Tottenham All-Time team for English Players

This blogger Artur Yanturin of Russia copied many of my blog teams.  This blog was one of them.  It was my Russia All-Time Team here.  His team was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.   His Spartak Moscow All-Time team entry of was published in October 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2017.  His entry of the Dutch-German rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.  He also copied many many of my blog entries.

His Facebook and Instagram

Gazza and Gary Linker

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

Tottenham Hotspurs Greatest All-Time Team
Greater London All-Time Team
Tottemham Hotspurs All-Time Team for Foreign Players
Tottenham Hotspurs All-Time Team for British Isles players(excluding English players)

This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for Tottenham Hotspurs' English players.  The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.

Founded in 1882, Tottenham won the FA Cup for the first time in 1901, making them the only non-League club to do so since the formation of the Football League in 1888. Tottenham were the first club in the 20th century to achieve the League and FA Cup Double, winning both competitions in the 1960–61 season. After successfully defending the FA Cup in 1962, in 1963 they became the first British club to win a UEFA club competition – the European Cup Winners' Cup.  They won the UEFA Cup in 1972, becoming the first British club to win two different major European trophies. In the 1984, Spurs again won the UEFA Cup. In the 1990s the club won the FA Cup and the League Cup.  They had won a major trophy in each of the last six decades – an achievement only matched by Manchester United.

Team
GK: Ray Clemence
Ray Clemence was considered one of England's greatest keepers. He won 3 European Cups and 2 UEFA Cups in the 1970's with Liverpool and a UEFA Cup with Tottenham Hotspurs.  He was voted as Liverpool's greatest keeper.  He is one of only 25 players to have made over 1,000 career appearances. For the national team, he was locked in a battle of number 1 with Peter Shilton.  He was Shilton's backup at the World Cup Finals in 1982. He made 61 appearances for England. 

GK: Ted Ditchburn
Ditchburn made his senior debut for the Spurs in a wartime league match against Chelsea in 1940. At this time he represented both the RAF and the Combined Services and guested at Aberdeen. At the end of the war, he returned to Tottenham. He went on to play in an unbroken run of 247 matches between April 1948 and March 1954.  Tottenham won promotion as Division Two champions in 1949–50 and the First division league title the following year. Capped 6 times and went to the WC Finals in 1950.

Ted Ditchburn

GK: Paul Robinson

Robinson started with jLeeds United. He was voted Leeds United's Player of the Year in 2003 by the supporter's club. In 2004, he moved to Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur. He played in 175 matches for Tottenham. He was signed by Blackburn Rovers in 2008. Robinson made his international in 2003.  He played 42 timed for England between 2003 and 2007.

RB: Alf Ramsey
Ramsey started his career with Southampton in 1943.  He moved to Tottenham Hotspurs in 1949, he played in the famous "push-and-run" style.  He helped the club to grain promotion to the First Divison in the 1949-50 season, and then, won the First Division League title in Tottenham's first season up.  Ramsey was a member of the ill-fated World Cup team in 1950.  He would captain England after that World Cup Finals.

CB/RB/CM: Steve Perryman
Steve Perryman is best remembered for his successes with Tottenham Hotspur during the 1970s and early 1980s. Perryman was voted Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year in 1982 and made a club record 854 first team appearances for Tottenham.  He later played for Oxford and Brentford.  He was only capped once by England in 1982.  He appeared as sub against Iceland on June, 1982.

Steve Perryman

CB: Gary Mabbutt 
Gary Mabbutt became one of the best known defenders in English football in the 1980s, playing initially for Bristol Rovers before joining the first division club Tottenham Hotspur, where he became captain. With Spurs, he won the UEFA Cup in 1984 and the FA Cup in 1991 (as captain). However, he scored an own goal in the 1987 FA Cup that gave Coventry the cup. He played 16 times for England between 1982 and 1992. He scored his only international goal against Yugoslavia. 

