spot in the squad.
Michael Ricketts
Michael Ricketts was a striker playing in the Premier League for Bolton Wanderers when he was called up by Sven-Goran Eriksson in February 2002. Ricketts caught the Swede’s eye after firing 15 Premier League goals for Wanderers by the start of the year. He made his one and only England appearance in a friendly against the Netherlands. And even then he was hooked at half time for the mighty Kevin Phillips after failing to make an impression.
This would have a knock-on effect for Ricketts, as he returned to Bolton and subsequently failed to score again for the rest of the season. He was shipped off to Middlesbrough, never played for England again and was convicted of beating up a girlfriend in 2011.
James Tarkowski
Embed from Getty ImagesBurnley defender James Tarkowski was given his England debut in 2018, against Italy. Gareth Southgate was impressed enough to hand him one more cap and had him on standby for the World Cup finals in Russia that year, but that was it. Since signing for Everton in 2022 he has largely been involved in relegation battles – hardly a signal of a watertight defence. At 30, he still has time on his side but it is hard to see how or why Southgate would turn to him again.
Danny Drinkwater
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After helping Leicester City win the Premier League in 2016, Danny Drinkwater was one of the most talked about central midfielders in the country. His eye-catching season with the Foxes earned him a call-up to the England squad under Roy Hodgson in March that season. He made his debut against The Netherlands and won the man of the match award too, despite England losing the game 2-1. Drinkwater was named in the 26-man provisional squad for Euro 2016 but was one of three players who did not make the final cut.
Drinkwater made a total of three England appearances, and has struggled to match the form that made him am international. He joined Chelsea for a then huge £35million fee, but played only 12 times and was loaned out to Burnley, Aston Villa and Turkish side Kasimpasa before being released in 2022. At the time of writing, he has not played professional football since.
Patrick Bamford
Embed from Getty ImagesPatrick Bamford has just the one senior cap for England to go with the six he earned for the under-18, under-19 and under-21 sides. Gareth Southgate selected him in August 2021 and played him for 62 minutes of a 4-0 win against Andorra, at Wembley. His form for Leeds United in the Premier League could have led to more caps, but he suffered terrible luck with injuries and a subsequent loss of form. He is technically young enough to come back but will struggles to make an impression with Leeds now battling away down in the Championship.
Lewis Cook
Embed from Getty ImagesWhen Lewis Cook broke through at Leeds United during the 2014-15 season, he was touted as one of the best prospects in England. After two years in the Championship, at Elland Road, he got a move to Premier League Bournemouth. During this time, Cook was featuring for England at Under-19, 20 and 21 level.
In 2017, Cook was called up to the senior squad for the first time, England were scheduled to play Brazil in a friendly, but he did not feature. Five months later, he was called up again as England faced Netherlands and Italy in two pre-World Cup tournament friendlies. Cook managed to make his debut in the latter of those two fixtures, coming off the bench and featuring in a 1-1 draw at Wembley. His one and only cap for England.
