But then earned the tag 'Calamity James' for a series of errors after moving to Liverpool in 1992 for £1million. Now back on top form and showing the strengths of his game - he is an excellent shot-stopper and not afraid to come out for crosses.

That can sometimes backfire with ill-judged forays leaving him stranded out of his goal, but at his best he is a commanding presence.

Moved to Aston Villa for £1.7million in the summer of 1999 after making 279 appearances for the Reds. Unfortunately he will probably be remembered by thousands of travelling Villa fans for the error at Wembley that gifted Chelsea the 1999/2000 FA Cup.

A gruesome-looking nose injury sustained during a Man of the Match performance against Everton in November 2000 may put an end to James' sideline as a catwalk model. But his performance and guts in that match spoke volumes about the player.

Had a run in with the bosses at Villa during the 2000/01 season when he handed in a transfer request. He soon withdrew this but it was clear he was far from happy at the club.

Earned a move back to London in July 2001 when he signed for Glenn Roeder's West Ham for £3.5million.

Made his international debut against Mexico in 1997 but his starts since have been few and far between. He did, however, don the No 1 jersey in Peter Taylor's 'young' England team that lost 1-0 against Italy in the Delle Alpi stadium in November 2000.

Received his second consecutive start in Sven Goran Eriksson's team for the experimental friendly against Spain at Villa Park in February.

Picked up a serious knee injury whilst playing for England against Holland in August 2001 and was out of the game for four months. West Ham even considered suing for compensation.

Finally made his West Ham debut in a 1-0 home defeat at the hands of London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, and was immediately the club's number one.

A string of fine performances saw him return to the England team in February 2002 and travel to the Ajax Amsterdam Arena where he helped get a 1-1 draw against, ironically, Holland.