Gunners past and present met at St George’s Park when Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka presented Alan Smith with his England legacy cap.
Our former striker popped by to see the Three Lions train ahead of their Nations League games against the Republic of Ireland and Finland, and Bukayo and Declan surprised him by handing over the accolade.
The FA adopted the tradition of legacy numbers after England’s men’s team played their 1,000th match against Montenegro in November 2019. Each player is presented with a special red velvet cap, denoting their position in the long list of footballers to have represented their country since their first international in 1872.
They’re aiming to present as many caps to those former players still alive, and Alan is the latest to get the honour. He is number 1010 in the all-time list of England players, having made 13 appearances between 1988 and 1992, all during his time in north London.
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