CB: Maurice Norman
Norman began his career at Norwich City. He signed for Tottenham Hotspur in 1955. He was an integral part of Bill Nicholson's Double-winning Tottenham team of 1960–61 that went on to retain the FA Cup in 1962, and win the 1963 Cup Winners' Cup. At international level, he was capped 23 times for England, including in the 1962 World Cup. He was also a member of the England squad at the 1958 World Cup, but did not play.

CB: Sol Campbell 
Sol Campbell was a member of Arsenal's "Invincibles" that went undefeated in 2003-2004 season.  He spent 9 seasons for Tottenham Hotspurs and served as its captain before moving to its rival Arsenal on a free transfer that sparked a controversy.  He later played for Portsmouth. For England, he earned 73 caps in 11 years.  He went to three World Cup Finals: 1998, 2002 and 2006, and three other European Championship in that period.

CB: Ledley King
Ledley King spent his entire career with Tottenham Hotspurs.  He was among the best defender in the Premiership during his prime, but his international career was limited by a golden generation of great English centre backs.  He only had 21 caps due to fierce competition in his position. He went to the 2004 European Championship and 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa, but missed the World Cup Finals 2006 due to an injury.

Ledley King

LB: Cyril Knowles
Knowles would spend 11 years at White Hart Lane. He scored 17 goals in 507 appearances for Tottenham Hotspur, winning the FA Cup in 1967, the League Cup in 1971 and 1973 and a UEFA Cup winners medal in 1972. In 1975, with Spurs needing victory to avoid relegation against Leeds United the reigning First Division champions and 1975 European Cup finalists, Knowles scored twice in a 4–2 victory.  Capped 4 times for England.

DM/CM: Alan Mullery
Mullery played for Fulham (1958–1964, 1972–1976), Tottenham Hotspur (1964–1972) and England (1964–1971). With the Spurs teams, he won the FA Cup in 1967, the League Cup in 1971, and the UEFA Cup in 1972. In the UEFA Final, he scored the decisive goal in a victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers. In a 1968 European Championship game against Yugoslavia, Mullery became the first England player to be sent off in a full international match.  He played in Mexico 1970.

CM: Martin Peters
Martin Peters was an all-round midfielder who played for West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur, Norwich City and Sheffield United. He was briefly a player/coach for Sheffield United.  He earned 67 caps for England between 1966 and 1974, and was a member of the 1966 World Cup winning team.  He also played in the 1970 World Cup Finals.

AM: Dele Alli
All started with Milton Keynes Dons. He signed for Tottenham Hotspur in 2015.  In each of his first two campaigns at White Hart Lane, he was voted the PFA Young Player of the Year and made the PFA Team of the Year.  He was a key player for England at the World Cup Finals in 2018 as England reached the semifinal for the first time since 1990.

AM: Paul Gascoigne
Gazza was the most gifted player of his generation, but his career was marked controversy and injuries.  He played for Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and Lazio.   In 1995, he joined Rangers with a club record fee. He had a successful career at Rangers, but he left in 1998 and went to play for many clubs all over the world.  For England, he earned 57 times.  He was remembered for the tears in his eyes as he received his yellow card against West Germany in the semi-final.

AM: Glenn Hoddle
Glenn Hoddle often considered one of the most talented players of his generation, but not always appreciated by his fans.  He played mainly with Tottenham Hotspurs, where he won the UEFA Cup in 1984 and two FA Cups.  He also played for AS Monaco, Swindon and Chelsea. Huddle played 53 times for England. He went to the 1982 and 1986 World Cup Finals, helping England to reach the quarter-finals in the latter tournament.

Glenn Hoddle

RW/RB: Darren Anderton
From 1990 to 1992, Anderton played for Portsmouth. 
From 1992 to 2004, he played for Tottenham Hotspurs. He later played for Birmingham City, Wolverhampton Wanderers and AFC Bournemouth. From 1994 to 2001, he was capped 30 times for England.  He played an important part in the Euro 96 England team that reached the semi-finals.  At France 1998, he shared and sometimes played with David Beckham on the right wing.

