As Frank Lampard looks set to go into management, we find out where the rest of England's Euro 2004 squad went…
Life after football takes on many different paths and it looks like Frank Lampard could well be following in the footsteps others, as he is currently odds-on to become the next Oxford manager.
It got us thinking: What else have those ‘Golden Generation’ of England players done after football?
So we got researching and found out exactly where 23 of England’s brightest talents and their well-regarded manager ended up. We’ve decided that the Golden Generation peaked at Euro 2004, so that’s the squad we’re going with. Your mileage may vary.
GOALKEEPERS
David James
‘Calamity’ James managed to be England’s number one all the way up until 2010 (don’t ask how). He retired after a spell at the Kerala blasters in 2014 and liked it so much, he became their manager this year.
Paul Robinson
Robinson made 41 appearances for the Three Lions in all, retiring from his country in 2010, having not played for three years. He now maintains a low profile, but did appear as a pundit on Sky Sports Soccer Special a couple of months back, still calling it ‘The Premiership’ after all this time.
Ian Walker
Yes, *that* Ian Walker. He only got four caps with England and is probably best remembered for pushing a fan over when in goal for Leicester. He retired in 2008 and now lives in Shanghai according to Wiki. Nice life!
DEFENDERS
Gary Neville & Jamie Carragher
They love each other really. The best double act since the Chuckle Brothers now regularly entertain us on Monday Night Football.
Ashley Cole
When he wasn’t nearly crashing his car for ‘only’ being offered £50,000 a week or shooting interns with an air rifle, Cole was a pretty good footballer. England’s most capped full back, he still turns out regularly for LA Galaxy in the MLS.
John Terry
There’s enough material on the internet to write a novel on Terry, but nothing that would be suitable to put on this page. Not ready to call it quits just yet, he is with Aston Villa as they try and get back to the Premier League.
Sol Campbell
Sulzeer Jeremiah Campbell is an enigma, and has tried his hand at everything, from turning up at Notts County to running for Mayor of London. He is currently unattached, but issued a come and get me plea to join Arsenal’s coaching staff this month.
What a great day kuala Lumper! pic.twitter.com/YdWGYxKOOP
— Sol Campbell (@SolManOfficial) December 3, 2017
Wayne Bridge
Deciding that management was not the path for him, Bridge is now building up a reality TV career, culminating in a spot on Celebrity Boxing, where next month he will fight Made In Chelsea’s Spencer Matthews. I’m not making this up.
Phil Neville
THIS INFORMATION HAS BEEN DELETED. (Just like his Twitter account.)
Ledley King
One of the best defenders of his generation, it’s a shame he could not stay injury free. His knees got the better of him as he retired early, but he remains at Tottenham on an ambassadorial level.
MIDFIELDERS
Steven Gerrard
The first player on this list so far to actually be coaching at a high level, Gerrard is in the academy at his beloved Liverpool and there is every chance that he will become the next Ryan Giggs in the dugout soon. Just, without the Premier League medals.
David Beckham
Shy, retiring Beckham rarely features in the headlines and lives quietly in humble houses between America and England with his wife Victoria and his four children.
#DavidBeckham and @victoriabeckham travel to Paris to see the @LouisVuitton fashion show. See the photos in this week's HELLO! pic.twitter.com/d6Qrwf54Ll
— HELLO! (@hellomag) January 24, 2018
Paul Scholes
Arguably the best player out of all of these (not my opinion), Scholes is now involved with non-league Salford City and now likes to critique people in his punditry despite refusing to ever give interviews as a player.
Frank Lampard
The origin of this article, Lampard is currently 1/2 to become Oxford manager.
Nicky Butt
Like Scholes, Butt became involved in Salford city. Unlike Scholes, he played for South China in the Hong Kong First Division in 2011. So who’s the real winner there?
Owen Hargreaves
Owen missed the boat when he started uploading videos of himself online proving his fitness by doing training drills at home, before Twitter became big and accounts could have made memes of him. Canada’s finest now is a co-commentator on BT Sport.
Owen Hargreaves proving his fitness levels - SOMEONE SIGN THE POOR BLOKE http://t.co/Dwo2Ggd
— Jamie Duguid (@jamdoogs) August 3, 2011
Joe Cole
One of the brightest prospects England had, Cole’s career took a turn after leaving Liverpool in 2010. His list of clubs since look like a bad FIFA player career: Lille, West Ham, Villa, Coventry. He is now playing (still!) for the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
Kieron Dyer
Another player blighted by injury, Dyer is currently Under-16 coach at his boyhood club Ipswich. He is about to release an autobiography, which will hopefully tell us just what was said for him to start a fight with Lee Bowyer.
FORWARDS
Michael Owen
Owen was lethal in front of goal before his injury, but had to endure the indignity of playing for Stoke City before retiring a couple of years ago. He is currently enjoying unparalleled popularity on Twitter and in the television studio.
I bet the guy that Michael Owen considers boring is a right boring twat!
— Nufc_22 (@Nufc_22) November 2, 2017
Emile Heskey
The target man’s target man was still ploughing furrows up top for England in 2010. Some say that he is still straying offside somewhere, but at the end of the day, he is a member of the Premier League 100 club and Harry Kane isn’t. Case closed.
Darius Vassell
The ultimate answer to the question: “What were Manchester City like before money?”, Vassell had a eventful stint in Turkey with Ankaragücü, which will be revealed in his new book The Road to Persia. Which sounds ace.
Wayne Rooney
The wonderkid who burst onto the stage in that Euro 2004 tournament, Rooney had a disappointing career according to most football fans, becoming England and Manchester United’s all-time record goalscorer. What could have been…
MANAGER
Sven-Göran Eriksson
Currently without a job, Eriksson was hounded out of the Three Lions role due to perceived shortcomings at major tournaments. Correctly so, as he is still the last manager to take England to a World Cup Quarter-final.
