An eighteen-year-old understudy to the likes of Des Walker and Michael Dawson, I remember watching Wes Morgan burst through the scene under Paul Hart at Forest, thinking to myself… “He could have as decent a career as those aforementioned.”
People laughed at me, when I said ‘he could one day play for England’ at a time when defenders defending, was beginning to be a ‘lost art’.
Morgan was robust, solid, thick-set, he didn’t have great pace, but he read the game well at an early age. He was never going to be the next Sol Campbell or Rio Ferdinand, but I’ve felt similar when watching Joleon Lescott in his early days at Wolves and more recently, Harry Maguire at Sheffield United, as youngsters they did the basics well and stood out against those in similar surroundings, solid Championship defenders, they often make the step up to the Premier League quite easily, and may get the odd cap thereafter (think Connor Coady, Lewis Dunk, James Tarkowski, Michael Keane).
I felt the same about Jamaal Lascelles who has gone on to be a solid mainstay of Newcastle United’s defence, but for injury I feel he would have had an England cap himself by now, whilst Morgan didn’t go on to win that one cap (opting instead, sensibly to play for Jamaica 30 times internationally), I think he’s even excelled on the career I thought he would go on to have. Champion of England, captain of the greatest Premier League underdog in history, and now an FA Cup winner too.
Casting mind back to Saturday evening when the now experienced ‘Premier Leager’ Morgan, subbed on for Leicester City as Brendan Rogers attempted to hold out against Chelsea, looked to have cost his side a first ever FA cup final win, inadvertently deflecting a Soyoncu clearance into his own net, the relief I, as a Forest fan felt, when the goal was not given, chalked off by VAR, was clear, emotional, I already panicked when he came on, thinking if Chelsea score, there’s no way he could play extra time at his age with his evident lack of mobility these days, I panicked when he scored, sinking to how he must feel, how his family and friends must feel, before the saviour of those lines drawn at Stockley Park. A few minutes to hold out, and big Wes would finally become a Wembley winner in his 37th year. Something surreal about a former Dunkirk player, released by Notts County for being ‘too big’ now lifting the second biggest prize in English football, having already lifted the biggest in 2016.
Not just a blue, Wes Morgan is a Nottingham Forest legend. He spent ten years at the club racking up 402 appearances and scoring ‘that goal’ against Notts County to save red blushes and take the last Trentside derby into a shootout that Forest would win. I remember one of his final games, Forest were skint, with Steve McLaren in charge, it was all going horribly wrong, we got beat 3-1 against Birmingham in a lunch time Sunday kick off at the City Ground, Wes, who I had rated as one of our most consistent players during those years, trudged back not arsed as Chris Wood rounded the game off to score a third. By then, I knew that was it for McLaren, that was it for Forest, that was it for Wes. Talk of us offloading our best assets just to survive, ‘even Wes Morgan stopped trying’, that is when I felt even Wes Morgan had to go.
The sale of Morgan to Leicester, and potentially more so, Patrick Bamford to Chelsea, perhaps saved Nottingham Forest financially back then… Whilst sticky times were still to come in red, Morgan had made a move, that would see him go on to achieve the impossible dream in blue.
Everybody knows where Leicester were at, but even when they got promoted from the Championship to the Premier League, people around here questioned ‘Wes Morgan in the Premiership?’ like it was something undeserved.
They said ‘he’ll get found out’ and ‘he’s too slow’ whilst I thought to myself after all this while and now getting his chance, that he’ll do ok.
The first season in the top flight, Leicester were on a horrible run and Morgan found things tough, but something clicked under Nigel Pearson, the side lifted somehow from winning four of their first twenty-nine games to winning seven of their last nine. That momentum was taken on by Claudio Ranieri the following season, and whilst others failed, Leicester kept believing, the rest I suppose is history.
On the 7th May 2016 Wes Morgan was lifting the Premier League trophy, captain of the best team in England. Voted in the PFA team of the year.
With 323 games for Leicester, including Champions League appearances, and most recently that FA Cup Final win at Wembley, Morgan has now called time on his career, one of over 730 professional games, and we wish him luck in his retirement, and are proud to say as Nottingham people, that our boy did good.
*Article provided by Daniel Peacock (Editor).
*Main image @NFFC Wes Morgan scoring against near neighbours Notts County at the City Ground.
