The footballer Tommy Wright, who has died aged 81, was at Everton’s defensive heart when they won the English league championship in 1970, playing every game of the campaign with admirable composure at right-back. Four years earlier he had also featured prominently in the club’s triumphant run to the FA Cup final in 1966, which they won against Sheffield Wednesday.
On the international stage Wright appeared for England in the 1968 European Championship finals as they beat the USSR 2-0 in Rome to win bronze. But his best moments came at the 1970 World Cup finals in Mexico, where he played in two of England’s four games: the opener against Romania and a thrilling second against Brazil, where Wright commended himself against the combined threats of the superstar players Pelé, Jairzinho and Rivellino.
