Wayne Bridge
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Wayne Michael Bridge (born 5 August 1980) is an English former
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who played as a
left back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...
. A graduate of the
Southampton Academy Southampton Academy is a small, private school located in Courtland, Virginia. Southampton Academy, also known locally as "SA" provides education for students from pre-kindergarten through the 12th grade. Southampton Academy was founded in 1969 ...
where he made his debut in 1998, Bridge also played for
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
,
West Ham West Ham is an area in East London, located east of Charing Cross in the west of the modern London Borough of Newham. The area, which lies immediately to the north of the River Thames and east of the River Lea, was originally an ancien ...
,
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
,
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
and
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
during his
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
career. Bridge made 36 appearances for the England national team between 2002 and 2009, being selected for two
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
squads and
UEFA Euro 2004 The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial association football, football competition contested by the List of men's national associatio ...
.


Club career


Southampton

Bridge was born in
Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, but moved to
Olivers Battery Oliver's Battery is a civil parish in Hampshire, England, of some 700 households located just to the south of the City of Winchester. The parish was formed in 1956 (in the then Winchester Rural District, and part of the City of Winchester Distr ...
,
Winchester Winchester is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs Nation ...
, at an early age. He attended Oliver's Battery Primary and
Kings' School Kings' School is a comprehensive school in Winchester, Hampshire, with approximately 1,650 pupils. The most recent Ofsted inspection (June 2014) brought forward a generally excellent classification with thirty out of thirty-one sections of the ...
, Winchester. When playing for
Olivers Battery Oliver's Battery is a civil parish in Hampshire, England, of some 700 households located just to the south of the City of Winchester. The parish was formed in 1956 (in the then Winchester Rural District, and part of the City of Winchester Distr ...
he was spotted by
Micky Adams Michael Richard Adams (born 8 November 1961) is an English former professional association football, footballer and football manager. As a player, he was a Full-back (football), full back, and made a total of 438 league appearances in a ninete ...
, who recommended him to
Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, who signed him as a trainee in July 1996. He made his reserve team debut as a
centre-forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...
against
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
on 13 August 1997 and turned professional in January 1998. Bridge made his first-team debut on 16 August 1998 (the opening day of the 1998–99 season) coming on as a replacement for John Beresford, who had badly damaged his knee. Bridge made his first senior start in the next match on 22 August in a 5–0 defeat away to
Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
. As Southampton struggled to pick up points (with only two points after the first nine games), Bridge played (on the left wing) in most of Saints' league games until early December before losing his place to
Hassan Kachloul Hassan Kachloul ( ar, حسان كشلول; born 19 February 1973) is a Moroccan former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He represented the Morocco national team and was a squad member at the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Career Born i ...
. For the remainder of the 1998–99 Premier League season, Bridge was only used occasionally as Saints narrowly avoided relegation. He completed his first season as a first-team player with 15 starts and eight substitute appearances. The following season carried on in a similar vein with Bridge making occasional appearances on the left wing until injuries to
Francis Benali Francis Vincent Benali (born 30 December 1968) is an English football coach and former professional player. As a player, he was a full back who notably spent most of his career in the Premier League with Southampton, during a sixteen-year spe ...
and the poor form of his intended replacement
Patrick Colleter Patrick Colleter (born 6 November 1965) is a French former professional footballer who played as a full-back. Career Early career Colleter begin his football career with his local team Brest in 1986. After some impressive performances, Colleter ...
gave Bridge the opportunity to play at left-back, where he soon became a fixture in the Saints starting line-up. In the 1999–2000 season, he made 15 starts (plus four substitute appearances) scoring his first senior goal, with a powerful free-kick over the wall, in the final match of the season on 14 May 2000 against
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
, as a result of which Wimbledon were relegated to Division 1 after 14 years in the top flight. In the 2000–01 season, Bridge was an ever-present at left-back as Saints finished their final season at The Dell in tenth place in the Premier League table. Bridge was rewarded by being voted the Southampton Player of the Year for the 2000–01 season. Bridge was "fast, determined, skilful and full of youthful promise" and "his forward runs became an exciting sight at The Dell and then at St Mary's." He was an ever-present yet again in the following season as Saints again finished their first season at their new
stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...
comfortably in mid-table. Bridge's temperament and consistency, together with a high level of fitness, enabled him to continue to play every match until 18 January 2003 when he limped off with an injury in a 1–0 defeat to
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
. This brought to an end a run of 113 consecutive appearances, a Premier League record for an outfield player (since surpassed by Frank Lampard, Jr.). His run started on 4 March 2000, from when Bridge played 10,160 consecutive minutes of Premier League football, not missing any play through injury or suspension. By now, bigger clubs were trailing Bridge, and he was finally tempted away to join
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
for £7 million in the 2003 close season. His last appearance for the club came in the
2003 FA Cup Final The 2003 FA Cup Final was the 122nd final of the FA Cup, the world's oldest domestic football cup competition. The final took place on Saturday 17 May 2003 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, in front of a crowd of 73,726. It was the third co ...
defeat to
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
. During his five years as a Saints first-team player, he made 173 appearances, with two league goals against Wimbledon and
Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
.


