Bournemouth player, Jack Wilshere has aired his reasons for joining the south coast club on a season-long loan from Arsenal. In a heartfelt interview, the English midfielder made clear the reason for joining Bournemouth in the summer, “It (not making the England squad) was the final straw. It hurt not being in there”
Speaking with Sportsmail's, Matt Lawton, the midfielder spoke about a host of issues ranging from his move to Bournemouth, playing for England as well as giving a hint about a possible departure from Arsenal.
Competition for Places
The 24-year-old has been enjoying life at Bournemouth having recently completed a full 90 minutes; a feat, given that the midfielder spent almost 901 days through injuries. When made aware of this unwanted feat, the midfielder stated, “I didn't even realise it was that long, but it was nice to get through a whole game again. I could have lasted 90, maybe a couple of weeks ago but I maybe wouldn't have been at my best for the last 10 minutes.”
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The midfielder did admit that the arrival of Xhaka meant less playing time, “There were a lot of midfielders and the manager brought another one in. I'd been injured for a while, and I was thinking I was at a stage of my career where I needed to play.”
Swift transfer
Wilshere also had an honest interaction with Arsene Wenger and said the Frenchman assured him about his role in the team but couldn’t guarantee a starting place. The need for playing time led to the 24-year-old making the move away from the Emirates.
“I'm 24 and I've already missed too much football, and if I want to get to where I want to be it'd be no good coming off the bench in every game,” said the English midfielder
The midfielder instead took swift action and resolved to sort out his future. Working alongside his management team, Wilshere met Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew and Bournemouth’s Eddie Howe, and while he was impressed by Pardew, his desire to move away from London for a “fresh start” led him to join Bournemouth.
Since then, Wilshere has been regained fitness and confidence, racked up six appearances already this season in the Premier League.
Future at Arsenal or elsewhere
The midfielder didn’t reveal much about his future and replied in a non-committal manner when asked about it, choosing to focus on the present by stating, “I haven't really thought about my future beyond getting a season under my belt and just trying to improve as a player. To be honest your question is a hard question to answer because I don't know what to say. I genuinely don't know if I am going to end up at Arsenal or somewhere else.”
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Instead, the 24-year-old took the opportunity to thank the Arsenal fans and Colin Lewin (the Arsenal physiotherapist) for their support in a difficult period, “The fans have been great to me, the boss has been great to me. I have a lot of friends there. But sometimes that's the way football is.”
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