James Antony Wilson (born 1 December 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for EFL League One club Northampton Town.
He joined Aberdeen permanently in July 2019 and then returned to England to sign with League Two side Salford City in January 2020, where he would gain an EFL Trophy winner's medal.
[5] After making his competitive debut for the under-18s against West Bromwich Albion on 5 February 2011, he made a further three league appearances for the team during the 2010–11 season, scoring in the third, a 2–1 home defeat to Everton.
[5] After scoring twice in the 2011 Milk Cup, in which Manchester United finished runners-up, Wilson suffered a broken ankle in the second game of the 2011–12 season that kept him out for nearly five months.
[8] Wilson's first goal of the 2014–15 season came on 17 January, when he came on as a substitute for Jonny Evans and scored in added time at the end of a 2–0 win at Queens Park Rangers.
[15] He made his debut for the Seagulls two days later, replacing Bobby Zamora for the final 24 minutes of a 2–1 win over Birmingham City at the Falmer Stadium, and came close to scoring after hitting the post.
[19][20] Wilson made a total of 28 appearances for Brighton in all competitions throughout his loan spell, scoring five league goals, and manager Chris Hughton said that he was returning to Manchester United as a better player.
[25] On 17 October, Wilson suffered a serious knee injury and returned to Manchester United for treatment, his loan spell subsequently being cut short.
[28] He made his debut at Bramall Lane two days later as a 66th-minute substitute for Clayton Donaldson against Sheffield Wednesday in the Steel City derby, which ended in a 0–0 draw.
[29] He made his first start eight days later, and scored the opening goal of a 2–1 victory at Norwich City, earning praise for his work rate after the game from manager Chris Wilder.
[36] Manager Derek McInnes said that "we feel that he showed glimpses towards the end of last season how effective a player he can be and what a positive impact he can have on the team".
[42] On 7 June 2021, Salford's League Two rivals Port Vale announced they had signed the player on a two-year contract; manager Darrell Clarke stated that "his pedigree is fantastic and I'm sure he will prove a great attacking threat for us next season".
[48][49] He returned to action in the new year and scored his tenth goal in March; acting manager Andy Crosby praised his strike partnership with Jamie Proctor and said that: "there is more to come from Willo... he appreciates the surroundings, the culture, the environment we have got".
[51] He was named as man of the match in the play-off final at Wembley Stadium as Vale secured promotion with a 3–0 victory over Mansfield Town; Michael Baggaley of The Sentinel wrote that Wilson put in "a classy performance throughout".
[63] Upon his return to fitness, Wilson signed a contract extension to run until the end of the season, with director of football David Flitcroft stating that his "dedication to his recovery behind the scenes was outstanding".
[70] "...there aren't stats to record the times a player draws a gasp of appreciation from a crowd with a velvety first touch, a daring Houdini spin away from a defender or reverse pass that only he and the recipient ever saw was on."