Chelsea


2003–04 season

After five years with the Saints, Bridge moved to Chelsea in July 2003 for a fee of £7 million plus
Graeme Le Saux Graeme Pierre Le Saux ( ; born 17 October 1968) is an English former professional footballer and television pundit. As a versatile left sided player he played most of his career at left back with two spells at Chelsea, Blackburn Rovers, Southamp ...
, and was initially a regular starter. His finest moment came in the Champions League quarter-final against
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
in 2003–04. Bridge scored the winning goal in the 88th minute to send Chelsea into the semi-finals and end an 18-game winless run against Arsenal. The goal was later voted goal of the season. Bridge also scored against
Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and Şişli, on the west by Kağıthane and Şişli, on the south by Beyoğlu, and ...
and
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
in the 2003–04 season.


2004–05 season

Bridge started the 2004–05 season playing regularly under new manager
José Mourinho José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
, but he picked up a serious ankle injury in an
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
tie against
Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
on 20 February 2005. This ended his season and also meant he missed the following weekend's League Cup Final. Chelsea went on to win the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
in his absence but Bridge had already made enough appearances (15) to receive a winners' medal.


2005–06 season

For the 2005–06 season, Chelsea signed Spanish left-back
Asier del Horno Asier del Horno Cosgaya (born 19 January 1981) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a left back. After solid displays with Athletic Bilbao, for which he appeared in 126 official games in five years scoring 17 goals, he moved to Chelse ...
and Bridge faced a challenge to get back into the side when he recovered from the injury that kept him out of the team in the latter stages of the 2004–05 campaign. He only made two appearances for Chelsea that season, both in domestic cup games. These limited first team opportunities saw him join
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...
on loan on 19 January 2006. He made his debut in a 2–1 defeat to
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
at Upton Park. The move seemed to benefit him as he managed to secure his place in the
2006 World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
English squad for the tournament in Germany. Chelsea won the Premier League again, but Bridge was not eligible for a medal this time as he had not made a single league appearance for them all season.


