- The former England international made 639 appearances in a glittering career
- It peaked with two league titles and three FA Cups in successful stint at Arsenal
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Sol Campbell has argued that he deserves a knighthood for his successful football career and has expressed his bemusement as to why he keeps being ‘overlooked’ for the honour.
The former England international made 639 appearances in a glittering career, spanning 19 years.
He made the bulk of them at Tottenham, where he won the League Cup in 1999, but his biggest period of success came following his controversial move to bitter rivals Arsenal.
At Highbury, he won two league titles and three FA Cup trophies and was a crucial part of the 2003-04 Invincibles side, while winning 73 caps for England.
But he has so far been looked over in every honours list since his retirement, much to the former centre-back’s disappointment, and Campbell made his frustration clear in an interview with GB News.
Sol Campbell has argued that he deserves a knighthood for his successful football career
He made the bulk of his appearances at Tottenham, where he won the League Cup in 1999
At Highbury, he won two league titles and three FA Cup trophies and was a crucial part of the 2003-04 Invincibles side
‘I think for me when it comes to honours and lists, if it comes to a popularity contest there’s a lot of people who are unpopular who have Sirs, OBEs and MBEs,’ he said.
‘If you look at what I’ve done and what I’ve gone through playing football and the consistency over the course of two decades, under severe pressure in a football sense, I’m up with some of the sporting greats of our country.
‘I’m a proud Englishman and I’ve done a lot for football, on and off the field, and for racism.
‘Also I’m not even talking about the records I’ve acquired playing football for my country and domestically, for Tottenham and Arsenal – for me, I’m up with the rest for all of them.’
Campbell added that it would be an ‘honour’ to receive a knighthood or any other distinction.
He said: ‘I don’t know why I’m overlooked on these kind of occasions.
‘I’m not the only sporting great that has been overlooked but for me I’m seeing all these other people get these gongs and these accolades and it’s special – for me it would be an honour to have a Sir, OBE or MBE for the sport I’ve committed to over two decades.’
The most recent footballer to receive a knighthood was Sir Kenny Dalglish in 2018. The Scot made 538 appearances, for Liverpool and Celtic, winning eight league titles and three European Cups.
The most recent footballer to receive a knighthood was Sir Kenny Dalglish in 2018
Only a handful of other footballing icons have been bestowed with the honour, including Alex Ferguson
Campbell was most recently spotted as manager of League One club Southend United
Only a handful of other footballing icons have been bestowed with the honour, including Trevor Brooking, Matt Busby, Bobby Charlton, Alex Ferguson, Tom Finney, Geoff Hurst, Stanley Matthews, Alf Ramsey, Bobby Robson, and Walter Winterbottom.
There are 18 active players who currently hold honours.
Campbell was most recently spotted as manager of League One club Southend United, where he was in charge from October 2019 until June 2020. He left the club when the side was relegated to League Two after the suspension of the 2019-20 season thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.