James Antony Wilson (born 1 December 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Port Vale. He began his career with Manchester United, and was at the club's Academy for ten years before he signed his first professional contract at the age of 17. He has also represented England at the under-16, under-19, under-20 and under-21 levels. He scored two goals on his Premier League debut in May 2014, and played 17 first-team game during the 2014–15 campaign, scoring another two goals. He spent most of the 2015–16 season on loan at Brighton & Hove Albion, scoring five goals in 25 Championship games. Wilson started the 2016–17 season on loan at Derby County, but returned to Old Trafford after suffering a serious knee injury in October. He spent the second half of the 2017–18 season on loan at Sheffield United and joined Scottish Premiership club Aberdeen on loan for the start of the 2018–19 season. He joined Aberdeen on a permanent basis 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. He joined Port Vale after being released from Salford at the end of the 2020–21 campaign and helped the club to win promotion out of League Two via the play-offs in 2022. Early life and youth career Born in Biddulph, Staffordshire, Wilson was first scouted by Manchester United at the age of seven. He came through the club's youth academy, and made his first appearance for the under-18s as a 14-year-old in a friendly against Slovak side Tatran Prešov on 31 October 2010. 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. 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. On his return, he became a regular in the under-18s during the second half of the season, scoring five times in 13 league appearances and twice in the FA Youth Cup. He also made his debut for the reserves during the season, coming on as a 61st-minute