2006–07 season

Bridge's main competition for the Chelsea left back position then came from fellow England international left back
Ashley Cole Ashley Cole (born 20 December 1980) is an English football coach and former player who is currently a first-team coach at Premier League club Everton. As a player, he played as a left-back, most notably for Arsenal and Chelsea. Cole is consi ...
. Bridge played the full match in Chelsea's 3–0 victory over
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
on the opening day of the 2006–07 Premier League season, providing a telling cross for the third goal, scored by a header from
Didier Drogba Didier Yves Drogba Tébily (; born 11 March 1978) is an Ivorian retired professional footballer who played as a striker. He is the all-time top scorer and former captain of the Ivory Coast national team. He is best known for his career at ...
. His strong early season form, however, was not enough to hold down the left-back position, with Mourinho preferring Ashley Cole in most games. Following Cole's injury in the 3–0 Premier League win against
Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
early in 2007, Bridge became Chelsea's natural choice for left-back. Bridge featured in attack for an injury struck Chelsea side against
League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
side
Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play their home ...
in the 2007 semi-final 1st leg League Cup match, scoring one goal in the process. Bridge finished the 2006–07 season with two cup final winner's medals after playing in both the League Cup Final against
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
in a 2–1 win and in the
FA Cup Final The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football ev ...
against
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
in a 1–0 victory.


2007–08 season

Bridge played his third cup final for Chelsea in just over two years in the 2–1 loss in the 2008 League Cup Final against
Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
. Bridge was adjudged to have handled the ball in the penalty area and Tottenham were awarded a penalty from which they scored, going on to win 2–1 after extra-time.


2008–09 season

In the League Cup fourth round tie against
Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
in the 2008–09 season, Bridge wore the captain's armband in the absence of
John Terry John George Terry (born 7 December 1980) is an English professional football coach and former player who played as a centre-back. He was previously captain of Chelsea, the England national team and Aston Villa. He was most recently the assi ...
and
Frank Lampard Frank James Lampard (born 20 June 1978) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of club Everton. He is widely regarded as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever players, and one of the greatest midfielder ...
, but the Blues lost on penalties.


Manchester City


2009–11 seasons

On 2 January 2009, it was confirmed by
Mark Hughes Leslie Mark Hughes (born 1 November 1963) is a Welsh football coach and former player who is the manager of Bradford City. During his playing career he usually operated as a forward or midfielder. He had two spells at Manchester United, and a ...
that
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
had agreed an undisclosed fee with Chelsea for Bridge, thought to be around £10 million and, on the following day, Manchester City agreed personal terms with the player, who later passed his medical, thus enabling the transfer to be completed and he signed a four-and-a-half-year deal. Bridge was unveiled to the home fans that day at an FA Cup home tie against
Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
, and two weeks later made his debut for the club in a 1–0 win against
Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...
in the league. He was given the squad number 25. For the 2009–10 season, Bridge switched to the number 3, which was previously worn by
Michael Ball Michael Ashley Ball (born 27 June 1962) is an English singer, presenter and actor. He made his West End debut in 1985 playing Marius Pontmercy in the original London production of ''Les Misérables'', and went on to star in 1987 as Raoul in ...
. On 27 February 2010, City inflicted Chelsea's first home Premier League defeat of the
season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
with a 4–2 victory. Prior to the match, Bridge was involved in a highly publicised incident in which he refused to shake hands with Chelsea captain and former club and international teammate
John Terry John George Terry (born 7 December 1980) is an English professional football coach and former player who played as a centre-back. He was previously captain of Chelsea, the England national team and Aston Villa. He was most recently the assi ...
, who was at the time the subject of claims that he had had an affair with Bridge's ex-girlfriend Vanessa Perroncel. His position as left-back for Manchester City gradually faded with the arrival of two new left-backs. In the summer of 2010, Manchester City manager
Roberto Mancini Roberto Mancini (; born 27 November 1964) is an Italian football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of the Italy national team. As a player, Mancini operated as a deep-lying forward, and was best known for his time at Samp ...
signed
Aleksandar Kolarov Aleksandar Kolarov (; born 10 November 1985) is a Serbian former professional footballer. Although primarily a left-back, Kolarov could also operate as a centre-back and anywhere along the left flank and was known for his overlapping attacking ru ...
from
Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...
, and in 2011 signed
Gaël Clichy Gaël Dimitri Clichy (born 26 July 1985) is a French professional footballer who plays for Swiss Super League club Servette. He primarily plays as a left-back, being also capable of playing as an offensive-minded wing-back. He is predominant ...
from Arsenal, thus indicating Bridge was surplus to requirements at City.


