Jack Wilshere has once again found himself in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. The midfielder was pictured smoking and it has led to many questioning the players commitment. Arsene Wenger has moved to refute these suggestions by saying he is ‘one of the first in and certainly the last out’ of training.
On Wilshere, Wenger said ahead of tomorrow’s North London Derby: “I observe him and he behaves in a very professional way, I must say. Every morning he’s certainly one of the first in and every afternoon certainly the last out.
“He works very hard, he’s gone through some bad spells in his career and always recovered. It would be wrong to give him that kind of reputation because he’s a serious player and he works very hard.”
Wenger went on to add that he cannot control what the player does outside of Arsenal. I think that’s a fair judgement, as long as he is putting in the effort on the training ground, then who cares how many times he gets caught with a shisha after picking up a three month injury setback? He cares about the club and works hard whenever he is fit and selected.
Like him or not, Wilshere is a big asset to the Arsenal squad. He lacks end product and positional discipline, but that can be taught and developed. What can’t be taught is his love of the game and technical quality. I think he has a big future at the club, and it fills me with confidence when I see Wenger giving him a public backing after recent events.
What is your opinion of Wilshere? Let me know by leaving a comment below.