After falling out with manager Alex Ferguson, Ince was sold to Inter Milan of Serie A in 1995, where he was a runner-up in the 1997 UEFA Cup.

After two years in Italy, Ince returned to the Premier League with Liverpool, later also representing Middlesbrough and Wolverhampton Wanderers in the top flight.

He was spotted playing, aged 12, by West Ham manager John Lyall around the time that the club was in the Second Division and achieved a surprise FA Cup final triumph over Arsenal.

[5] He is a product of the West Ham youth team and made his debut in English football on 30 November 1986 against Newcastle United in the First Division.

West Ham lost to Luton Town in the semi-finals and, despite frequent displays of individual brilliance from Ince, were relegated at the end of the season, which cost manager John Lyall his job after 15 years at the helm.

Ince played just once in the Second Division the following season before completing a highly controversial transfer to Manchester United for £1 million.

During this time, Ince found himself playing alongside several other different central midfielders, including Mike Phelan, Neil Webb and Darren Ferguson.

A year later Manchester United went to West Ham on the last day of the season, needing a win to retain their Premier League crown.

Ince's next game saw them lose the FA Cup final to Everton, leaving United without a major trophy for the first time in six seasons.

In June 1995, Ferguson sold Ince to Inter Milan for £7.5 million – at the time one of the biggest fees involving an English club.

[citation needed] In the 1995–96 season, Inter failed to challenge for a 14th scudetto, finishing seventh in Serie A. Ince, though, had a successful first season, playing in all but four of Inter's league matches and performing well after a slow start which had started speculation that he could be on his way back to the Premier League as early as the November transfer window - with Arsenal and Newcastle United both reported to be interested.

Ince did not play in the away first-leg as Inter lost 1–0 but he returned to the line-up for the home match which the Italians won 1–0 thanks to a goal from Iván Zamorano.

[15] In his first season at Anfield, he equalised in a 1–1 Merseyside Derby draw at home to Everton on 23 February 1998,[16] and on 6 May he scored twice in a 4–0 win over newly crowned league champions Arsenal to secure third place.

[19] Ince won no honours in his two seasons with Liverpool, and remarked on his teammates "I just felt they were good players, but just wanted to go out all the time, and I just thought that wasn't the way.

[22] The following 10 March, he scored in a 3–0 victory against Everton at the Riverside Stadium to put Boro into the semifinals of the FA Cup,[23] but he missed the defeat to Arsenal in that round due to suspension.

[24] In July 2002, Ince left Boro after turning down a two-year contract extension, citing the long commute from his home in the northwest.

[26] In his first season outside top-flight football, he helped the team to promotion via a 3–0 win over Sheffield United in the play-off final, assisting the second goal by Nathan Blake.

[31] In April 2006, Ince announced that he wanted to continue playing for Wolves for a further season after speaking with his friend Teddy Sheringham.

[32] Ince made his debut for the full England team on 9 September 1992 in a friendly match against Spain in Santander, losing 1–0.

[33] Ince made history during the tour of the US when, on his seventh cap against the host nation on 6 June 1993, he became England's first black captain in the absence of David Platt and Tony Adams.

Ince was part of an England team that played well but the match rarely spent much time as one-way traffic in either direction,[39] and it finished a 1–1 draw.

[47][48] In a warm up match for Euro 2000 against Malta, Ince came on as a substitute and won his 50th cap, and was subsequently named in the 22-man squad for the tournament.

[51] A tenacious, athletic, and hard-working player, Ince was known for his tireless running and ability to provide defensive support to his team in midfield.

A key factor in the transfer was Ince's long standing friendship with Town manager Dennis Wise, who had played alongside him in the England team during the 1990s.

[55] Having played one more game, he ended his contract by mutual consent on 6 October, citing long travel times from his home in Chester.

Ince retired as a player while at Macclesfield, where he only made one league appearance, as an 85th-minute substitute for Alan Navarro in a 1–1 home draw with Notts County on 5 May that saved the team from relegation.

[58][59] Ince was unveiled as the new Milton Keynes Dons manager along with his assistant Ray Mathias and fitness coach Duncan Russell on 25 June 2007.

[65][66][67] Ince's first silverware as manager came in the Football League Trophy final at Wembley on 30 March 2008, with MK Dons defeating Grimsby Town 2–0.

At the game, the crowd could be heard chanting "You don't know what you're doing" and "We want Incey out" as well as singing the name of their former manager Graeme Souness.

[90] Despite losing 3–0 to Hull City on 23 April, Ince guided Reading to safety with two games left to play, ensuring Championship football for the club in the 2022–23 season.