PLAYER PROFILE

Shaun Wright-Phillips

Position: Midfield

Height: 5'6

Weight: 10st 1lbs

Date of Birth: 1981-10-25 Greenwich, England

Shaun Wright-Phillips

In Manchester City's Nationwide League title-winning campaign of 2001-2002, Shaun Wright-Phillips started to reverse the equation that had been applied to him. The process that started with him being known as the adopted son of the former Arsenal and England striker Ian Wright is one that will end in Ian Wright being as well known as the father of the City midfielder if Shaun's promise is fulfilled.

Wright-Phillips was released by Nottingham Forest, upon which the then City manager Joe Royle snapped him up for the Blues' Youth Academy.

His first season saw him make several reserve team appearances but he began to come into his own as he made five appearances for the first team. At nineteen he made his first start in the Premiership against one of his step-father's old clubs, West Ham. The midfielder came close to scoring a goal in many of his games in City's relegation campaign in 2000-2001 but, at just 19 years of age, he was rested when it appeared the exposure was taking it's toll. He continued to play in the reserves where he picked up a knee injury damaging his liagaments in a tackle and was ruled out of contention for the rest of the season.

Wright-Phillips returned to the team the following season under Kevin Keegan and it was at that point that he started to fulfil Royle's prediction that he would be unable to stop scoring once he hit the target once. In 41 appearances in all competitions, Shaun scored eight goals in a team in which there was no shortage of strike options. In a side in which Paulo Wanchope, Darren Huckerby and Shaun Goater were scoring for fun, Shaun managed to score and create most impressively in City's title-winning season.

He scored his first goal for the club in City's win over Millwall but his delight was tinged with some disappointment as there were no City fans there to see him smash home the winner at the New Den. He made up for that as City cruised past Bradford City 4-1 in December and nearly disappeared in the Platt Lane crowd as he celebrated his second goal for the club, his first at Maine Road.

The contribution he made in the latter half of the season was one of the brightest points of the campaign and he was rewarded with the club's Young Player of the Year award for the second season running. Another sign of the progress he has made was being selected for the England under-21 squad, making the team for a friendly against Italy.

He made a big impression on the Barcalycard Premiership in 2002/03, even with two red cards (although one was rescinded). Kevin Keegan picked him out as one of City's best players in a mixed season at Maine Road, and the youngster will surely only get better with this experience.

Wright-Phillips continued to shine during the following campaign, and in over 40 appearances he scored 11 goals. He earned a call up to the senior England squad in March although was robbed of a cap as he suffered a calf injury.

The 2004/05 season saw Wright-Phillips truly come into his own as he became a mainstay in the City frontline. He played 37 times and scored 11 goals as City finsihed the season in 8th place.

He also had a sensational start to his international career as he scored in his first game for England - the third in a 3-0 friendly victory against the Ukraine.

Wright-Phillips completed his transition to the big-time in July 2005 when he left City to join champions Chelsea for £21million. At the time, people questioned whether he would be able to force his way into the team at star-studded Stamford Bridge, and the 2005/06 season did little to assuage those fears.

In every way, it was a disappointment, as he made only ten starts for his new club and failed to get on the scoresheet at all. This lack of action cost him a place in the 2006 World Cup squad that had seemed assured only a year earlier, while further big name signings by Chelsea look like only further limiting his chances.

Indeed, he was once again reduced to the sidelines in 06/07. He made many appearances, but they were mainly from the substitutes bench. He enjoyed some prolonged periods in the team in 2007/08, but was still not quite considered a full-time member of the starting eleven.

He was linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge after the arrival of Luiz Felipe Scolari in the summer of 2008 and in August he made the move back to Manchester City for an undisclosed fee.