Sir Stanley Matthews: Football legend's tea set for sale

The tea service carries the monogram SM and the Stoke City crest

A silver tea service presented to one of England's most famous footballers has been put up for sale.

It was given to Stoke City hero Sir Stanley Matthews in 1946 to mark his then-record 44th England appearance.

He played almost 700 games for Stoke and Blackpool and gained 54 England caps before retiring in 1965 aged 50.

The service, with a price of £22,500, consists of a monogrammed teapot, hot water jug, sugar bowl and milk jug.

Sir Stanley retired in 1965 aged 50

Born in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, on 1 February 1915, Sir Stanley joined Stoke City FC at the age of 15 before returning as "the Wizard of Dribble" on the same pitch in his 40s after a 14-year stint with Blackpool.

He was the inaugural winner of the Ballon d'Or in 1956 and also made history as the first player to be knighted while still playing.

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The teapot is inscribed with the words: "Presented by Stoke City Football Club to their player S Matthews in recognition of his creating a record of 44 appearances for England which he established when playing against Belgium on January 19th 1946".

It had previously been sold for £4,800 in 2015.

The set was made by Pidduck & Sons in 1932

Antiques dealer Charles Wallrock, who runs Wick Antiques in Lymington, Hampshire, said the set was "unique because of the inscription and who it was presented to".

Sir Stanley died in 2000, aged 85.