John Barnes has revealed that he does not agree with Sol Campbell's claims that he would have been England captain "for more than 10 years" had he been white.
Campbell, who won 73 caps for his country and captained the Three Lions on three occasions, made his assertion in an authorised biography that is being serialised by The Times.
However, Barnes, who scored 11 times in 79 games for the national team, says that Campbell wasn't made captain because other players were more suited to the role.
"Whatever Sol's frustrations may have been, the England captains he played under were worthy choices and deserved to lead their country," Barnes told The Mirror.
"He played under Tony Adams at Arsenal, Alan Shearer was at the peak of his powers when he was appointed England captain, and we all know that David Beckham brought more to the armband than football.
"To promote the image of English football, there may have been political and marketing reasons for making Beckham captain, but colour had nothing to do with any of them in a way detrimental to Sol's career."
Barnes also added that black players have been "chosen on merit for big games", highlighting Glenn Hoddle's selection of Paul Ince for a World Cup qualifier against Italy in 1997.
Gary Peters
