Football Food For Thought / Feizal Rahman / 23 May 2010 /

In part two of his study of England's greatest-ever World Cup players, Feizal Rahman turns his attention to the defenders, featuring such illustrious names as Gary Neville, Ray Wilson and of course...Bobby Moore.

Billy Wright (1950, 1954, 1958)

The first Englishman to play in three World Cups, Wright was also the first footballer in the world to reach 100 international caps. Captaining the side for 90 of his 105 appearances - mostly at centre-half - Wright would surely have made even more were it not for World War II.

Part of the first squad to represent England at the highest level, Wright was also a pioneer for some of today's internationals, having married Joy of 1950's pop group the Beverley Sisters to make the couple the latter day equivalent of 'Posh and Becks'.

Bobby Moore (1966, 1970)

A saint-like figure of English football, Moore is the only England captain to have ever lifted the World Cup. Although not blessed with pace, his confident and intelligent reading of the game never allowed this to hamper his defending.

Moore's finest performance though came in defeat to Brazil in Mexico 1970, his perfect tackle on Jairzinho arguably never bettered. But it was his statesman-like leadership that earned Moore the greatest respect and his embrace with Pele at the end of the game was an iconic moment, the Brazilian legend later claiming Moore to be 'the greatest defender I ever played against.'

Ray Wilson (1962, 1966)

Ever-present in each of England's fixtures in 1962 and 1966, Wilson was the eldest member of the World Cup winning side and earned great respect from the rest of his team accordingly.

A highly reliable performer at left-back, Wilson's unflappable nature brought a sense of calm to the backline in the face of opposition pressure. Testament to his character, team-mate Nobby Stiles commented, "On the rare occasion Ray made a mistake, he would never hide. He was an inspiration to us all."

George Cohen (1966)

A combination of strength and speed enabled Cohen to play an integral role in the '66 World Cup winning side. With Sir Alf Ramsey opting to play without traditional wingers, overlapping runs from Cohen down the right-flank provided a great tactical weapon that would leave opposition defences exposed.

Injury to established right-back Jimmy Armfield pre-tournament gave Cohen his World Cup opportunity but an injury of his own would cut short his career in its prime. But having duly played his part in 1966, Cohen's only World Cup appearance would be a winning one.

Terry Butcher (1982, 1986, 1990)

A veteran of three World Cups, Butcher was a fearless, unyielding centre-back - his lionheart persona typified in a crucial qualifier for Italia '90. Having picked up a severe cut to the head, Butcher got stitched up, bandaged and continued to play on, relentlessly heading the ball away and worsening his wound.

Having secured qualification for England, Butcher then left us with the unforgettable picture of his bloodstained face and shirt and manic stare in his eyes to leave no-one in any doubt of the lengths the man would go to for his country.

Kenny Sansom (1982, 1986)

England's most capped full-back with 86 appearances, Sansom was the national side's first-choice left-back throughout the 1980's. A natural leader on the pitch, Sansom's consistency with his tackling, positioning and crossing meant his place only came under threat by Stuart Pearce in advance of Italia '90.

However, current incumbent Ashley Cole seems certain to overtake Sansom's appearance record with 77 caps to his name. He has already played more World Cup matches and is likely to extend that further should England progress in South Africa ([1.37] to win Group C).

Gary Neville (1998, 2002, 2006)

At club-level, it's hard to find a more decorated player anywhere in the world but it's easy to neglect the fact that Neville also represented England at six major tournaments - from Euro '96 to the 2006 World Cup.

Age, form and injury concerns persuaded Fabio Capello to leave the Manchester United stalwart out of his preliminary 30-man squad for South Africa, though some have questioned his omission. With 85 caps, there is no more experienced right-back in English history and Neville's on and off the field leadership skills set him apart from others, both past and present.

Rio Ferdinand (2002, 2006)

A 19-year-old Ferdinand was part of the France '98 squad, though was not chosen by Glenn Hoddle to play in any games. However, under Sven Goran Eriksson, he quickly established himself as England's first-choice centre-back and played in every game of the 2002 and 2006 tournaments.

Now 31, Ferdinand is set to captain the side in South Africa, providing he can prove he has overcome fitness issues that have plagued his season at Manchester United. At [1.35] to lead the team out in the first group game against USA, Ferdinand will hope to go on to become the second ex-West Ham defender to lift the World Cup for England ([7.4] to do so).

In case you missed, here is Feizal's short-list of goalkeepers and managers.

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