West Ham (loan)

On 12 January 2011, Bridge joined
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
on loan until the end of the season. He made his West Ham debut on 15 January 2011 in a 3–0 loss to
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
. Bridge made 18 appearances in all competitions for West Ham before his loan ended.


Sunderland (loan)

On 31 January 2012, it was announced that Bridge had joined
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
on a loan deal until the end of the 2011–12 season. He made his debut appearance as an 82nd minute substitute for
Kieran Richardson Kieran Edward Richardson (born 21 October 1984) is an English former professional footballer who played as a winger, left-back, or central midfielder. Richardson began his career as a trainee at West Ham United, going on to play senior footba ...
in Sunderland's 3–0 victory over
Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...
the following day. He made his first start for Sunderland in their 1–0 win over Liverpool on 10 March 2012, and also featured in the FA Cup quarter-final draw with Everton the following week.


Brighton & Hove Albion (loan)

On 6 July 2012, it was confirmed that Bridge would join
Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...
on a season-long loan. He made his debut for Brighton on 14 August 2012 in a 3–0 away defeat to
Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...
in the
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
. His first Brighton goal came on 25 August 2012 in a 5–1 home victory over
Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...
, his first league goal since scoring for Chelsea in December 2003. Bridge played 37 league games for Brighton, scoring three goals and helping them reach fourth place in
the league ''The League'' is an American sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, Illinois, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football league ...
to qualify for the
play-offs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
. He played in both semi-final games against
Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
where Brighton were beaten 2–0 on aggregate. At the end of the season, Bridge thanked Brighton manager
Gus Poyet Gustavo Augusto Poyet Domínguez (; born 15 November 1967) is a Uruguayan professional football manager and former footballer. He is currently the head coach of the Greece national football team. Poyet played as a midfielder and began his caree ...
for revitalising his footballing career. He told ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', "Brighton have been great to me. I just want to say a big thank you to the chairman and the fans. Gus has revitalised my love for football after I was in the wilderness at Manchester City."


Reading and retirement

In June 2013, Bridge signed a one-year contract with
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
, who had just been relegated to the
Football League Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the En ...
. Bridge chose Reading ahead of offers from
Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...
and Brighton, who wished to make his loan permanent. On 6 May 2014, Bridge was released by Reading after 12 games in his only season for the club, subsequently retiring from professional football.


International career

During his time with Southampton, all Bridge's managers (
Jones Jones may refer to: People *Jones (surname), a common Welsh and English surname *List of people with surname Jones * Jones (singer), a British singer-songwriter Arts and entertainment * Jones (''Animal Farm''), a human character in George Orwell ...
, Hoddle and
Gray Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...
) predicted full international honours. He was soon making regular appearances for the England under-21 team, and the managers' prophecy was realised when
Sven-Göran Eriksson Sven-Göran Eriksson (; born 5 February 1948) is a Swedish football manager and former player. After an unassuming playing career as a right-back, Eriksson went on to experience major success in club management between 1977 and 2001, winning 18 ...
gave him his first full cap against the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
on 13 February 2002. He quickly proved himself and appeared twice as a substitute in the
2002 World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
, although he did not appear at all in
Euro 2004 The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football competition contested by the men's national teams of UEFA member associations. The ...
, with
Ashley Cole Ashley Cole (born 20 December 1980) is an English football coach and former player who is currently a first-team coach at Premier League club Everton. As a player, he played as a left-back, most notably for Arsenal and Chelsea. Cole is consi ...
being preferred. During qualification for the
2006 World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
, Bridge occupied England's problematic left midfield position, but lost this to his Chelsea teammate
Joe Cole Joseph John Cole (born 8 November 1981) is an English football coach and former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or winger in the Premier League, Ligue 1, League One and United Soccer League. He is regarded as one ...
when he received an injury. He returned to the England team for a friendly against
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
in November 2005, covering for the injured Cole at left back and winning his 21st cap. Bridge played in the Euro 2008 qualifier match against
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
on 6 June 2007, which England won 3–0, with Bridge assisting Joe Cole's goal with a long throw into the box. Bridge's final appearance for England was against
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
on 14 November 2009. On 25 February 2010, Bridge announced his permanent withdrawal from international duty following allegations regarding England captain
John Terry John George Terry (born 7 December 1980) is an English professional football coach and former player who played as a centre-back. He was previously captain of Chelsea, the England national team and Aston Villa. He was most recently the assi ...
and Bridge's former girlfriend Vanessa Perroncel.


