Manchester City’s Jacob Wright considered leaving this summer after receiving offers from other clubs. However, once Pep Guardiola and his staff expressed their desire for him to stay with the first team, Wright quickly made up his mind.
“There was temptation, but when the manager wants you, the decision becomes easy,” Wright said. “As soon as I heard, the temptation was gone.”
Despite not yet playing for the first team this season, Wright has shone in youth matches, scoring five goals in nine appearances. Training with senior players like Ilkay Gundogan, Kyle Walker, and Bernardo Silva, he’s hopeful his chance will come soon.
A few years ago, Ilkay Gundogan took a step into coaching, helping Manchester City’s Under-16s while working on his coaching badges. During a training session focused on the role of a holding midfielder, he dedicated time to offering personalized advice to one player—young Jacob Wright, who was tasked with controlling the game from the center of the pitch. Wright, now 19, can’t help but smile as he reflects on that day, especially since he now finds himself sharing the first-team dressing room with the very man who coached him, Gund
ogan.