Ian Wright’s MLS legend son explains why United States ‘can’t win’ against England
MLS icon Bradley Wright-Phillips says USA “can’t win” against England ahead of their crunch World Cup clash in Al Khor later this evening.
The Three Lions are looking to seal qualification for the knockout rounds with a win while the Americans will be praying for at least a point to keep hopes of getting out of the group alive following their opening round draw with Wales.
The match pits Wright-Phillips’ home nation against the country where he made his name, though the 37-year-old admits he’ll very much be Team England tonight.
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“Listen man, I want the USA to do well in the World Cup, I want them to get out of the group,” Wright-Phillips told MLSsoccer.com.
“They can’t win the England game though. I’m here in America, [I] don’t have too many English people here to back me up. So this game has to go well for us.”
Wright-Phillips, who is the son of England and Arsenal icon Ian Wright and the elder brother of former Premier League star Shaun Wright-Phillips, is currently special assistant to the sporting director at New York Red Bulls, having hung up his boots in March.
What will the score be tonight? Let us know what you reckon in the comments section below.
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(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
A former England youth player, Wright-Phillips lived the first 27 years of his life in the UK, though spent the last decade of his playing career out in the States – becoming a national superstar, and something of an adopted son, in the process.
He’s a two-time MLS Golden Boot winner and is New York Red Bull’s all-time top scorer, having netted 126 goals in 240 games across a seven spell in the Big Apple.
He overshadowed (and outperformed) his brother when Shaun briefly joined him at the Red Bull Arena in 2015 – an unthinkable thought for English football fans who watched the younger Wright-Phillips seal major honours at Chelsea and Manchester City as Bradley dropped down to the lower divisions.
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