The future of Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere has been surrounded by uncertainty since his return from a season-long loan spell at Bournemouth.
He has only appeared seven times in the Premier League this season so far, and with the World Cup closing in fast, worry of whether he could make it are beginning to creep up. No wonder England manager Gareth Southgate has suggested that the player should leave the North London outfit if he is to make it to Russia.
With his contract running out in the summer of 2018, several clubs are pumping up to get Wilshere’s signature.
West Ham, for example, have expressed interest in signing him should Arsenal let the midfielder go in January. The Hammers manager David Moyes said that after his side lost to the Gunners in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup.
Serie A team Napoli are also reportedly keen on signing Wilshere. According to the Mirror, the Gli Azzurri are ready to submit a £13.2 million bid for the Arsenal man. But according to some betting sites like bookmaker.com.au, the club with the biggest chances of acquiring Wilshere in January is Newcastle. They are currently lodged in the relegation zone and are in desperate need of an inspiration in the centre of the park.
However, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has stated that he is still considering Wilshere’s future to be at the Emirates. But this sounds like baloney to most Arsenal fans as Wilshere is still not getting enough playing time, despite his fine form.
And worse, there is no sign of Arsenal preparing to offer their youth product a new contract.
Wilshere has admitted he wants to stay at Arsenal and is hoping that the club will give him a new deal. Whether this will happen or not depends entirely on Wenger’s plans.
It’s not like he doesn’t deserve it. Wilshere’s recent performances have earned him praises from his boss. He contributed to Mesut Ozil’s goal when Arsenal beat newly-promoted Newcastle on Saturday, and played the full 90 minutes in the goalless draw against West Ham, winning Man of The Match in the process.
He had put in another man-of-the-match performance in Arsenal’s convincing win over BATE Borisov in the Europa League earlier this month.
Wilshere has been at Arsenal since 2008. However, his career has been hampered by injuries, making speculation about his future arise every time transfer window comes. With him free to talk to other clubs in January, time is running out for both player and club to find a solution. And it might end up with Wilshere parting ways with home club.
