When the defender came on at Wembley in the second half of a 3-0 win over Wales, he became the 100th player of black heritage to play for England, just over 40 years since Viv Anderson had been the first back in November 1978.

Here we highlight 10 Chelsea players of black heritage who pulled on the famous Three Lions as part of that first 100, and a further three who went on to do so after leaving Stamford Bridge, while two collected their caps prior to arriving in west London.

These are those players and their achievements on the international stage as of October 2020…

England internationals as Chelsea players

Ashley Cole

• England career: 2001-2014, 107 caps

• Caps won at Chelsea: 55

Only five men have more caps for England than Ashley Cole, placing him indisputably as the most successful player of black heritage to represent the Three Lions. The left-back went to five major tournaments during his 13-year international career and was named England Player of the Year in 2010.

The first 52 of his 107 caps came as an Arsenal player prior to his 2006 transfer to Stamford Bridge, an impressive haul for a player then aged only 25. His reliability for England never let up during his Chelsea years, either, as he established himself as the number one pick for club and country, joining an exclusive list of centurions with his 100th international appearance coming in fitting circumstances as England beat Brazil 2-1 at Wembley in February 2013.

Later that season, he was handed the captain’s armband for the one and only time by Roy Hodgson in a Wembley encounter with the Republic of Ireland.

Glen Johnson

• England career: 2003-2014, 54 caps, one goal

• Caps won at Chelsea: five

Four months after arriving at Chelsea as the first signing of the Roman Abramovich era, Glen Johnson became the club’s first player of black heritage to represent England when he made his national team debut against Denmark in November 2003.

He was only 19 at the time and was sent on by Sven Goran Eriksson to replace Gary Neville in a friendly at Old Trafford. Four further appearances followed during the right-back’s time as a Blue, along with a Premier League title and League Cup triumph.

However, it was at subsequent clubs Portsmouth and Liverpool that Johnson accrued the majority of his 54 England caps, including at the 2010 and 2014 World Cup finals in South Africa and Brazil respectively.

Shaun Wright-Phillips

• England career: 2004-2010, 36 caps, six goals

• Caps won at Chelsea: 15

Shaun Wright-Phillips won his first England cap a year before his move from Manchester City to Chelsea, scoring against Ukraine at St James’ Park, and had collected four in total before his arrival in west London.

During his time at the Bridge, the wideman played 15 times for his country and netted a further three goals before his return to City in 2008. More regular playing time in Manchester helped him return to the international fold and feature at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa alongside his former club team-mates Glen Johnson, Ashley Cole, John Terry, Frank Lampard and Joe Cole.

Daniel Sturridge

• England career: 2011-2017, 26 caps, eight goals

• Caps won at Chelsea: four

Daniel Sturridge’s England debut came during his third season in SW6 when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in a friendly with Sweden under Fabio Capello. He had previously represented his country at junior level up to Under-21s and at the London Olympics when competing for Team GB.

The striker collected four caps in total during his time as a Chelsea player, with the rest coming following his transfer to Liverpool in January 2013.

Ryan Bertrand

• England career: 2012-2017, 19 caps

• Caps won at Chelsea: two

Three months after starting for Chelsea on the greatest night in the club’s history, Ryan Bertrand became an England international at the age of 23 when he came on during a meeting with Italy in Switzerland in August 2012. He made an instant impression, clearing the ball off the line and upfield, leading to Jermaine Defoe’s winner.

The left-back picked up one additional cap while at Stamford Bridge, a month after his first, against Ukraine at Wembley, and appeared 17 times more after his February 2015 switch to Southampton. He went to the Euro 2016 finals in France and scored his only goal in a World Cup qualifier against Malta in September 2017.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek

• England career: 2017-present, 10 caps (all at Chelsea)

All 10 of Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s England caps have come as a Chelsea player, although his first two were won during his loan spell at Crystal Palace in 2017/18, when a regular run of games saw him force his way into Gareth Southgate’s thinking.

His debut was against Germany at Wembley on the same night as Tammy Abraham won his first senior cap. The midfielder also started three games at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Tammy Abraham

• England career: 2017-October 2020, four caps, one goal (all at Chelsea) - Since October 2020 when this article was written, Abraham has increased his totals for caps and goals.

