Lineker is one of the most famous footballers in the world in recent times and his fame, at least on home shores, hasn't dimmed after taking up a successful media career, most notably with the BBC's Match of the Day team.

He's rightly regarded as one of the best England strikers in modern football and also represented Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona, not to mentioned a final flourish with Nagoya Grampus Eight, a team made famous in England thanks to his presence - he was one of the first British footballers ever to go over and play in Asia.

It all started at Leicester City, his hometown club. He came through the youth ranks and turned professional in December 1978, but it took Lineker time to settle into professional football and become the goalscorer he'll always be remembered as. He made his debut under manager Jock Wallace on New Year's Day in 1979 but was used mainly as a squad player for a couple of years before really making his breakthrough.

It came in the 1981-82 season where he got more regular action, and where he was positioned more centrally after being relatively versatile in attack in his early days, being used out wide on a number of occasions. His goals helped City to promotion back to the top-flight the following season and he went on to be the club's top-scorer for the next four years.

That form saw him picked for England for the first time and it also saw him attract the interest of bigger clubs, especially champions Everton, who forked out £800,000 for his services. Lineker was superb, in his first season he scored 30 league goals for the Toffees and also won both Player of the Year awards, but Everton could only finish second behind rivals Liverpool.

His first appearance in a World Cup finals was soon to follow and it took him to the next level, netting a hat-trick against Poland in the 1986 competition and finishing top-scorer with six. His form on the international stage boosted his status worldwide and Barcelona, then managed by Terry Venables, took him to the Spanish league. The fee of £2.75m saw City take around £250,000 from a sell-on clause.

He won the Spanish Cup with the Catalan side in 1988 and the European Cup Winners' Cup a year later before returning to his homeland with Tottenham Hotspur, managed by the man who took him to the Camp Nou, Terry Venables. He won the FA Cup with Spurs in 1991 and also excelled against at a World Cup Finals in Italy in 1990 as England bowed out at the semi-final stage.

His cup triumph with Tottenham was to be his last major success in England as Lineker moved on to help launch the J-League in Japan with Grampus Eight. He lasted two years there but injuries prevented him from really making the impact he so desired, and he retired from professional football in 1994 before embarking on his successful career in the media.

He was honoured as a Freeman of the City of Leicester in 1995 and also fronted a consortium that bought City out of its administration in the 2002-03 campaign.