Usually deployed in the right-back position, Greenwich-born Glen Johnson’s pace and ability going forward mean he can also be used in a wing-back role. Starting out at West Ham United, Johnson enjoyed a seven-week loan spell at fellow capital side Millwall before being handed his Premier League bow by the Hammers at the age of 18. Following that debut outing at Charlton Athletic in January 2003, the fleet-footed defender went on to make 14 further appearances that campaign.

His performances caught the eye of big-spending Chelsea who swooped in summer 2003, with Johnson part of the Blues squad which won the Premier League and League Cup in 2004/05. Having lost out to Portuguese international Paulo Ferreira in the battle for the right-back slot at Stamford Bridge, Johnson opted for a season-long loan deal with Portsmouth in 2006/07 before signing permanently for the south-coast club at the end of the season. An FA Cup winner at Pompey in 2008, he made a big-money switch to Liverpool in summer 2009.

Johnson’s first caps for his country came in the U-15 age bracket, before going on to feature at U-16, U-19 and U-20 level before making 13 appearances for England’s U-21 side. Though he made his senior debut while still a teenager in a friendly against Denmark at Old Trafford on 16 November 2003, joining the fray in place of Gary Neville, it was not until the second half of the 2008/09 campaign that he established himself as a regular. Johnson started six consecutive games for the Three Lions, displays which featured a hat-trick of assists in one home game against minnows Andorra, and was named as a starter in the first five internationals of 2009/10.