Forgotten England player's international career officially lasted zero minutes - but isn't the shortest ever

Cole Palmer, Rico Lewis and Ezra Konsa could be the next trio to play for England after being called up by Gareth Southgate for games against Malta and North Macedonia.

All three players will be hoping for a better debut than Nathaniel Chalobah, who managed to play ZERO minutes in his one and only England cap.

Chalobah came through the ranks at Chelsea and played 10 times for the Blues, spending the majority of his time there out on loan at the likes of Watford, Nottingham Forest, Burnley, Reading and Napoli.

He's since played permanently for Watford, Fulham and West Brom, who he moved to in January 2023.

Chalobah played for England at every youth level from England Under 16's onwards and finally made his senior bow on 15 October 2018 against Spain.

England beat La Roja on their own patch for the first time in 31 years, coming away with a 3-2 victory thanks to a double from Raheem Sterling and a strike from Marcus Rashford in a breathtaking win at the Estadio Benito Villamarin.

The game is perhaps best remembered for a crunching Eric Dier tackle on Sergio Ramos but it was also Chalobah's solitary England appearance.

Image: Getty

He replaced Harry Winks in stoppage time and technically played zero minutes - though his actual time on the pitch was 6 minutes and 54 seconds.

Because the game was in the UEFA Nations League, it was deemed a competitive fixture and it meant he was unable to switch international allegiance to Sierra Leone, his birth country.

Image: Getty

He joins the likes of David Nugent, Joey Barton, Jay Bothroyd, Kevin Davies, Jon Flanagan, Matt Jarvis and Kevin Davies in the one-cap club.

But incredibly Chalobah does not hold the record for the shortest England career. That goes to Martin Kelly, whose two-minute cameo against Norway in May 2012 was a mere one second shorter with added time factored in.

Image: Getty

Kelly, who played for Liverpool and Crystal Palace in the Premier League, went with England to Euro 2012 but didn't play a single second.

Topics: England, Euro 2024, Chelsea, Gareth Southgate

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

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