Most of them were part of the "Golden Generation" along with other players like Gerrard, Campbell, Owen, Neville etc.. They were probably the best collection of English players for years, but they came and went with nothing to show for it. I think you could say that a lot of the disappointment is down to the media hype of this generation but there's still no denying that, in this case, the whole was not greater than the sum of the parts. They couldn't make it work together as a team as well as they were expected to.

Individually and at club level we had some of the best players in the world in their respective positions and I think they will go down in history with the respect that they deserve, but not because of what they did in an England shirt.

There are very few players from the "Golden Generation" who played as well for their country as they did for their club. Ashley Cole comes to mind, and perhaps Gary Neville too. For some of them, like Scholes, it wasn't their fault as they were played out of position often. But, for most they were just never as good when playing for England, which is where a lot of the frustration comes from.

I think Rooney will obviously go down in history as England's greatest goalscorer but not necessarily England's greatest forward. Firstly, he hasn't performed on the big stage - just one goal and overall relatively poor performances in eleven WC appearances doesn't merit being England's greatest striker. I think it is hard to say he's a better forward than Shearer. Rooney has scored more goals for England but he's also played a lot more and almost had the team built around him at times. Shearer still has a better goals per game ratio and will probably always be untouchable in terms of his record in the PL.

It could because we tend to romanticise the past and view things through rose-tinted glasses though - perhaps we will eventually look back at Rooney as England's greatest forward one day. But for now, I'd imagine that most will definitely see him as a great player, but not quite the greatest.