Personal life

Bridge was in a relationship with French model Vanessa Perroncel from 2005 to 2009. They had a son together, Jaydon Jean Claude Bridge, who was born on 21 November 2006. The next day, Bridge signed a new four-year contract with Chelsea, on 22 November 2006. In January 2010, a
super injunction An injunction is a legal and equitable remedy in the form of a special court order that compels a party to do or refrain from specific acts. ("The court of appeals ... has exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend (in whole or in par ...
was imposed by a High Court judge preventing the media reporting that Bridge's former teammate
John Terry John George Terry (born 7 December 1980) is an English professional football coach and former player who played as a centre-back. He was previously captain of Chelsea, the England national team and Aston Villa. He was most recently the assi ...
had allegedly had an affair with Perroncel shortly after she split from Bridge. The injunction was lifted a week later. On 25 March, Perroncel succeeded in a claim against Bridge for maintenance for their son with the High Court awarding her a payment of £6,000 per month until Jaydon's 18th birthday. The ''
News of the World The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national Tabloid journalism#Red tops, red top Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling En ...
'' printed an apology for the story on 3 October 2010 to Perroncel for invading her private life, and indicating that she has refuted the claims against herself and Terry. On 8 April 2013,
The Saturdays The Saturdays were a British-Irish girl group based in London, England. The group formed during the summer of 2007 and have been on hiatus since 2014. The lineup consists of Frankie Bridge, Una Healy, Rochelle Humes, Mollie King, and Vanessa Wh ...
singer
Frankie Sandford Francesca Bridge ( Sandford, born 14 January 1989) is an English singer, formerly a member of S Club Juniors and a member of girl group The Saturdays. She is signed to Fascination and Polydor labels. Bridge began her career when she auditioned f ...
announced on Twitter that she was engaged to Bridge. She gave birth to their son, Parker Bridge, on 18 October 2013. The couple married on 19 July 2014 in a private ceremony. In January 2015, Sandford announced that they were expecting their second child. On 15 August 2015, Carter Bridge was born. Bridge was a contestant in the 2016 series of TV show '' I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!'', but was voted out on 2 December. In 2019, he won the first celebrity series of
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
's '' SAS: Who Dares Wins'', after trekking the El Morado glacier in Chile. Bridge has spoken about his love for playing poker, which began when his friends started a local monthly home game. He plays in one day live events, and has described his style of play as 'kamikaze'.


Career statistics


Club


International

:''Scores and results list England's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Bridge goal.''


Honours

Chelsea *
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
: 2004–05 *
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
: 2006–07 *
Football League Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
: 2006–07 Individual *
PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premie ...
: 2001–02 Premier League, 2012–13 Championship


References


External links


Wayne Bridge Career Profile
*
BBC profile
* * *
Premier League profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bridge, Wayne 1980 births Living people Footballers from Southampton Sportspeople from Winchester English footballers Association football defenders Southampton F.C. players Chelsea F.C. players Fulham F.C. players Manchester City F.C. players West Ham United F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players Reading F.C. players Premier League players English Football League players England youth international footballers England under-21 international footballers England international footballers 2002 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 2004 players 2006 FIFA World Cup players I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (British TV series) participants FA Cup Final players