After a tour to Australia and China, the Arsenal players are back at London Colney preparing for the Emirates Cup this weekend, and for the new season which kicks off just over two weeks from now.
The Gunners begin the new campaign with a Friday night kick-off against Leicester City, a game which takes place just five days after the Community Shield showdown with Chelsea.
One man back in action today in an Arsenal shirt was Jack Wilshere. The England midfielder looks to be making a good recovery from the broken leg he suffered at the end of last season, and was involved fully in the training routines.
There have been reports that he is to be allowed leave Arsenal, but despite some interest from Swansea and Turkish side Antalyaspor there haven’t been any firm bids for the 25 year old.
It’s thought he is not open to a move abroad and would like to stay in the Premier League, but Arseblog News understands Wilshere is not agitating for a move, and could spend the next 12 months at the club before leaving on a free next summer.
It remains to be seen what kind of plans Arsene Wenger has for him this season, but being back in full training is certainly a step forward.
Also back in training after their summer exploits at the European U21 Championships were Hector Bellerin, Rob Holding, and Calum Chambers.
ngl – great to see him back in Arsenal red(ish)
Please don’t let him go to West Ham as recently reported..
Here’s what is going to happen. Gets a last chance this season, has a spectacularly incredible season, refuses a new contract and signs for Citeh on a free in 2018.
If it meant Wilshire had a spectacularly incredible season… I’d take that!
“Wilshire” ?
Probably lies if sky reported it
They used to be fairly reliable but seem to be full of shit these days
Curious when they used to be ‘useful’. Like… When?!
Wondering what the general opinion on Wilshere is…
Thumbs up – Want him to stay and be an extra body for our midfield
Thumbs down – Too injury prone and time to sell him
I am torn myself.
he is better than el-neny is what i am pretty sure of.
Santori? Is that you?
I’ve got mixed feelings too. If we can secure someone good to compete with Ramsey, I’d be really torn between Wilshere and El Neny because there won’t be playing time for both. Not enough to their liking at least. The latter isn’t exciting but reliable. The former has shown glimpses of talent throughout his career but isn’t fit all the time.
Bournemouth were better with him on the bench. But maybe some fans think that Arsenal would be better with him…
Eddie Howe thought otherwise, but wtf does he know.
Some fans here need to search through the archives what themselves were saying about Jack four or five years ago. He was the best thing that could happen to Arsenal and English team.
Why do you think that. Bournemouth certainly didn’t
Now bournemouth dont play like the arsenal do they?
I was all ready to let him go until seeing these pics. Now I want him back on the pitch..
Same.
Its a really hard one and I know this might be an unpopular opinion. But for me, I want Arsenal to prepare for the season ahead without Jack in their plans because its proven that he just cant be relied on. He is never fit, and looks like he will never ever be able to complete a full season in the Premier League. Potentially moving to a less physical league would suit him more, a mid table team in La Liga would be a smart move in my opinion as he is still a very good player on the ball.… Read more »
It’s a tough one.
Jack could go the way of Diaby and be permanently crocked, or the way of Van Persie and overcome his injury history (for 2-3 years at least) and finally achieving his potential.
It’s easily forgotten that Van P was once the butt of all jokes when it came to Arsenal injuries (now he’s the butt of all jokes when it comes to arsenal treachery).
Spot on sir.
is RVP’s deceptive treachery worse than Ca$ley Cole?
The constant there is that he’s always the arse.
i like jack . his technique is sublime . but i dont see where would jack fit in our current formation . he does not have big enough stamina to cover the entire midfield like ramsey and xhaka . he is more an offensive player , but he is underwhelming as a no10 . he could theoretically do a job in either position , but not to his full potential i think . wilshere is best suited as one of three man midfield or as attacking midfielder in 4231 . honestly i used to like him as our no10 player… Read more »
I think its fair to say, no Arsenal fan wants him to leave. But everyone is thinking his time is up.
Better than Elneny by far.
BUT too injury prone to rely on even as a back up.
We need to be less sentimental and consider what’s good for the team.
If he stays it will be on the periphery with no guarantees and we still have to add in midfield regardless.
Torn like Jack’s poor ankles?
Dr Hyena joke?
we simply cannot sell him without at least having a replacement first. Ramsey’s fairly injury-prone and I think Wilshere is a bit more creative than Elneny. He has to play well to earn a new contract so he could be quite a motivated player.
For me, if a good offer comes in, sell him. I would rather see some of the youth players on the fridges of a first team given those chances in the cup games.
Ok, he could be useful in some capacity over the course of the season. But I think we need someone new in the centre mid position that can compete for a starting position week in week out.
Genuine question – what do you consider to be a “good offer”? How much do we think Jack is worth?
Personally, given that Alexis, Ozil and Ox may all be leavimg on frees, I’d be tempted by offers over £20m. But we might not get that, with his injury record amd one year on his contract.
But part of me still wants to see if Jack can come good!
I think 18+ would be good. Under 10m would be an embarrassment.
