England's World Cup Prospect
Hype is hard to escape in modern football, where a handful of promising appearances can see a young player thrust prematurely into the spotlight, but when bold claims are made about England midfielder Shaun Wright-Phillips, there is good reason to take heed.
Wright-Phillips, in the words of Jose Mourinho, manager of his new club Chelsea, "has the qualities that everyone is looking for in a modern footballer – he is quick, he is intelligent, he is creative". And that was before Mourinho had even begun working with his £21m acquisition from Manchester City.
Having seen him at close hand on the training ground and in pre-season matches, Mourinho went further in his praise when he said last week: "For me, he's even better than I thought. He is more intelligent. He is not just intuitive but he thinks about the game."
Mourinho is not the first person to marvel at the exciting combination of speed and skill encapsulated in Wright-Phillips' diminutive 5ft 6in frame. Former England star Kevin Keegan was one of the player's managers at his previous club, Manchester City, and he described him last year – in typically unrestrained fashion - as "the best young player in England by a long way, with more courage, desire and heart than anyone I have ever worked with".
There is considerable evidence already of these qualities that Keegan cites. As the adopted son of Ian Wright, the Arsenal and England striker of the 1990s, it is inevitable his father's enthusiasm should have rubbed off on him – indeed Wright-Phillips himself has told how he and younger brother Bradley, a striker at Man City, would have to complete a certain number of kick-ups before being allowed into the house.
As a teenager Wright-Phillips, who is now 23, showed the strength of character to recover from being rejected by Nottingham Forest ("Too small," he was told) and instead went to Man City where he gradually made his name.
Fast forward a few years and he responded to the pressure of making his England debut last August by scoring a wonder goal within 20 minutes of taking the field as a substitute against Ukraine - carrying the ball from his own half before crashing a shot into the net from 20 yards.
That was not Wright-Phillips’ only spectacular strike last term – he scored a memorable 25-yarder at his father's old stamping ground of Highbury in January, underlining the goal threat he brings in addition to his pace and trickery. Indeed it was one of eleven goals that left him as City’s joint-top scorer in 2004/05.
Move to ChelseaNow, of course, Wright-Phillips is a Chelsea player. Roman Abramovich's riches ensured that Arsenal, his father's former club, could not compete for his signature and made him the third most expensive English player in history (behind Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney). The popular perception is that joining Chelsea – and playing UEFA Champions League football at Stamford Bridge - will help him add to his four England caps but whereas he was a key player at City, there is no guarantee of a place in the Chelsea team.
/06/en/photos/index.html?aid=199733&d=1Enlarge PhotoPhoto Gallery
The London club already have three players to fill the wide positions in Dutch international Arjen Robben, Republic of Ireland winger Damien Duff, and England's Joe Cole. It will help that Wright-Phillips is a versatile footballer who can play not only on the right wing but also as one of a front three – as on his full England debut against the Netherlands – or even in a midfield trio.
Wright-Phillips, who appeared as a second-half substitute in Chelsea’s season-opening victory over Arsenal in the FA Community Shield on Sunday, believes he can only prosper, declaring that: "Competition is just healthy really and will help make me a better player."
One person who will hope as much is his England manager, Sven-Goran Eriksson, who with an eye on next summer's FIFA World Cup™, is hoping the Londoner could be one of those players who step up a level at just the right time to make an impact on the world stage. As the Swede told FIFAworldcup,com: "There are some young players out there such as Shaun Wright-Phillips, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Kieran Richardson who could progress in the next 12 months."
It is a big year then for Wright-Phillips – and that's not just hype talking.
Wright-Phillips, in the words of Jose Mourinho, manager of his new club Chelsea, "has the qualities that everyone is looking for in a modern footballer – he is quick, he is intelligent, he is creative". And that was before Mourinho had even begun working with his £21m acquisition from Manchester City.
Having seen him at close hand on the training ground and in pre-season matches, Mourinho went further in his praise when he said last week: "For me, he's even better than I thought. He is more intelligent. He is not just intuitive but he thinks about the game."
Mourinho is not the first person to marvel at the exciting combination of speed and skill encapsulated in Wright-Phillips' diminutive 5ft 6in frame. Former England star Kevin Keegan was one of the player's managers at his previous club, Manchester City, and he described him last year – in typically unrestrained fashion - as "the best young player in England by a long way, with more courage, desire and heart than anyone I have ever worked with".
There is considerable evidence already of these qualities that Keegan cites. As the adopted son of Ian Wright, the Arsenal and England striker of the 1990s, it is inevitable his father's enthusiasm should have rubbed off on him – indeed Wright-Phillips himself has told how he and younger brother Bradley, a striker at Man City, would have to complete a certain number of kick-ups before being allowed into the house.
As a teenager Wright-Phillips, who is now 23, showed the strength of character to recover from being rejected by Nottingham Forest ("Too small," he was told) and instead went to Man City where he gradually made his name.
Fast forward a few years and he responded to the pressure of making his England debut last August by scoring a wonder goal within 20 minutes of taking the field as a substitute against Ukraine - carrying the ball from his own half before crashing a shot into the net from 20 yards.
That was not Wright-Phillips’ only spectacular strike last term – he scored a memorable 25-yarder at his father's old stamping ground of Highbury in January, underlining the goal threat he brings in addition to his pace and trickery. Indeed it was one of eleven goals that left him as City’s joint-top scorer in 2004/05.
Move to ChelseaNow, of course, Wright-Phillips is a Chelsea player. Roman Abramovich's riches ensured that Arsenal, his father's former club, could not compete for his signature and made him the third most expensive English player in history (behind Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney). The popular perception is that joining Chelsea – and playing UEFA Champions League football at Stamford Bridge - will help him add to his four England caps but whereas he was a key player at City, there is no guarantee of a place in the Chelsea team.
/06/en/photos/index.html?aid=199733&d=1Enlarge PhotoPhoto Gallery
The London club already have three players to fill the wide positions in Dutch international Arjen Robben, Republic of Ireland winger Damien Duff, and England's Joe Cole. It will help that Wright-Phillips is a versatile footballer who can play not only on the right wing but also as one of a front three – as on his full England debut against the Netherlands – or even in a midfield trio.
Wright-Phillips, who appeared as a second-half substitute in Chelsea’s season-opening victory over Arsenal in the FA Community Shield on Sunday, believes he can only prosper, declaring that: "Competition is just healthy really and will help make me a better player."
One person who will hope as much is his England manager, Sven-Goran Eriksson, who with an eye on next summer's FIFA World Cup™, is hoping the Londoner could be one of those players who step up a level at just the right time to make an impact on the world stage. As the Swede told FIFAworldcup,com: "There are some young players out there such as Shaun Wright-Phillips, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe, Kieran Richardson who could progress in the next 12 months."
It is a big year then for Wright-Phillips – and that's not just hype talking.
posted by Kevin at
1:10 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home