 Following Euro 88, the emergence of Des Walker meant that Wright went almost two years before earning another cap for England.Wright did not feature during the 1990 World Cup qualifying campaign but he was still included in the squad for the finals in Italy, ahead of Tony Adams, as back-up to Walker and Terry Butcher.Following a 1–1 draw against the Republic of Ireland in England's opening group game, Robson decided to change his system and Wright was included as a sweeper in a three-man defence for the 0–0 draw with the Netherlands.