Former England star heartbreakingly reveals he REJECTED Champions League winner’s medal as he ‘didn’t feel part’ of team
CHRIS Kirkland has revealed he never received a Champions League winners medal – despite appearing in Liverpool’s iconic 2005 run.
The former Three Lions goalkeeper will be a guest of honour at this week’s Nations League clash with Greece.
Kirkland hung up his gloves in 2016 following a near two-decade career.
The 43-year-old won a single cap for England in 2006 and played for 10 clubs including Wigan, Sheffield Wednesday, and Coventry.
Kirkland moved from the Sky Blues to Liverpool in 2001, initially as an understudy to Jerzy Dudek.
He took the starting role three years later, before being sidelined by a lingering back injury.
Kirkland played four times in Liverpool’s iconic 2004-05 Champions League campaign.
But he was unable to play in the final, with Dudek getting the start and Scott Carson taking his place on the bench.
Liverpool went on to beat AC Milan on penalties in Istanbul following a dramatic fightback from 3-0 down.
Carson has since revealed he tried to give Kirkland his winners medal, as he had “played more games in the group stages”.
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He told The Guardian: “When we got the medals, I tried to give mine to Chris.
“He played more games in the group stages than me. So I felt that he deserved it more.
“But Chris, as anyone who knows him will say, is a really nice lad and he said: ‘No. You were on the bench, you played your part as well.’”
Kirkland will receive an honorary cap from the FA on Thursday as England take on Greece.
According to The Athletic, the goalkeeper “never received the traditional cap to commemorate his international debut” in 2006.
He had also turned down the Champions League medal because he “didn’t feel part of it, sidelined by a back operation and unable to see a future under Rafael Benitez.”
Kirkland’s dad famously landed a 100/1 bet he’d placed while his son was a teenager on him playing for England.
Speaking to the outlet, Kirkland laughed: “If I’d gone into the bookies’ with my dad, and they’d seen me, I’m sure he would have got a lot better odds than 100/1.
“I was very gangly. I wasn’t in the best shape.”