Jack Wilshere’s relatively young career has so far been flashes of brilliance followed by many questions. The main question is, what if he had not been injured so many times? Recently, Arsene Wenger said to Arsenal Player that he thinks Wilshere is “a top-class player with a top-class potential”. Now, 4-5 years ago, that quote would not be put into question. Wilshere, 23-years-old and perennially battling injuries, has his place in the team in flux.
He has a very aggressive playing style, and that has both gotten him some great goals and some horrible injuries that have stunted his development. He has some great highlight reels , such as the two against Slovenia and Euro Qualifiers and the beautiful finish against Norwich a couple of seasons back, which were both due in part to his brilliant vision and feel for the game. He makes opportunities for himself by driving up the centre of the field, and that tendency paired with the fact that he is not scared to be fouled would in theory make him a great player already. But, unfortunately, he is fragile and he has suffered many contact-based injuries.
If he was a more patient player, would he be closer to reaching the great potential his manager sees in him?
That is probably the case, but then he would just be like any other England midfielder in the current team. Wilshere has been plagued since the beginning of his career by ankle problems. In total, he has missed the equivalent of 112 weeks because of injuries to both ankles, with nine injuries in total. This means he averages a little more than 12 weeks on the sideline per injury to his ankle, and keep in mind he is still young at 23.
Wilshere has shown flashes of his full potential many times, especially before he injured his ankle during the 2014/15 season against Manchester United. He was acting as the general of the field, pulling strings like a puppeteer and playing solid defensively as well, but Paddy McNair’s tackle that hit ankle rather than ball put him out of action for a while. It is hard to avoid contact full stop in a league as physical as the Premier League, and Wilshere should by no means change his style of play. But to reach the potential Wenger has said he can, he needs to somehow become more durable. Wenger said it himself: “Today, what top-level sport doesn’t suffer is to be in and out because it’s too demanding physically [to stay in].
“What you wish for Jack is that he can compete now for six months without any problem, or for a year without any problem, and then you will see the player we all know he is.”
He admits that it can be tough to stay healthy in a sport with large amounts of contact, but Wilshere just has to find luck and hopefully the injury bug will stay away. This is a big year for the England international; one where he can either make the jump to world class, or continue to sit on the sidelines.
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