Roy Hodgson named the 28-year-old England skipper on Thursday ahead of their friendly against Norway next Wednesday, as the team prepares for a long Euro 2016 qualifying campaign that begins in Basel against Switzerland on September 8.

The Uruguayan striker was hit with a four-month ban from all football, a nine-match international suspension and a fine after he bit Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini in his side’s 1-0 win in their crunch World Cup Group D finale.

Roy Hodgson’s side crashed out of the current tournament in the group stage, after losing 2-1 to both Italy and Uruguay and drawing 0-0 with Costa Rica.

With the 2014 FIFA World Cup kicking off today, MM have teamed up with real estate website Lamudi to take you on a tour of the incredible property portfolios of top footballers past and present.

Wayne Rooney insists he’s fit and ready to lead England’s attack against Italy on Saturday, despite recent criticism of the Manchester United striker.

England face a tough World Cup group involving Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica but Hodgson is clearly looking ahead to the knockout stages

New England number one Joe Hart had a watching brief four years ago in South Africa as the third-choice stopper in Fabio Capello’s squad.

British football officials lined themselves up in opposition to Fifa president Sepp Blatter in a day of off field drama that will be difficult to match at the forthcoming World Cup.

Manchester United legend Paul Scholes gave some noisy Italians a pizza his mind ahead of England’s opening World Cup game.

Manchester City’s Argentinian trio Martin Demichelis, Pablo Zabaleta and Sergio Aguero have are flying high ahead of the World Cup in nearby Brazil.

GMP have set up an operation to identify potential abusers and limit the rise of attacks once the tournament kicks off on Thursday.