Billy wright

William Ambrose Wright, known as Billy Wright, is a former English footballer who played his whole club career at Wolverhampton Wanderers. He was born on 6 February 1924 in Ironbridge, Shropshire, England and played as a centre-back his whole career. Billy was the first ever footballer to have a 100 caps for his country and is considered a legend in English football.

Background

Billy began his footballing career at Wolves where he became a crucial part of the post-war football team. Having spent his whole career there, Billy has a statue of himself outside the Wolves’ Molineux stadium.

Billy has represented the following teams - Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leicester City, England B, and England. He managed Arsenal after retirement.

Debut

Billy made his professional debut for the Wolves in 1939 in a 2-1 win against Notts County. But the debut was not considered as it was played during the World War II. His official debut came in 1945 in an FA Cup tie against Lovells Athletic.

On 19 January 1946, Billy made his international debut for England in a 2-0 win against Belgium which was a post-war game.

Rise to Glory

Wright’s performances for the Wolves impressed the selectors at England who called him up for a post-war match against Belgium. He made his debut and soon became a crucial part of the England side. He played his first full match on 28 September 1946 in a massive 7-2 win against Ireland.

He was made captain in 1948 and he held this position for over 90 games. This became a record, adding on to the record which made him the first footballer to achieve 100 caps. Wright still remains the ninth most capped English player.

Wright played a total of 105 games for England, scoring 3 goals and being an ever present part of the squad. He was never sent off in a game in his whole international career and had an extraordinary disciplinary record. He retired in 1959 after he was inducted into the International Football Hall of Fame in 1997 for his contributions. He was also the FWA Footballer of the Year in 1952.

Club Career

Wright played his whole club career at Wolverhampton Wanderers and achieved status as club legend. He was immortalised in front of the Wolves’ Molineux stadium. He first started playing for the Wolves B team at the age of 14 in 1938 before making his full team debut in 1939. He signed his first professional contract at the age of 17.

During the World War II, Wolves had to suspend all competitive football and Wright had to play for Leicester City as a guest player till things returned to normal at Molineux. He soon returned from an injury to Molineux and was a physical training instructor in the war. He played whenever possible, and soon returned to full time football after the war. He captained the Wolves and led them to three First Division titles in 1953–54, 1957–58 and 1958–59.The Wolves also won the FA Cup in 1949 with Wright as their captain. He had made a total of 541 appearances in all competitions.

After his retirement, Wright tried his hand at management when he signed for Arsenal. He began well with a 7th place finish. But things began going south and he was removed after a 4-year disappointing stint.