Wrighty's House

Welcome to Wrighty’s House, the brand-new podcast from Arsenal, Crystal Palace, and England legend Ian Wright. In this introductory episode, Ian is joined by each contributor who will regularly pop in. First up, he chats with Stadio cohost Ryan Hunn about what the podcast will be, before Olympian and broadcaster Jeanette Kwakye chats to Wrighty about lining up in an Olympic final and the dynamics of picking the clubs to support within a family (10:45). The Athletic’s Carl Anka joins to talk about Didier Drogba, Andy Cole, Edinson Cavani, and player WhatsApp groups (22:26), before Ryan returns again with Musa Okwonga to chat George Weah, a wonderful Dennis Bergkamp training story, and much more (34:57).

It’s Wrighty’s birthday this week, so Ian welcomes Jeanette Kwakye and Musa Okwonga to the house to talk about being reunited with his memorabilia as a birthday surprise and aging gracefully (1:29). They then discuss the passing of Ian’s favorite Bond, Sean Connery (7:15), and who in football had that same type of aura as well as the importance of sporting confidence. Ian chats about what it’s like being a father to two professional footballers, Shaun and Bradley (15:37), there’s a lot of love for Ruud Gullit (22:38), discussion about Manchester United vs. Arsenal (29:50) and Leicester vs. Leeds (38:07), and a tale about ruthless finishing during England training (41:35).

Ian is joined by Stadio’s Ryan Hunn and The Athletic’s Carl Anka to heap praise on an Aston Villa side who beat Arsenal 3-0 at the Emirates. They applaud Jack Grealish, Ross Barkley, other Villa players, and manager Dean Smith and then break down some of Arsenal’s creative issues (01:17). After Southampton briefly went top of the table for the first time since 1998, they chat about the wonder that is Ralph Hasenhüttl and the incredible job he’s done (24:02). There’s praise for another coach at the top of her game: Manchester United’s Casey Stoney, whose team had an impressive win over Arsenal in the Barclays FA Women’s Super League (40:29). They also discuss the managerial potential of Vivianne Miedema (45:59). Finally, there are some flowers sent to Harry Kane, who reached 150 Premier League goals, and Wesley Fofana, who continues to put in brilliant performances for Leicester (50:27) and much more.

On this episode, Ian is joined by Stadio’s Ryan Hunn to discuss Marcus Rashford’s ongoing great work (01:30) and then reflect on an incident where he himself was racially abused by Barnsley in 1995 (06:40). They briefly chat about last weekend’s Manchester Derby in the Barclays Women’s Super League (11:44) before moving on to England’s progress following the defeat to Belgium (16:10) and revisiting the famous defeat to Iceland four years ago, before they them again this week (21:36). There’s a lot of love for Scotland, who qualified for their first major tournament since the 1998 World Cup (28:11). Plus looking ahead to three big Premier League fixtures: Liverpool host Leicester (32:22), Manchester City travel to face Spurs (38:16), and Arsenal visit Leeds (48:19).

On this latest episode, Ian welcomes Jeanette Kwakye and Musa Okwonga back to the house to talk Liverpool’s relentless winning mentality, including praise for how Diogo Jota has slotted into the front three (1:21). There’s chat about another impressive Leeds performance despite not beating Arsenal (10:22), as well as the contrasting reactions of Nicolas Pépé (14:43) and Kieran Tierney (21:28). Flowers this week go to Frank Lampard as a player and how he needs time as a manager (27:25) and also to Danny Welbeck (35:36) after his superb goal this weekend for Brighton. There’s a tale about Jeanette and Dagenham & Redbridge (40:38), before finishing with a couple of stories about Brian Clough (45:21) and Glenn Hoddle (47:00).

This week on Wrighty’s House, Ian is joined by Stadio’s Musa Okwonga. With the hectic December schedule about to get underway, they discuss the pros and cons of being a professional footballer in England over the festive period (01.07). Next, they look ahead to this week’s North London Derby, which Spurs heads into in good form and Arsenal very much does not (23.46); give flowers to Gary Lineker, who’s still underrated for his movement and finishing (41.37); and share a story about a potential transfer that could’ve taken Wrighty to France (56.03).

Ian is joined by Stadio’s Ryan Hunn and The Athletic’s Carl Anka to discuss Paul Pogba’s current situation and agents’ role in football following Mino Raiola’s interview about the French World Cup winner wanting to leave Manchester United (1:06). They also talk supersubs, give flowers to Jermain Defoe (15:05) and Son Heung-min, and commend Spurs’ continued improvement (24:54). They also discuss Trent Alexander-Arnold’s recent comments about playing at Anfield and the importance of fans (40:54), reflect on Millwall fans booing players taking a knee and why the gesture remains important (56:12), and wrap up with some chat from the Barclays WSL (59:48).

In this episode, Ian is joined by Stadio’s Ryan Hunn to chat about France’s Ballon d’Or dream team—which selections they agree with and who they feel missed out (01:15). Next, in the wake of Lucien Favre’s sacking from Dortmund, Ian gives insight into what it’s like for a player during a managerial change at a club (17:34), and flowers are given to Scott Parker and Ademola Lookman for a great turnaround in performances at Fulham (32:53). There are also flowers for Ralph Hasenhüttl, whose Southampton side visits Arsenal (37:24). Lastly, Ian gives his thoughts on the current situation at Arsenal (42:01).

On this festive episode of Wrighty’s House, Ian is joined by Jeanette Kwakye and The Athletic’s Carl Anka to discuss their Christmas plans (01:17) and what non-football gift they would give to Premier League managers (07:09). Then they discuss Christmas rituals as a footballer, athlete, and journalist. There’s some Arsenal chat (15:20), plus who would make their Premier League team of the season so far (30:13). Then they look back at the final round of the Barclays Women’s Super League before Christmas (53:28).

In the final Wrighty’s House of the year, Ian is joined by Jeanette Kwakye, Musa Okwonga and Ryan Hunn (Carl Anka couldn’t be there but was there in spirit) for an unscripted chat over a drink or two. They begin with tales of Christmas, parenting and dinner pressure (01:14), plus the first time Musa and Ryan met Ian (12:15). There’s chat about the science and artistry of being an elite athlete (19:14), sporting intelligence (27:50), and Jeanette tells a story about competing in an Olympic final (35:33) and the pressure of performing on the biggest stage. Ian shares his experience of playing against Italy in 1997 (39:13), and they discuss some of their favorite moments of the year (47:14).