New York Red Bulls has signed Shaun Wright-Phillips, the club announced today. Learn more about the English forward with these 10 facts.
Shaun Wright-Phillips, born on October 25, 1981, in London, England, is the adopted son of Ian Wright, and brother of Bradley Wright-Phillips.
This is the second time the Wright-Phillips brothers will be playing for the same club in their professional careers. The brothers were also teammates from 2004 to 2005 at Manchester City, and Shaun was on the field for Bradley’s professional debut, in which Bradley scored his first career goal against Middlesbrough. This is the 11th time brothers have been on the same team in MLS history.
Wright-Phillips started his youth career at Nottingham Forest in 1993, where he remained until switching to Manchester City in 1998. He lasted one year in the Manchester City youth system until advancing to the First Team.
Wright-Phillips has had two separate spells at Manchester City, from 1999 to 2005 and 2008 to 2011. He went on to make 153 appearances for the Citizens and scored 26 goals. He earned two pieces of silverware in nine seasons.
After making six appearances for the England U-21 National Team, he received his first call-up to the Senior Team in 2004. In his England debut, the forward scored his first international goal as a substitute in a win against Ukraine, 3-0. He has made 36 international appearances for England, recording six goals and three assists.
In 2010, he was selected to England’s 23-man FIFA World Cup roster. He made two appearances in the Group Stage against the United States and Algeria, and one appearance in the Round of 16 against Germany.
He transferred to Chelsea FC in 2005 where he made 81 appearances. He scored four goals and collected four trophies during his three-year tenure.
SWP transferred from Manchester City to Queens Park Rangers in 2011. With QPR, he played 67 matches in four seasons and scored two goals in all competitions, including one against his old club Chelsea FC, a victory for QPR, 1-0.
In June 2015, SWP attended his brother’s wedding in New York City. Following the wedding, he began training with the New York Red Bulls for fitness, and officially joined the club on July 27, 2015.
Shaun Wright-Phillips has won seven titles in his career: Football League Championship/Promotion to English Premier League (2001-02, Manchester City), FA Community Shield (2005, Chelsea FC), English Premier League title (2005-06, Chelsea FC), FA Cup (2007, Chelsea FC), League Cup (2007, Chelsea FC), FA Cup (2011, Manchester City), and Football League Championship play-offs/Promotion to English Premier League (2013-14, Queens Park Rangers).
