Drive and determination has brought Callum Wilson from non-league football through to a place on the England squad for the World Cup. The 30-year-old started his career with Coventry City's academy, debuting on the team in 2009 but has had a run peppered with injuries.
He spent time out with a dislocated shoulder in 2014 but worked his way up to the Premier League only to be set back by a ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee the next year. Wilson took seven months to heal and returned in 2016, before rupturing the ACL in his left knee the following year.
Despite these injuries and recovery time, Wilson bounced back to secure his place on Newcastle United in 2020 and then was named on the 2022 World Cup squad for England.
His perseverance shines through after all his set backs but football wasn't the only sport Wilson had his eye on.
Wilson told the Daily Mail : "My second cousin was a kickboxer. I started going at 13. He taught me how to punch and said I had a good kick." A career in kickboxing looked like a possibility as the dad of two was clearly talented, winning all his fights.
"All my wins were technical knockouts. It was just about making other kids cry at that age — but nobody ever made me cry. I was tough! There were no haymakers, just some spinning kicks!" he said.
Football won out as Wilson's passion for the game forced him to make a decision between the two at an early age. He added: "Won them all but then they started to clash with football. I still have my little kickboxing trophies."
Wilson said: "Throughout my childhood I was watching Match of the Day, people like Thierry Henry and Didier Drogba. I wanted to be the man scoring goals on that show. To get to the Premier League is one thing, staying there and scoring goals is another."
