GEORGE Dobson was as astonished as everyone else when Declan Rice spanked two incredible free-kicks beyond Thibaut Courtois in Arsenal’s 3-0Champions League victory over mighty Real Madrid in midweek.
But the Wrexham midfielder never had any doubt that the 26-year-old would reach the pinnacle of the game after playing alongside him in West Ham’s youth ranks.
“Me and Dec had a season together in the Under-21s,” explains Dobson, who left the London Stadium in 2017 without making a senior appearance for the Hammers.
“He was a centre-back then – a really good centre-back -and he hadn’t really played in central midfield much at all. But technically, he was already at an unbelievable level and you could see he was going to be a world-class player.
“At the time, I thought that would be as a defender but he’s developed into this amazing box-to-box midfielder and it’s been a joy to watch.
“The goals he scored against Madrid… I mean, wow. He’s become one of the best midfielders in England, if not the world, and he’s still going from strength to strength.”
As is Dobson, though his own path has been rather less linear. After spells at Sparta Rotterdam, Walsall and Sunderland, he spent three successful seasons at Charlton before rejecting a new deal to sign a pre-contract with Hungarian side Fehervar last February.
Mainstay
But at the eleventh hour, Dobson backed out of the move and Wrexham pounced.
So far, it couldn’t have worked out any better with the 27-year-old now a mainstay in Phil Parkinson’s midfield and poised for a first-ever crack at the Championship.
“Had things worked out differently I’d be in Hungary now,” says Dobson, who was even pictured in the shirt of the top-flight side.
“I was supposed to leave in the January and I would have gone if Charlton hadn’t pulled out of the deal.
“But between then and the summer, my personal circumstances changed. We agreed a mutual termination and within a couple of days I’d joined Wrexham.
“I played under the gaffer earlier on in my career at Sunderland, so for him to sign me again and put his faith in me was obviously massive.
“And I’ve really enjoyed it. You look at some of the players here – Jay Rodriguez, Steven Fletcher, Matty James, Jimmy McClean – and they’ve all played in the Premier League.
“But there’s no egos. They’re all great people who buy into what the club’s about and help the younger lads. It’s a pleasure to learn from them every day.
“There’s a proper togetherness, a real family-feel to everything, and joining a club with so much momentum has made everything that much easier.”
That momentum – driven by the millions of Hollywood backers Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds – has powered Wrexham from the National League to the cusp of the Championship and an unprecedented third straight promotion.
The Red Dragons were three points clear of third-placed Wycombe heading into yesterday’s fixtures and an almighty Stateside party beckons if they can get the job done.
“Yeah, I’m sure that will be part of the plan,” laughs Dobson, who had started 34 of Wrexham’s 41 League One games pre-weekend. “But we’ve got to make it happen first.
“Wycombe aren’t going away but we’ve been fairly consistent all season, we’ve not really had too many dips in form and we’ve kept a lot of clean sheets. Hopefully we can keep that up for the last few games.
“It’s in our hands and it’s up to us to get over the line. If we do then, yeah, I’m sure the celebrations will be pretty special.”
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