Ex-Wolves prodigy to be managed by ex-Aston Villa defender after intriguing career move

Former Wolves and Aston Villa centre back Joleon Lescott became the latest former Premier League footballer to take part in the inaugural Baller League competition.

The 42-year-old, who spent the first six years of his career at Wolves after progressing through the academy in 2000, was announced as a week two wildcard pick for Deportrio.

The team is managed by the Premier League’s all-time leading goalscorer Alan Shearer, England icon and Match of the Day host Gary Lineker, and former defender Micah Richards, who played alongside Lescott for Manchester City, England and Aston Villa during his playing days.

How did Joleon Lescott fare on his Baller League debut?

Former England international Joleon Lescott, who now works as a pundit for TNT Sports, was included from the start in Monday’s 7-3 victory over N5 FC, a team managed by Arsenal icons Jens Lehmann, Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg.

Lescott was not the only ex-professional in the Deportrio team and he was also joined on the pitch by former Watford forward Marvin Sordell and ex-Crystal Palace winger Bakary Sako. However, Lescott’s status in the game makes him arguably the most accomplished player in this year’s Baller League.

The 26-time international, who represented England at Euro 2012, started his career at Wolves and racked up 212 appearances for the Old Gold in six successful seasons. He won Wolves Player of the Season in both the 2002/03 and 2004/05 campaigns and was also part of the group which won promotion to the top-flight via the Championship play-offs under the management of Dave Jones.

Lescott missed the entirety of Wolves season in the Premier League through injury but two years on from their relegation was given the chance to shine in the top-flight with Everton where he made a great impression for David Moyes’ side before winning two league titles, an FA Cup and a League Cup with Manchester City, where he formed an exceptional centre back partnership with Vincent Kompany.

He spent time at West Brom under Tony Pulis before suffering relegation with Aston Villa in 2016. He had a brief stint at AEK Athens in the latter stages of his professional career and retired in 2017 after an injury-hit end to his career with Sunderland where he was reunited with Moyes.

What other footballers are competing in the Baller League?

The likes of Jordan Ibe (former Liverpool and Bournemouth), Ciaran Clark (ex-Newcastle and Aston Villa), Michael Ndweniri (former Newcastle), Adrian Mariappa (former Crystal Palace and Watford), Henri Lansbury (ex-Aston Villa) and Nile Ranger (former Newcastle) are just some of the examples of ex-Premier League players competing in Baller League.

The six-a-side competition features a mixture of football influencers, freestylers, ex-professionals and amateur players in a league which also features a series of well-renowned coaches from both the football and celebrity world including Ian Wright, Maya Jama, Alisha Lehmann, Alan Shearer, Gary Lineker and John Terry.

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