RW/AM: Chris Waddle
Waddle mainly played with Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspurs, Olympique Marseille and Sheffield Wednesday.  He won the 1987 FA Cup with Tottenham Hotspurs.  Then, in 1989, he joined Olympique Marseille for 4.5 million pound, which was then the third highest transfer fees.  He went to Sheffield Wednesday in 1992, where he reached both FA Cup and League Cup Final.  He was voted FWA Player of the Year for that season. He went to the WC Finals in 1986 and 1990.

LW: Jimmy Dimmock
Dimmock turned professional with Tottenham Hotspur in May 1919., He holds a unique place in the history of Tottenham Hotspur by being the only player in the club's history to play 400 league games and score 100 league goals. He also remains (at 20 years 139 days) the youngest Tottenham player to appear in an FA Cup Final. He scored the winning goal for them in the 1921 FA Cup Final. He was capped 3 times.

FW/SS: Teddy Sherringham
Terry Sherringham was a star player with Tottenham Hotspurs from 1992 and 1997.  In 1997, he made a big move to Manchester United as a replacement for Eric Cantona.  He won the Champions' league in 1999 with Manchester United.  He was capped 51 times for England.  He played at the Euro 1996, the WC 1998 and the Euro 2000.

ST: Harry Kane 
At the time of writing, Kane has played his entire career with Tottenham Hotspurs, except a few seasons on loan.  Kane made his first-team debut for Tottenham in 2011.  He finished top scorer of both the 2015–16 and the 2016–17 Premier League seasons, and aided Tottenham in qualifying for the UEFA Champions League on both occasions.  For England, he has earned over 30 caps. He captained England at the 2018 World Ciup Finals, he won the Golden Booth award.

Harry Kane

ST: Martin Chivers
From 1962 to 1966, Martin Chivers played with Southampton. He  moved to Tottenham Hotspurs in 1968, breaking the tran sager record at the time.  During the 1971–72 campaign, Chivers hit the best form of his career, netting 44 times in 64 first team appearances. He scored eight times in 11 UEFA Cup matches in 1972, in which Tottenham became champion.  He was indicted to Tottenham's Hall of Fame. Chivers was capped 24 times for England.

ST: Bobby Smith
Bobby Smith was the second all-time leading scorer for Tottenham Hotspurs.  He was an integral part of Bill Nicholson's famous double winning Tottenham team of 1960/1961 (scoring in the final of the FA Cup), which went on to retain the FA Cup in 1962 (scoring in the Final again) and win the 1963 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.  He also played for Chelsea before his career with Tottenham and he played for Brighton at the end of his career. He capped 15 times, scoring 13 goals.

Bobby Smith

ST: Gary Lineker 
Gary Lineker was one of England's best goal poachers.  He scored 48 goals for England(second overall) and won the Golden Boot with 6 goals at 1986 World Cup Finals in Mexico.  He was PFA Players' Player of the Year in 1985–86 and FWA Footballer of the Year in 1985–86 and 1991–92.  In England, he played with Leicester Town, Everton and Tottenham Hotspurs.

ST: Vivian Woodward
Woodward played for Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea. He captained Great Britain to gold medals at the 1908 Olympics in London and in Stockholm in 1912. Woodward's tally of 29 goals in 23 matches for England remained a record from 1911 to 1958. He served in the British Army during the First World War, and as a result missed out on Chelsea's run to their first-ever FA Cup final in 1915. Woodward's injuries during the war caused his retirement from football

ST/SS: Jimmy Greaves 
Jimmy Greaves was the top scorer in the English league for 4 seasons. He won the FA Cup in 1962 and 1967, and the UEFA Cup in 1963. He started with Chelsea, but alo played with AC Milan and spent 9 seasons with Tottenham Hotspurs.  He was a member of the World Cup winning team in 1966.  However, he lost his starting position after suffering an injury against France.  Sir Ramsey used Geoff Hurst in the remaining matches in the World Cup Finals.

