Finally some good news for the English national team, something that might be a few years too late though, as forward Emile Heskey has announced he’s quitting the squad. I guess it’s like packing it in before the boss fires you as it’s almost certain that manager Fabio Capello would have dropped Heskey anyway. Heskey managed a grand total of seven goals in 62 caps for his country. Compare that to the 21 goals Peter Crouch has in 40 games for England. However, Crouch was glued to the bench for most of the recent World Cup in South Africa.

Heskey announced the decision on July 15 and stated, “I have enjoyed every moment of my England career and worn the shirt with pride every time I have been fortunate enough to have been selected.”He also went on to thank all of the managers he played for, the English Football Association and the team’s fans for their combined support over the years. He then wished the current squad and management good luck in the future.

Heskey first pulled on an England shirt 11 years ago in April 1999 in a friendly in Budapest against Hungary. Some people have said the highlight of his England career took place in 2001 when he put the ball in the back of the net in England’s 5-1 hammering of Germany in Munich. But that was just the problem, as Heskey scored the fifth goal for England when the game was already won. He couldn’t bury his numerous chances for the country when they needed it the most, to break open a tight game.

Heskey, who plays for Aston Villa in the EPL, also played at the European Championships in 2000 and 2004 as well as the 2002 World Cup when England beaten by Brazil in the tournament’s quarter-finals. While Heskey’s goals to chances ratio was very poor, he did occasionally make some room on the pitch for fellow strikers and often played a physical style. But as we saw in the World Cup, a goal can be worth its weight in gold if scored at the right time and unfortunately Heskey wasn’t a player who could do that for England from his forward position even though he often had some glorious chances.