Good to see him back, I know we say this every season but if he can stay fit this season (a very big IF) then he could be the answer to our midfield problems in regards of lacking a ‘Santi type’ of player
Fingers crossed for him, but if he gets injured again I guess we’ll have to see out his contract
Even if he was fit I don’t see him being the answer to our midfield woes. For a title winning squad he’d be a backup midfielder.
Agreed.
He has some capabilities similar to Diaby and Santi holding and taking the ball up the vertical line to goal.
BUT I think his injuries will be a massive issue with the way he likes to play.
Not the solution for us to rely on him. Would be foolish.
I see where you’re coming from, and I agree
I just think he’s a good option to have because he can bring the ball out from defence – the type of player many fans have been saying that we need atm
I think it’s worth keeping him for the last season of his contract and see if we can get the best out of him again this season
I do not understand these comparisons with Santi. Short and skillfull yes but Santi protects the ball and hardly ever turns it over. Jack tries his nip it away at the last minute trick (the source of many of his injuries) but turns the ball over all the time. With a team that already has the Turnover in Chief role taken by Alexis, we cannot afford another, especially in midfield, where it just becomes a running race at our defense.
Hope he stays. In my opinion he is a better player than Rambo.
I can’t believe people hold such an opinion. Ramsey was one of the players of the Euros, scored winning goals in two fa cup finals. He also has a humility and fight about him that Wilshere doesn’t have. Also, Iwobi has many of the awesome qualities Wilshere has, so we’re well equipped to cope without him.
i remember once when wilshere was our biggest talent over ramsey . how times changes . both competed in euro and one crashed out of the tournament with a talented squad against iceland and other one took a clearly inferior team as far as semis and became one of the best players of the euro
Wilshire has no fight ? That is one of his biggest strengths and what we have sadly missed. Injuries sadly have probably destroyed his career
Yes I completely agree. Plus Stallone is like 60 and doesn’t have a resale value.
I’ve been keen to sell him for a while now. I’ve never fancied him in a two man midfield, because I think we’d need someone with a lot of pace and athleticism to make up for his lack of. But just like with Rambo, Xhaka and maybe even the Ox I think a three man midfield could suit Jack. Saying that if someone’s willing to put £15-20mill on the table we’d probably be better off taking it? because he’d need to have some season to warrant a new deal with his injury record. If we were still 4-2-3-1? I’d 100%… Read more »
The problem with keeping him is it means he’s registered as part of your squad. So, if he gets injured again for a long period, it would not be so good for us. It’s quite a gamble really. Although to be honest, I really didn’t think he would be back in full training already.
Also, I think Wenger has already made his mind to sell him. Him participating in full training would help the club attract more suitors for him.
The squad can be re-registered mid season (not sure when but I’d guess January), so he’s not necessarily taking a place for the full season…
I have to let the memory of an 18 year old wilshere embarrassing Barca die. He isn’t going to be that player we always hoped for. Good luck on the next season, jack. You’ll always be remembered for what could have been.
Can someone explain how a player’s desire impacts any given transfer? In this case, can Jack refuse to join a team if he doesn’t want a move or can the club him to anyone? If it’s the latter and the player does not want to move, can he simply refuse to agree terms and the deal is off?
I guess I just don’t understand the power dynamics.
If a player is under contract, he can hold his club to the contract just as they can hold him. During the term of the contract, the club and the player must agree before its terms can be changed or it can be terminated.
So, unless the club really wants the player gone, it will negotiate a transfer fee from the buying club–but the buying club must also agree to a new contract with the player (“personal terms”).
No two ways about it Jack has to leave he just isn’t good enough. He hasn’t developed because of his injuries. Last year he played 29 games with 0 goals and 3 assists, we won’t win the league with him in the starting line-up. His injury record also makes it impossible to even count on him as a squad player.
How many goals and assists in league did Ramsey get ?
I’m not one fir stats but Ramsey had 4 goals and 4 assists all competitions. 32 games, but about the same minutes played as Jack.
Ermmm FA Cup Final!?!
That was Ramsey’s lowest return in 4 seasons. Jack’s never had more than 5 goals for us, and has only made over 25 appearances 3 times.
Exactly, even in his poorest season stat wise Ramsey still out performs Jack at the moment.
Kante had hardly any assists and goals. Doesn’t prove a thing
Always loved this guy! I hope he beats the odds. That Norwich goal might forever be my favorite. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6UoBJ4tPMM
Jack Wheelchair..Nuff said!
If we lose, Gibbs and Chambers we might need some homegrown talent in the squad. Let’s face it, on his day jack has everything you could want in a midfielder but will he, can he stay fit? Broken bones prove he is unlucky but that doesn’t mean he is another Diaby. I saw him score a screamer as a 15/16 year old at Barnet for the reserves. I thought he would be ours and Englands Captain. I hope he stays but then I’m a sentimental old twat!
Martinez
Bellerin
Chambers
Holding
Gibbs
Walcott
JW10
Rambo
Coquelin
Ox
Welbeck
Akpom
Jenks
Reine Adelaide
Iwobi
Maitland Niles
That’s 16 homegrown players in our first team squad.
I’m guessing three of those are likely to move on and possibly 1-2 more on loan.
I mean, he is a fantastic player when fit.
When fit.