Jimmy Greaves

Honorable Mention
Ian Walker,Tony Parks, Graham Roberts, Eric Dier, Danny Rose, , Kyle Walker, Michael Dawson, Graham Roberts, Phil Beal, Peter Baker, Harry Clarke, Eric Dier, Bill Nicholson, Len Duquemin, Peter Baker, Ron Henry, Jermaine Defoe, Phil Beal, George Hunt, Arthur Grimsdell, Clive Allen, 

Squad Explanation
-- This team was created on May 2019.  I redid it on Juky 2025.
-- Fifteeen members of this team also belonged to my Tottenham Hotspurs All Time Team. 

-- The "Double" winning team in the 1961 lacked English players. There are many non-English British players: Bill Brown (Scotland), Danny Blanchflower (N.Ireland), Dave Mackay (Scotland), Cliff Jones (Wales), John White (Scotland) and Terry Medwin (Wales). Maurice Norman is the only English player of note on that team. 
-- The team that reached the 2019 Champions' League Final would one day be rewarded for their achievement.  At the time of writing, Harry Kane is the only member on the team.  Hugo Lloris, Christian Eriksen, Son Heung-min, Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, Eric Dier and Dele Alli may have a chance to win a spot at the end of their career. 

-- In October 2024, the Hotspur HQ created their ranking of the 10 Greatest players for Tottenham. The ranking was as followed: 1) Harry Kane, 2) Jimmy Greaves, 3) Glenn Hoddle, 4) Ledley King, 5) Dave Mackay, 6) Danny Blanchflower, 7) Pat Jennings, 8) Gary Lineker, 9) Paul Gascoigne and 10) Garth Bale. 

-- In 2017, Daily Mail published their list of 20 Greatest Players Tottenham Hotspurs.  The ranking: 1) Jimmy Greaves, 2) Glenn Hoddle, 3) Dave Mackay, 4) Danny Blanchflower, 5) Paul Gascoigne, 6) Gary Lineker, 7) Cliff Jones, 8) Ledley King, 9) Garth Bale, 10) Steve Perryman, 11) Ossie Ardiles, 12) Martin Chivers, 13) Ricky Villa, 14) Luka Modric, 15) Teddy Sheringham, 16) Pat Jennings, 17) Jurgen Klinsmann, 18) Harry Kane, 19)  Dimitar Berbatov and 20) Christian Eriksen.

Goalkeepers

-- Ray Clemence and Ted Ditchburn are obvious choices for the first two keeper position. Ray Clemence won a FA Cup. Then, the 1984 UEFA Cup, but he did not play in the Final because of an injury.

Ray Clemence

-- The older fans regarded Ted Ditchburn as their greatest goalkeeper. He made nearly 450 appearances for the club and played a key role in securing back-to-back titles under manager Arthur Rowe—first winning the Division Two championship in 1949-50, then earning promotion and claiming the Division One title in 1950-51.

-- Tony Parks replaced Ray Clemence for the 1984 UEFA Cup Final. He helped the club for the penalty shootout victory in thhe Final.  However, he was never a starter at the club.

-- The third goalkeeper would be between Paul Robinson and Ian Walker. Both left the club with a reputation as talents unfulfilled. Ian Walker had the longest career here among the pair, but Robinson was rated higher.

Defenders

-- For my centerbacks, I’ve selected Sol Campbell, Gary Mabbutt and Ledley King from my Tottenham Hotspurs All-Time team. 

-- Ledley King was one club man for Tottenham Hotspurs.  Many considered him Tottenham's greatest centerback. Mike England was part of the team that won the FA Cup in 1967, the UEFA Cup in 1972 and the Football League Cup currently known as the EFL Cup in 1971 and 1973. Gary Mabbutt who spent 16 years with the club won an UEFA Cup respectively.  

Gary Mabbutt

-- Sol Campbell's controversial move to Arsenal was overlooked because I also selected Pat Jennings who made the same move (but the fans mainly blamed the club for his exit).  I did not select Luis Figo for Barcelona, but Ashley Cole made my all-time team for both Chelsea and Arsenal.  The diehard Tottenham fans might disagree with my decisions on Campbell and Jennings.  

