As the gruelling 2013/14 season enters it’s fifth game-week, Jack Wilshere is already well in to another demanding domestic and international campaign. However one question is hanging in the fans minds, where is his best position? With the wealth of talent in the Arsenal midfield Jack needs to find his position and make it his own, or risk missing out. Over the last couple of years he’s played in three roles. Central midfielder, attacking midfield and more recently on the wing.
First of all let’s look at central midfield. Aaron Ramsey played alongside Wilshere in a deep central midfield role against Tottenham but was much more successful statistically. Ramsey attempted 8 tackles – successful with 7 of them – Wilshere didn’t attempt any. I’ve checked through a lot of games and it’s a reoccurring theme. Ramsey also made 3 interceptions, to Wilshere’s none. Contradicting what you might have expected, Wilshere is fairly poor when it comes to intercepting and tackling, but instead his game thrives on a high pass success rate – being confident on the ball and beating players.
So what about a more advanced midfielder, but still central? A key area for Jack to improve is his finishing – especially if he wants to be Arsenal’s number 10. He can learn a lot from Aaron Ramsey. Last season both players would often shy away from a shooting opportunity in favour of a safer pass. This season we’ve seen Ramsey drive towards to goal, make brilliant attacking runs and finish with aplomb. In 33 games for Arsenal last season Jack only took 21 shots and this season just 2 shots in 4 games. Let’s compare that to Santi Cazorla, a player playing in a similar position. The Spaniard attempted no less than 115 shots in his 38 Premier League games. Whilst Wilshere plays with a confidence in most aspects of his midfield play, the confidence is absent in his shooting. As well as shooting, Jack’s consistency with his final ball needs to improve. Just 3 assists in 25 league appearances is not enough for a player of his ability and position.
Lastly, wide midfielder. A position that has come to prominence in Arsene’s 4-2-3-1, Santi Cazorla is the regular wide midfielder for Arsenal, but with him out for a month due to injury, can Wilshere make this position his?
Jack Wilshere attempted 6 take-ons (4 successful) against Marseille when playing from the wing, more than any other Arsenal player.
From the wing Wilshere attempted 6 take-ons against Sunderland (2 successful), again, more than any other Arsenal player. If you’re wondering how this compares to Arsenal’s other winger, Theo Walcott, he has attempted just 5 take-ons in his last 3 games for Arsenal.
Since Ozil’s arrival we’ve seen Wilshere start the game from the left-hand side. Arsene likes to deploy a central midfielder out-wide to give the team more balance, with Aaron Ramsey and Santi Cazorla sharing that role last season. Ramsey failed to impress on the wing, but his time there clearly did a lot to improve his overall game. Could it do the same for Jack? Or is this actually his best position? I think it could well be. The Englishman’s turn of pace, ability and confidence to beat a player suit this role perfectly. He’s blessed with great vision and the intelligence to drift inside or create something out of nothing. The space and time on the ball he will get on the wing will help him play to his strengths. Many have earmarked Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to play in this role, but I feel as they both players have matured, Chamberlain and Wilshere may have discovered they have a better future in each-others positions.
The wide-midfielder role is a long way from being a traditional winger. As the diagram below shows, despite starting from out-wide, Wilshere spent the majority of his time in the central zones of the field, a tactic deployed to help Arsenal break down the opposition.
For Wilshere to be successful in central midfield he needs a solid defensive midfielder behind him and the full backs to be conservative in attack. Unfortunately Arsenal’s current formation is the complete opposite, and so I believe the best position for Wilshere right now is as a wide midfielder. Those were my thoughts before starting to write this article, and the stats and diagrams I have discovered whilst assembling this article have only further solidified my opinions that Wilshere’s best position is on the wing, as a wide midfielder.
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You can follow me (the author) @OliPriceBates
Thanks Squawka.com for the diagrams.
Photo by Noodlefish
What are your opinions on Wilshere’s best position? You can share them in the comments section below.