Source: Team_Talk
Kightly enjoying sharp rise to top
Just over two-and-a-half years ago, the Basildon-born wide man was running out for Grays Athletic against Cambridge in the Football Conference.
Yet no-one could have predicted how steep his rise up the football ladder would be since that 1-1 draw at the beginning of November 2006.
After a promising start to the season for the non-league outfit, Wolves boss Mick McCarthy brought Kightly to Molineux on loan and he impressed sufficiently to sign a two-and-a-half-year deal in January 2007 for just £20,000.
Manchester United were reportedly keen to beat Wanderers to his signature but it was in the Black Country where Kightly shone.
He ended up scoring nine goals in 26 appearances in a gold and black shirt that season, with a further five from 25 in 2007-08 as he struggled with an ankle problem.
His pace, ability at set-pieces and accurate crossing - as well as his eye for goals and assists - was alerting several top-flight clubs.
Yet he remained at Molineux and was one of their star performers last season, helping the midlands club secure a return to the Premier League for the first time since 2004.
His eight goals from 38 league appearances, not to mention an incredible 19 assists, was one of the main factors behind the club's promotion - and saw him scoop a place in the Professional Footballers Association's Coca-Cola Championship team of the season as well as gain England Under-21 recognition.
"Three years ago I was playing at Grays, two-and-a-half years ago I was playing in the Conference," Kightly told Press Association Sport.
"Getting ready to play in the Premier League now is a dream and it's one that I want to stay in for many years.
"Hopefully we can do the business this year and stay there and I can have a good career."
And on the eve of the new season, attention is already turning to those special games on the fixture list.
"I think obviously everyone looks forward to playing the top four but, me, more so Anfield. I'd love to play there and I believe we've got them on Boxing Day so I'm sure it will be a great atmosphere," Kightly continued.
"The likes of Ashley Cole and Patrice Evra, they're great players, probably the two best left-backs in the world. To compete against them would be good and it would be nice to see how I do.
"I want to improve game by game and playing against those kind of players is only going to do that, and hopefully I can step up to the plate just the way I have done in the last few years."
Wolves boss McCarthy has spent wisely this summer as he looks to turn his Championship-winning side into Premier League survivors, bringing in Kevin Doyle from Reading, Ronald Zubar from Marseille and Nenad Milijas from Red Star Belgrade among others.
The last, and only, time Wolves were in the Premier League they finished rock bottom on 33 points.
But Kightly is confident they can mix it with England's elite this time round.
"I think realistically we would all take just staying in the division, but I think we've got the ability and the squad to do maybe a little bit better, which would be a bonus," he added.
"It's a hard thing to do, I think the gaffer said not long ago that the Championship is the hardest division to get out of but the Premier League is also the easiest division to get out of as well."
