DO THE WRIGHT THING

Ever the entertainer on the pitch, footballing legend and father of five Ian Wright has now turned his attention to TV presenting with equal success. Matthew Weiner wonders where he gets all that energy.

Since retiring from football, you’ve successfully transformed yourself into Mr Saturday Night. How do you explain your success? I think whether it’s on the pitch or on TV, people can see the enthusiasm I’ve got and connect with it instantly. I’ve been lucky and I want people to know that I am aware of how fortunate I am. That’s why I always give my best. There’s a lot of pressure to perform in both careers.

How do they compare in that respect? I get just as nervous presenting as I ever did playing football. When I first started it was quite embarrassing and you’re scared to do something wrong. When I watch myself on TV, I’ll find myself thinking ‘Oh my God, I made a real faux pas with that jacket!’
So which presenters do you admire? I really enjoy David Letterman and Jay Leno. They’re so charming and that’s the secret of presenting: they’re very funny and they put people at ease. But I’m not trying to be like those guys, I’ve got my own style.

But do you still miss the game? Of course. If you’ve got it, I don’t think you can ever lose that competitive edge. I never wanted to stop playing but I physically just couldn’t do it anymore. But you can never lose the fighting spirit.
Can anything match the thrill of scoring a goal though? Before I had my first son Bradley when I was 21, I would have said that nothing was more important than scoring a goal. But that just fades completely into insignificance compared to having a child. There’s no comparison. Having a child is just the greatest.

You mentioned your fighting spirit earlier. That appears to be a trait your son Manchester City winger, Shaun Wright-Philips has inherited from you. Yeah, definitely. I don’t think I’m the only one that would say he has been one of the shining lights in their season and I’m proud of that. Any father would be proud of his son when he does well but to do well in football where it is so difficult makes me particularly pleased for him. I know he suffered a lot of knock-backs because of his height, just like I did, so it’s great to see that now people are talking about him playing for England. It was definitely the highlight of my career and I think that, judging by the way he’s been playing this season, Shaun deserves that too. Of course, I would say that, I am his father!

How do you think England will fare at Euro2004? We just need to believe that we can win these competitions rather than just being there to make up the numbers. We’ve got France in the very first game and we’re going to have to beat teams like that if we’re going to win.

Despite the fact that Shaun was adopted, he seems to share a lot of your traits on the pitch. Does that surprise you? I brought him up since he was 18-months-old it doesn’t make any difference whether he’s my biological son or not because as a father, I’m all he knows. For my traits to rub off on him is something I’m really pleased about. People say what’s more important: nature or nurture. To me, it’s obvious. Nurture.

Do you advise him on how to deal with his new found success? Shaun doesn’t need me to do that. He’s grown into a really nice young man. Even when he was younger he was always a calm, cool kind of a guy. That’s why it’s been easy for him to keep his feet on the ground because he knows the importance of hard work.

So where did you meet your Mrs Wright then? Deborah is a fantastic lady I’ve known since my days back on the estate and together we’re a great team. Deborah was a personal banker for Barclays, and very good at her job, but she’s one of those ladies who took to motherhood very naturally.