Christopher Wreh (born 14 May 1975) is a retired Liberian professional footballer who played as a striker. He was a member of the Arsenal side which won the Premier League and FA Cup double during the 1997–98 season.
Personal information | |||
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Full name | Christopher Wreh[1] | ||
Date of birth | (1975-05-14) 14 May 1975 (age 47)[1] | ||
Place of birth | Monrovia,[1] Liberia | ||
Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[2] | ||
Position(s) | Striker | ||
Youth career | |||
Invincible Eleven | |||
1989–1993 | Monaco | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1993–1997 | Monaco | 13 | (3) |
1996–1997 | → Guingamp (loan) | 33 | (10) |
1997–2000 | Arsenal | 28 | (3) |
1999 | → AEK Athens (loan) | 11 | (4) |
1999 | → Birmingham City (loan) | 7 | (1) |
2000 | → Den Bosch (loan) | 7 | (2) |
2000–2001 | Al-Hilal | ||
2001 | AFC Bournemouth | 0 | (0) |
2001–2002 | St Mirren | 3 | (0) |
2003 | Persepolis | 0 | (0) |
2003–2004 | Bishop's Stortford | 1 | (1) |
2004 | Buckingham Town | ||
2007–2010 | Perseman Manokwari | ||
National team | |||
1995–2002 | Liberia | 36 | (12) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
At international level, he won 36 caps for Liberia, scoring 11 goals, and was in their squad for the 1996 Africa Cup of Nations.
Wreh played domestically for Invincible Eleven,[3] before signing for French Division 1 club AS Monaco as a youth.[4] A centre forward, Wreh played for Monaco as a substitute in the 1993–94 UEFA Champions League semifinal.[5] He had a spell on loan at Guingamp, finishing the season as the team's top scorer and playing in the 1997 Coupe de France Final, which they lost on penalties to Nice.[6][7]
Wreh signed for Arsenal in the summer of 1997 for £300,000,[8] linking up with his former manager at Monaco, Arsène Wenger.[9] Although fourth choice behind Ian Wright, Dennis Bergkamp and Nicolas Anelka,[citation needed] Wreh still played an important part in the Gunners' Double-winning 1997–98 season. Wreh scored in 1–0 Premier League wins against Wimbledon and Bolton Wanderers in March, the fifth in a 5-0 win against Wimbledon, and netted the only goal of the Gunners' FA Cup semi-final win over Wolverhampton Wanderers both in April.[9][10] Wreh started in the 1998 FA Cup Final, and although he did not score, Arsenal beat Newcastle United 2–0.[10]
Despite scoring in the 1998 FA Charity Shield against Manchester United,[9] Wreh's form dipped and after the arrival of Thierry Henry and Davor Šuker at the club in 1999 he was squeezed out altogether.[9] He had brief loan spells with Birmingham City, for whom he scored once, against Grimsby Town,[10] and at AEK Athens and Den Bosch, but none of these were subsequently made permanent.[9] He left Arsenal in 2000, having scored five times in 46 appearances.
Wreh then became somewhat of a journeyman footballer. He initially signed for Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal, then returned to the UK in 2001 with brief stints at AFC Bournemouth and St Mirren,[9] but fitness problems meant he rarely played; he then played non-league football for Bishop's Stortford although only one game due to repeated absenteeism[11] and United Counties League club Buckingham Town.[9]
In 2007, he returned to football, signing for Perseman Manokwari of the Liga Indonesia Premier Division where he brought an end to his playing days.[12][13]
Wreh made his debut for Liberia in 1995, and went on to win 36 caps for his country, scoring 11 goals.[8]
Wreh was appointed head coach of the Liberian under-20 team in late 2014.[14][15][16] In September 2019 he became assistant coach to the senior national team.[17]
Wreh's son Chris is also a striker, and currently plays for Southend United of the National League.[18]
Guingamp
Arsenal
Liberia squad – 1996 African Cup of Nations | ||
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