ST ALBANS: England named centurion Ashley Cole as captain for the friendly international against the Republic of Ireland yesterday; but the gesture came back to bite manager Roy Hodgson at a pre-match press conference as confusion reigned over exactly who would wear the armband.
Hodgson would normally have selected Cole’s Chelsea team-mate Frank Lampard to captain his side at Wembley, having appointed the midfielder vice-captain to the injured Steven Gerrard; but on this occasion he has opted to honour a long-held tradition of allowing players who are receiving their 100th cap to lead the team out instead.