Wright-Phillips backed to solve England’s right flank headache
The 25-year-old has been in eye-catching form since the end of last season and is a contender to fill in for injured David Beckham against Israel and Russia as England look to get their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign back on track. Steve Clarke, assistant boss at Stamford Bridge, has been impressed with Wright-Phillips’ hard work since initially struggling to make an impact when he joined two years ago. “The form of Shaun has been great since the latter half of last season, he really started to find his feet at the club and put in some good performances,” said Clarke.
“It’s good for Chelsea. If Steve McClaren decides to put him in the England team, I don’t think he’ll let him down.”
Wright-Phillips has been highlighted by Clarke as the perfect example of how hard work can force a player back into the thoughts of boss Jose Mourinho. The current players who are looking to fight their way back into the starting XI include striker Andriy Shevchenko — who was linked with a move to his native Ukraine but is staying at Chelsea — and midfielder Joe Cole.
Cole has not started a Premier League game this season but assistant boss Clarke insists there has been no fall-out between the England midfielder and Mourinho.
“We’d be disappointed if the players not selected weren’t unhappy. They are all top players and want to play, so Joe’s unhappy but by the same token there are other players — Steve Sidwell, Claude Makelele — those types of players are unhappy when they are not selected, so it’s a normal situation.”
Cole is in the squad for the match at Aston Villa on Sunday when Chelsea look for their first win at Villa Park in eight attempts. The two draws against them last season played a part in Manchester United establishing their lead over Mourinho’s men.
“We know the games we have to win,” said Clarke. “We know what type of game it’s going to be; it’s a tough place to go.
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