Wellington Phoenix defender and academy graduate Isaac Hughes has signed a three-year contract extension with the Isuzu UTE A-League club.
Hughes has committed his future to Wellington through until the end of the 2027-28 season as head coach Giancarlo Italiano looks to “build around” the 20-year-old talent.
Part of the reason behind Hughes’ new deal is the recent success of the Phoenix and a pathway abroad, with Alex Paulsen (Bournemouth), Ben Old (Saint-Etienne) and Finn Surman (Portland Timbers) all earning life-changing moves at the end of 2023-24.
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“It’s good to get a long-term deal sorted,” Hughes said. “It means I have more time guaranteed to live my dream.
“I wanted to re-sign with the Nix because of the staff we have and the culture we have.”
“I want to start every game and build a partnership with whoever is next to me,” he continued.
“The club has a clear philosophy at the minute of developing and selling young players and that’s one of the reasons why I signed a long-term deal with the club, to give me that time.
“If I do as well as I can, I can move on into Europe and hopefully it can be a win-win.”
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Hughes made 11 appearances last season as the Phoenix enjoyed a history-making run to the Isuzu UTE A-League Semi-Finals.
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“I think everyone’s main goal is the same; just win the league,” added Hughes, who is eying a regular place in Wellington’s starting XI.
“We haven’t won a trophy yet as a club and that’s the main objective. I think we’ve got a really strong team and a really good opportunity.”
Hughes is also inspired by a pair of Manchester United legends – Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand.
“Nemanja Vidic was always my favourite player growing up, and I’ve now got his proper number, 15,” said Hughes.
“I want to be like Vidic, hence why I took his number, but I also want to be like Rio Ferdinand.
“In my head I think ‘Rio on the ball and Vidic off the ball’, show that quality on the ball and be as aggressive as I can off the ball and win everything.”
The Phoenix have also re-signed Kosta Barbarouses, while Marco Rojas, Paulo Retre, Luke Brooke-Smith, Josh Oluwayemi, Kazuki Nagasawa, Dublin Boon (scholarship contract), Hideki Ishige, Matt Sheridan (upgraded from scholarship contract), Alby Kelly-Heald (upgraded from scholarship contract) and Corban Piper (scholarship contract) have joined the first team.
Wellington will kick-off season 2024-25 at home to Western United on October 20.
“Hughesy is strong, a good communicator, and works very hard,” said head coach Giancarlo Italiano.
“He’s always got something to prove, always wants to get better, and he embraces learning.
“He’s always applying himself to be a better professional than the previous day. For me, there’s only one way you can go if you keep going like that.
“I want to build around players like him. I see Hughesy as the long-term future of the club.”
