The new Derry City signing who played 22 times for Liverpool and recovered from stabbing four years ago
Derby County and Red Bull Salzburg are also on the decorated CV of defender Andre Wisdom.
Derry City have pulled off a remarkable coup by landing former Liverpool, Derby County and Red Bull Salzburg defender Andre Wisdom until the end of the season.
The 31-year-old arrives at the Ryan McBride Brandywell with a glittering CV that includes 22 first-team appearances for Liverpool, including 14 in the Premier League.
Many of his near 250 senior appearances also came during spells at Derby County and Austrian giants Red Bull Salzburg.
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He joined Derby from Liverpool for €5.5m in July 2017 and spent four seasons there before moving to Warrington Town, while he represented England right up to Under-21 level.
It was during his time at Derby that he suffered serious injuries during an unprovoked attack in June 2020.
According to reports at the time, he was stabbed several times in the head, left leg and buttocks by a four-strong masked gang, as he made his way to his car after visiting a family member.
His then-club released a statement saying: “Derby County Football Club can confirm that Andre Wisdom has been the victim of an unprovoked assault and robbery.
“He sustained injuries which resulted in him being admitted to hospital, where he is in a stable condition.”
Derby fans raised around €5,000 towards a flag that they displayed in support of their stricken defender.
Wisdom spoke to The Athletic in 2023 about the incident, admitting that he was breaching lockdown rules by attending a family member’s home.
“I shouldn’t have been there,” he said. “First of all, because it was lockdown and no one should have been having parties, but second because I grew up seeing those types of incidents happen.
“People I know have been victims to knife crime and gun crime. Until that point, I had always avoided scenarios like that. You don’t need to go to parties like that, where not everyone is going to be your friend.
“I was leaving, walking to my car, and a group of lads ran up behind me, wearing masks and balaclavas, and started attacking me, trying to get my watch.
“I put up as much of a fight as I could, but it was just overwhelming. I was desperately trying to avoid getting stabbed even worse than I did.
“I got stabbed in the head and it blurred my vision. It was crazy.”
During his time at Red Bull Salzburg, Wisdom won an Austrian league and cup double, while he was a 2010 European Under-17 champion with England.
He also captained England at Under-21 level.
It’s quite the capture for Derry, who have been searching for defensive reinforcements since the departure of Cameron McJannet to Grimsby Town.
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