Bristol City striker Nahki Wells has experienced a hugely impressive career, and has plied his trade from League Two, all the way up to the Premier League.
At 34 years old, the Bermuda international is still effectively leading the line in the Championship for the Robins, who he joined in 2020.
While his time in the Premier League may not be remembered fondly, as he appeared in only nine games for Burnley and scored 0 goals, his time as an EFL standout should always be remembered.
Wells began his career in Bermuda, where he played for the Dandy Town Hornets and then the Bermuda Hogges, before moving to England and having a brief time with non-league Eccleshill United.
His EFL career began at Carlisle United, but he only made three appearances for the Cumbrian side, all of which came in 2011.
But, ahead of the 2011/12 season, Wells moved to Bradford City, where a highly successful period began, and he has never looked back since.
Huddersfield Town’s move for Bradford’s Wells proved an inspired transfer
During his debut season with Bradford, the ace scored 10 goals in 33 League Two games, plus two more in the FA Cup, establishing himself as a formidable attacking force in the professional game, despite the fact that the Bantams ended 18th in the fourth tier table.
Wells subsequently had a considerably more memorable 2012/13 season, scoring 22 goals in 42 League Two appearances as the Bantams were promoted to League One following a 3-0 play-off final victory against Northampton Town.
But more amazingly, the West Yorkshire outfit reached the EFL Cup final as a fourth-tier side, and the Bermuda international played a major role in such a historic performance, scoring three goals in seven appearances in the competition.
On their way to Wembley, where the Bantams were eventually defeated 5-0 by then-Premier League Swansea City, they produced some upsets that will never be forgotten, such as a fourth-round victory over Wigan Athletic, in the same season that the Latics won the FA Cup but were also relegated from the top flight.
Bradford would then defeat Premier League giants Arsenal in the fifth round in a penalty shootout before overcoming Aston Villa in a two-legged semi-final.
The Bantams’ reward for such a great campaign was the chance of playing in League One the following season, 2013/14.
Wells was unfazed by the prospect of testing himself in the third tier for the first time since his brief stint with Carlisle, and he proved more prolific than ever, scoring 14 goals in 19 appearances throughout the first half of the season.
Those exploits convinced Huddersfield Town, then in the Championship, to sign him during the January 2014 transfer window.
The Terriers’ decision to sign him proved wise, as the eventual Bristol City player settled in well to Championship football, scoring seven goals in 22 appearances in the second part of the 2013/14 season.
He went on to score 11 goals in 35 second-tier appearances during the 2014/15 season, as the Terriers finished 16th in the standings, one point behind West Yorkshire rivals Leeds United.
Wells had an even stronger season in front of goal the following season, scoring 17 goals in 44 Championship matches as West Yorkshire finished 19th.
Huddersfield would never have expected Wells to help them to the Premier League
But the best was yet to come for the Bermuda international and his Terriers career, as he scored 10 goals and assisted twice during a historic second-tier season in which Huddersfield defied all expectations and advanced to the Premier League via a penalty shootout victory over Reading in the 2017 play-off final.
When the Terriers signed Wells from local rivals Bradford in 2014, they had no idea that his goals would propel them all the way to the top flight, but such remarkable feats meant that his former club should always be praised for pulling off an absolute transfer coup.