-- Mike England is the only central defender from my Tottenham Hotspurs all-time team not from England.  England is not from England.  For this English only team, I only added a single new player, Maurice Norman.  He was a key figure in Spurs’ historic 1960-61 Double-winning side. He edged out Michael Dawson, Graham Roberts, Phil Beal, Peter Baker and Harry Clarke.

-- Steve Perryman played various positions on the team.  He only moved to the rightback position at the the end of the career. While he was probably one of Tottenham's greatest rightbacks, I selected him because I could fit the team with players from other positions.  He was an All-Timer for the club. He was FWA Player of the Year in 1982.  He also holds the club's appearance record.  Kyle Walker, Peter Baker and Sir Alf Ramsey were considered for the second spot. Walker was on the PFA Team of the Year twice while playing Tottenham. Baker was a key player for the Double winning season.  Ramsey was better remembered as England's manager in the 1966 World Cup Finals. 

-- Two leftbacks who stood out in Tottenham's history were Ron Henry and Cyril Knowles.  Knowles was probably their greatest ever.  He was a pioneer as an attacking fullback in England.  Henry was one club player who won the Double for the club.  I also looked into Danny Rose.  Gary Mabbut could also operate as a leftback. The position was well-taken care of.

Midfielders/Wingers

-- I needed a lot of midfielders and wide players to replace the non-English players from my All-time team.  Alan Mullery and Martin Peters would be additions to the team. Peters was from England's 1966 World Cup winning team.  Mullery was a key player for Tottenham that won the FA Cup in 1967, and skippering them to victory in the 1971 Football League Cup Final and the 1972 UEFA Cup Final. 

-- - Eric Dier spent 10 seasons in Tottenham Hotspurs.  He was a part of the team that reached the Champions' League final.  But the midfield position was tight.  Instead, I took his teammate and midfield partner Dele Alli.  He was voted the PFA Young Player of the Year and made the PFA Team of the Year. twice while at Tottenham. 

-- I know that this team was loaded with attack midfielders.  Hoddle, Waddle, Gaza and Alli.

-- Glenn Hoddle was one of the most technically gifted players to ever play for this team.  Then, I added Paul Gascoigne.  He was named as BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1990 while he was still with the club.  However, he won the award largely because of his performance for England in the World Cup Finals. Nevertheless, he was consistently mentioned among the greatest ever for the club.

--- Chris Waddle was one of the best midfielders in Europe at his time.  He was an attack midfielder who was also used as a left winger.  He was also a surprised omission on my all-time team.  Cliff Jones and Gareth Bale were my selections on the left wing on that team, which kept Waddle out. Darren Anderton was chosen because I need a right winger.  Bill Nicholson, I felt, was more of an all-time great for coaching career here. His 1960-1961 team, as mentioned above, lacked English player. Jimmy Dimmock was also chosen for the left wing position.

Chris Waddle

Forwards

-- Tottenham Hotspurs has many great strikers. Jimmy Greaves joined Tottenham Hotspurs in 1961 right after the "Double" season. He was the highest goal scorer in the history of English top-flight football (357 goals) and 266 of them were scored wearing Tottenham's jersey.  
-- Harry Kane is Tottenham's All-Time leading scorer. And in recent list, he is often hinted as the club's greatest ever player.  
-- Bobby Smith was probably rated higher than Chivers.  He also had the stats and the medals to back up his credentials. Alan Chivers often listed as one of the greatest for this club. He is the third All-Time leading scorer for Spurs, scoring goals in the 1971 and 1973 League Cup and 1972 UEFA Cup triumphs.  

--Gary Lineker scored 80 goals in just three seasons and won a FA Cup.  Vivian Woodward was the biggest star missing on my all-time team.  So I added him here.

-- Jermaine Defoe and Clive Allen did not make the team. Defoe spent many seasons with the club but went trophy-less and only scored around 70 goals.  The others produced better results.  Allen was a one season wonder.  He scored 49 goals in a single season. Teddy Sheringham also only made honorable mention.