Arsenal: Overdue Jack Wilshere loan is great news for all involved
Arsenal are willing to let Jack Wilshere leave the club on loan in this transfer window in a positive move which should have been done before now.
Jack Wilshere has been made available to other clubs for loan, according to widespread reports. Wilshere has been one of the mainstays of the Arsenal setup for years. But now it looks like he might be leaving the club temporarily.
Wilshere made just three appearances for the Gunners last season and has played just 37 minutes of Arsenal’s opening three Premier League fixtures. Arsene Wenger signed midfielder Granit Xhaka this summer for £30 million, but that signing really just compounds the real problem Wilshere is facing.
Xhaka makes the competition at Arsenal in central midfield that much tougher. But a starting spot was already tough to grab with the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Santi Cazorla and Francis Coquelin around. Now Xhaka arrives, along with a bigger role for Mohamed Elneny, and it simply compounds the issue further.
Wilshere has to play regularly. The worst thing for any player after any injury, especially long-term, is playing 15 minutes here, eight minutes there, then a week off… etc. That’s what invites more injuries. Wilshere needs to get into the rhythm and routine of playing regularly again, week-in and week-out. His body has to get used to it.
That is not going to happen at Arsenal. Probably not last season. Definitely not this season. A move away will be good for the midfielder. Wilshere isn’t a teenager anymore, he’s a 24-year-old seasoned professional.
One who has participated in just 910 Premier League minutes for his club since the beginning of the 2014-15 season. That’s the equivalent of just over ten games! Wilshere also has the issue of getting his place back on the England roster after being left out of Sam Allardyce’s first squad on Sunday.
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Although, his place to begin with was only a squad place, and therein lies the problem. Wilshere is better than that, but only when he’s at his best. He’s doing himself a disservice by just trucking along at the Emirates. Hopefully, with the right playing time at the right club, something resembling his better form will return.
Where Wilshere goes will be important. Ideally, a team where he’s guaranteed to play and a team that likes to pass the ball more than head it. Everton under Ronald Koeman would be a good fit. Bournemouth, too, play the right type of game and have a good, young manager in Eddie Howe.
Maybe a move abroad will appeal to get completely out of the spotlight. Wherever Wilshere goes, the right decision has been taken. The timing is at least a year overdue, and it is late in this transfer window, but Wenger and Arsenal got there in the end.
Afterwards, maybe Wilshere comes back after a great season somewhere. Maybe Arsenal finally get the real Jack Wilshere they’ve been waiting on. If they don’t, then at least the club know where they stand with the midfielder. You can’t do much more at this point.
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again. Now, finally, Arsenal are trying something different by sending Wilshere out on loan. Good news for all involved.