Eligible to represent Nigeria through his father, Tammy Abraham featured throughout the age groups for England and scored frequently too. He made his senior debut against Germany at Wembley in November 2017, while on his first Premier League loan at Swansea City, and made four further appearances after returning to the Bridge.

The striker’s first senior goal came in a 7-0 win against Montenegro in November 2021.

Callum Hudson-Odoi

• England career: 2019-present, three caps (all at Chelsea).

Callum Hudson-Odoi’s trickery, pace and dazzling dribbling skills always had him set out as a player who could go to the very top and his rise through the ranks with club and country was testament to that potential.

He scored for the England Under-17s in the semi-finals and final of the 2017 Euros, which they ultimately lost on penalties, before helping the Young Lions lift the World Cup at that age group later in the year.

His senior breakthrough came in whirlwind fashion in March 2019. Called up to the Under-21 squad for the first time, injuries saw an opportunity arise with the seniors and he made his debut in a 5-0 win over the Czech Republic at Wembley, becoming the youngest-ever player to debut for England in a competitive match. He then featured against Montenegro three days later and in Kosovo the following November.

Reece James

• England career: 2020, two caps (all at Chelsea). Since October 2020 when this article was written, James has increased his total of caps.

Reece James was a late call-up to the England squad by Gareth Southgate in October 2020 but took his opportunity with both hands, appearing against Wales and Belgium in quick succession to collect his first pair of caps.

The young defender previously won silverware with the national team at younger age groups, most notably the Under-19 European Championship in 2017 as well as the Toulon Tournament with the Under-20s later that summer.

Fikayo Tomori

• England career: 2019-October 2022, one cap (all at Chelsea). Since October 2020 when this article was written, Tomori has increased his totals for caps.

A World Cup winner with the England Under-20s in 2017, Fikayo Tomori originally played for Canada, his country of birth, at junior level before switching to the Three Lions. He received his first senior call-up from Southgate in October 2019 and then made his debut the following month as a late substitute in a Euro 2020 qualifier in Kosovo.

England internationals after leaving Chelsea

Carlton Cole

• England career: 2009-2010, seven caps

A Chelsea youngster during the 1990s, Carlton Cole played 31 times for the Blues under Claudio Ranieri and then Jose Mourinho, though didn’t make his debut for England until after leaving Stamford Bridge.

In fact, it was almost three years after the striker’s switch to West Ham that he represented the Three Lions for the first time, against Spain in a friendly in February 2009. Cole made seven appearances in total under Fabio Capello, all as a substitute.

Dominic Solanke

• England career: 2017-present, one cap

Dominic Solanke had come through the ranks at Cobham since the age of eight, making his debut in 2014 before leaving for Liverpool three years later. It was while at Anfield that the forward earned his one and only England cap to date, as a substitute against Brazil at Wembley in November 2017. He has since joined Bournemouth.

Nathaniel Chalobah

• England career: 2018-present, one cap

Despite spending 12 years at Chelsea, it was as a Watford player that Nathaniel Chalobah won his solitary cap for England in October 2018 against Spain. Born in Sierra Leone and raised in Lambeth, he had previously represented the Under-21s over 40 times while a Blue.

England internationals before arriving at Chelsea

Paul Parker

• England career: 1989-1994, 19 caps

By the time Paul Parker arrived at Stamford Bridge for a very brief stint in 1997, he was already an England international of 19 caps and had started all but one game at Italia '90 under Bobby Robson.

A former Premier League winner at Manchester United, the defender was drafted in by Ruud Gullit during an injury crisis at Stamford Bridge late in the 1996/97 campaign but only featured on four occasions before departing that summer.

David Rocastle

• England career: 1988-1992, 14 caps

David Rocastle’s legacy was always at Arsenal and it was while with the Gunners that the midfielder won all 14 of his England caps, the last of which came against Brazil at Wembley in May 1992.

Two years later, Rocky became a Blue and was an influential part of our run to the semi-finals of the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1994/95. He passed away in 2001 at the age of 33 after suffering from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.