The top 10 oldest players to debut for England
Thomas Tuchel has called up 32-year-old Dan Burn in his first England squad, with the Newcastle defender in line to be one of the oldest ever debutants.
Tuchel said: “I was surprised that Dan was never called up. He is such a tall guy, but obviously it is easy to overlook him. It almost happened to me.
“I can tell you from these two phone calls with Jordan Henderson and Dan Burn, you instantly know that you picked the right guys.”
He is among the squad set to play against Albania and Latvia in World Cup qualifiers, with both games kicking off at Wembley.
As for the oldest ever first-time goalscorer, the Guardian found that Kim Yong-sik had to wait until beyond his 39th birthday to score for South Korea.
Kevin Davies was 33 when he got his call-up in 2010
PA
Oldest players to win a first cap for England
While Burn stands out for being a later-career call-up, he is far from the oldest to be given their first nod. He will not even be in the 20 oldest debutants should he wear his first shirt, with most of those in the top 10 having all earned call-ups decades ago.
Please note, this is not a list of the oldest to play for England but merely the age at which they won their first cap.
10. Clem Stephenson: 34 years and 26 days
Playing in the now largely defunct position of inside forward, the Aston Villa legend won his one and only cap in 1924.
9. Dicky Downs: 34 years and 71 days
A full-back who spent most of his career at Barnsley, Downs played for England once in 1920 aged 34.
8. Fred Bullock: 34 years and 114 days
Bullock was another one cap wonder who died in 1922, two years after his only appearance.
7. Jackie Crawford: 34 years and 183 days
The Chelsea outside forward, an old-fashioned winger, played once and once only in 1931 for his country.
Dan Burn has not made the list
PA
6. Teddy Davison: 34 years and 193 days
A goalkeeper who played almost his entire club career for Sheffield Wednesday was also capped only once, back in 1922.
5. Jackie Bestall: 34 years and 227 days
Another inside forward (maybe the position will make a comeback one day) won his solitary cap in 1935.
4. Frank Hudspeth: 35 years and 187 days
Like Burn, the Geordie played many times for Newcastle before winning his first cap. He played only once for the Three Lions in 1925.
3. Ted Taylor: 35 years and 228 days
Proving the 1920s was a golden decade for golden oldies, Taylor bucked the trend of one cap wonders to play eight times for England from 1922 to 1926.
Record setter: Essam El-Hadary in 2018
REUTERS
2. Leslie Compton: 38 years and 64 days
Amazingly, Compton played football for Arsenal while moonlighting as a cricketer for Middlesex. The London great sportsman won his two caps for England (football) in 1950.
His brother Denis Compton played cricket for England and football for Arsenal, but Leslie was not capped at senior level for cricket.
1. Alexander Morten: 41 years and 80 days
The Crystal Palace goalkeeper was a late bloomer and won his first cap in 1873. Stanley Matthews was slightly older when he played his final match in 1957 but Morten is the second oldest player to have represented England.
Fellow goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary was an impressive 45 years old when he became the oldest to play in a World Cup match in 2018 – a feat that Cristiano Ronaldo might have his sights on.
