Who is Haji Wright? The Coventry star who stunned Man Utd in FA Cup semi-finals

Haji Wright is having quite a season, having recently netted a brace for the USMNT in a Nations League win, and also starred at club level as Coventry City narrowly missed out on the FA Cup final.

On March 21, the Coventry City striker came off the bench to score twice in extra time as the United States edged out Jamaica in the CONCACAF Nations League semi-finals.

Wright was not originally selected in Gregg Berhalter’s squad for the fixture. His initial omission meant the prolonging of an eight-month exodus from the USMNT for the 25-year-old from Los Angeles, dating back to a last-16 defeat to the Netherlands at the 2022 World Cup, a game in which he scored.

But an injury to Norwich City’s Josh Sargent brought Wright back into the fold and it was Berhalter’s desperation that gave the former Schalke forward the chance to impress on his comeback.

Trailing to an understrength Reggae Boys side thanks to a Greg Leigh goal after just 30 seconds, and facing the prospect of a third straight defeat, Wright was brought on after an hour as the USMNT chased the game.

A 96th-minute own goal staved off the Americans’ embarrassment, then Wright took over in extra time, scoring twice from inside the penalty area with emphatic finishes – being assisted both times by Gio Reyna.

“They did well for most of the game,” Wright said post-match, “but fortunately for us we got a goal in the 90th minute and once we scored we knew we were just going to keep going and destroy them really because they had nothing left in the tank. We applied the pressure and were able to score two more goals.”

What was most remarkable about Wright’s heroics was that it wasn’t the first time in the space of week that he’d fired his team to glory with some last-gasp magic.

Just five days earlier, his carefully curled stoppage-time strike saw second-tier Coventry upset Premier League side Wolves at Molineux in the last eight of the FA Cup, booking a semi-final date with Manchester United at Wembley.

That was Wright’s 15th goal of the season for the Sky Blues and his seventh in March alone.

In the semi-final against Man Utd, Wright showed fantastic composure to score an injury-time penalty to make it 3-3 and take the tie to extra time.

Wright thought he had set up Victor Torp for a dramatic late Coventry winner, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside. Man Utd ultimately won on penalties, but Wright and his Coventry team-mates earned plenty of admirers thanks to their brilliant cup run.

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Wright hasn’t had it easy

But it hasn’t been all plain sailing for Wright at Coventry – or, indeed, for much of his career to date.

A regular international at all youth levels for the United States, he has been regarded as a player of some promise since his mid-teens, evidenced by a remarkable scoring record of 27 goals in 34 games for the US at under-17 level.

Following a well-trodden path for young American soccer talent, he moved to the Bundesliga with Schalke when he was 18, beginning with the Gelsenkirchen club’s under-19s side before graduating to make seven senior appearances.

His first – and ultimately only – goal for the club, coming in a 2-1 loss to Bayer Leverkusen in December 2018, was assisted by compatriot Weston McKennie.

In the summer of 2019, Wright joined Eredivisie side VVV Venlo on a free transfer. He didn’t find goals any easier to come by in the Netherlands – he failed to score in 22 league appearances.

He lasted just one season before being moved on to Sonderjyske in Denmark. Finally, in the Danish top flight, Wright rediscovered his confidence and his scoring touch, netting 13 times in 37 games for the mid-table Superliga outfit.

Wright was not intent upon staying in Denmark long-term, though. At the start of what would have been his second season with Sonderjyske, he failed to report for training as he tried to manufacture an exit. Turkish side Antalyaspor obliged, taking him on loan initially before signing him outright the following summer.

USMNT’s hero is Coventry’s star

In two seasons in Turkey, Wright maintained the form he’d found in Denmark, scoring 31 goals in 64 games. His performances were enough to convince Coventry to break their club transfer record to sign him, forking out £9million last summer – part of a splurge that also saw the Midlands side land highly-rated English striker Ellis Simms from Everton.

Initially, though, both Simms and Wright struggled to live up to their billing at the CBS Arena. Wright scored just twice in his first 14 games, while Simms had only two goals to his name by the turn of the year. Poor early season form saw Coventry languishing in the relegation zone in November.

But Mark Robins’ side have been on a roll recently, rising to eighth in the table and securing a first FA Cup semi-final appearance since 1987, when they went on to win the cup. Simms, who scored twice in the win over Wolves, has bagged 10 goals in his last eight games, while Wright now has 15 goals and seven assists for the season.

“Ellis and I didn’t have amazing starts here but [Robins] believed in us,” Wright said after his late winner at Wolves. “Now we are in a spot where we can show ourselves.”

Firing the USMNT towards Nations League glory and sustaining Coventry’s unlikely cup run, Wright is finally justifying his price tag and realising his potential. What a difference a month makes.

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