The first match played at Wembley Stadium was the 1923 FA Cup Final between Bolton Wanderers and West Ham United. In 2000, Bolton Wanderers had reached the FA Cup Semi-final meeting Aston Villa to contest a match that, had they won in extra time, would have brought Bolton to the 2000 Final against Chelsea, THE LAST ONE TO BE HELD AT THE OLD WEMBLEY!! As it was, Dean Holdsworth missed an open goal from six yards, so that was that!
So,Villa lost their 2000 Final against Chelsea, just months before the old Wembley's demolition. There was one more match to be played at the stadium, a 2002 World Cup qualifier, between Kevin Keegan's England side and what was considered the worst German side in living memory.
After 14 minutes, England's Paul Scholes, combative as ever, floored the German master mind, Michael Ballack. Dietmar Hamann took the free-kick from 25 yards out and the ball slipped through David Seaman's hands into the net for the "last goal" to be scored at the old Wembley. Soaked by the constant rain and in the darkness of the stadium, Keegan, all emotional at the end of the match, resigned from the post, in the toilets! "I have just not been good enough", he said. The curtain came down on his career and the stadium.
The demolition balls moved in and whilst it took 300 days to build the old stadium in 1922, it took two years to knock it down. It took another five years to build the new one, which as many will agree, is a splendid place!
The first game to be played there was the 2007 FA Cup Final and Chelsea won it, beating Manchester United 1-0 through Drogba's goal. England's first competitive fixture at Wembley was a EURO 2008 qualifier against Israel...a match they won, 3-0. McClaren did not resign! Team:
- 4
- Steven Gerrard
'71- 6
- John Terry (c)
- 9
- Emile Heskey
- '71
- 10
- Michael Owen scored his Goal Milestone49' the 1900th goal scored by England
- 11
- Joe Cole
- 17
- Andy Johnson
'71- 14
- Phil Neville
- '71
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