With 17 goals and an assist, striker Bradley Wright-Phillips was named the Red Bulls’ team MVP of the 2017 season.
As one of the veterans on the team this season, Wright-Phillips played the role of mentor to a lot of the younger players this season. While leading by example up top, the London-native stated that this year, despite the playoff exit, was a successful season.
“When you lose in the playoffs, it feels like a failure, but we hit our targets this season,” Wright-Phillips stated. “We had a good run in the Open Cup, and we missed that in the finals. We wanted to make the playoffs; we’ve done that. We’re a young team. If you look at the beginning of the season, losing Dax [McCarty], everyone thought it’d be way worse. We actually had a good season, Tyler [Adams] is going to the U.S. National Team. It’s been a success, it’s hard to think about, but it’s been a success.”
The Englishman also etched his name into the record books this season.
With his goal in the second leg of the Toronto FC playoff series, BWP hit the century mark with goal No. 100 for the Red Bulls in all competitions.
The 32-year-old also cracked into the top five of the Red Bulls all-time appearances list, moving ahead of John Wolyniec by one appearance to secure fifth.
While Wright-Phillips gained another year of experience and set records, he still doesn’t want to be “that old guy” on the team.
“I don’t want it to get too young, and I don’t want to be that old guy,” Wright-Phillips joked. “If the players are good and they come in, it is what it is no matter how old they are. Let’s not make it too young; I still want that space in the locker room.”
BEST OF BRADLEY WRIGHT-PHILLIPS 2017 by New York Red Bulls on Exposure