If he is going to have an Abou Diaby availability for us, that would not be terribly helpful.
BOTH Jack and Diaby gave us a certain ability to penetrate from the vertical straight up the field with ball at feet.
Santi could do that too and sadly I feel this capability is lacking at the moment.
If we can’t find an attractive enough offer, I suppose he will stay on the periphery available when fit.
LANS
I agree with many of the comments on here about Jack leaving. But hopefully everyone all agrees it’s just good for the soul to see him in an Arsenal shirt and working hard at our training session.
Yes. Makes me happy to see Jack back in training. If only he could have a full season being fit with us. Come on Jack u gooner !!!!!
I just looked through all the training pics from today on the arsenal.com website. No Theo? Interesting.
Also, it’s good to see that so many of our key players and starters (Xacha, Nacho. Kos, Ozil, Ox, Rambo, Laca etc.) have now got a few good solid weeks of pre-season behind them. They should be ready for a good start to the season, unlike last year when they all came back late from Euros.
Theo’s there, pics on getty of him racing Hector. Looks like Bellerin won…
Jack’s always been a fantastic little player.
Injuries are the issue.
BUT remember his goal against Norwich with equally SUBLIME touch from Giroud.
Risk to us in keeping him is purely availability and not capability.
Pay as u play?
It would be good for Jack to see out his contract in the red and white so that fans can say a proper farewell to him. Hopefully he can stay injury free.
Realy happy to see Jack involved in the training session, but should we keep him or should we sell him.
In all honesty, i will have to go for the latter, SELL HIM. The only thing that could save his time here at arsenal, is if we are not buying anyone else and i feel that is highly unlikely
Great to see him back in training, hopefully he can stay injury free and contribute this season.
As he’s a West Ham fan I imagine he hopes to join them next season on a free. I can’t see them paying the cash for him this year, we’d want at least £15m plus
Starting to worry we are giving too many players the opportunity to leave on a free at the end of this season…
Come on jack will be like a new signing ! Love him
Poll: Jack (thumbs up) or Seri (thumbs down)
Poll 2: Jack (thumbs up) or Carvalho (thumbs down)
Neither.
Fair enough. Do you think we’re ok with what we have? Ox and Reiss Nelson have great potential but aren’t proven (in central midfield anyway). Elneny and Le Coq, I think, are quality squad players, but unlikely to develop into first team regulars. Could be wrong about that. So, do we have enough or do we need another proven performer. I think we might but then I think signing one will be the death knell to Ox’s Arsenal career. That’s the crux I think, can we put faith in Ox in central midfield? If not, we need somebody. But then,… Read more »
sell him before he inevitabley gets injured again for ffs
anything over 10million will do!
over rated,over hyped by english press and supporters…like all young english players…yawn
Sell Jack, buy Seri…
Darren Burgess be like “I didn’t say go”
Really pleased to see him back in full training so quickly!
He should go to a less physical league and enjoy playing football, we can’t have lots of injury prone players in the squad yet currently we have Gibbs, Wilshire, santi, welbeck, Theo and probably more – can’t have that many in a squad looking to win the title and between santi and jack… no contest!!!
One more chance, maybe?
Szczesny and Wilshere in one summer. Never thought it’d happen!
It’s a tough on with Jack.
Whilst I can see a certain benefit in letting a player run down their contract, I can’t see any benefit in extending it to more than realistically more than 1 player at a time. Especially as this potentially ties up a squad place.
If he learns to pass and move he might be handy. If he thinks he. An run with it and ride tackles he won’t last.
The West Ham connection is interesting. His family are hammers from what I’ve seen. Pretty sure I’ve seen a pic of him in a kit as a kid. He may well be interested in going there. Having said that, it does explain some of his behaviour. Even if he has been at Arsenal since 9.
To be honest, if I were Jack at this point I’d hedge my bets and find my next gig and not risk getting a mid-season injury and being left at the end of the season/ start of the next without a club.
But as I’ve said before, I’d love to be proven wrong. I really would.
Hey, I hate the thought as a supporter and I’ve always wanted Jack to shake the shit luck, put the down times behind him, and fulfill his potential here. I’m just saying the man’s got a career to look after.
If he and the club are confident enough to play it out this season I’m all for it.
Happy to have you back Jack….I still believe in your ability…and like Ramsey, I know you will bounce back….Proper Gunner you are, Im never gonna forget seeing you on top of the parade bus, wearing a bucket hat and shades, probably a bit drunk….singing “Its happened again….”…Good times…
I don’t see any upside to keeping him for an extra season. If he does well, he may refuse to sign a contract and leave on a free to join city and we will all be mad. If he does poorly then he’s a waste of funds that could have been used to sign someone else, and a waste of one extra spot for a registered player. Best we sell. We really should have sold last summer. there was no advantage to loaning him out. We could have gotten better value for him last year before he bombed at Bournemouth… Read more »
He looks happy and really fit! …….Oh just realised he’s in the shop window marketing himself. 🙁
He has great chance to get his Arsenal career back on track.Europa League and FA Cup are ideal for him to show desire and lead young lads and if he performs well he could get back in Pl story.
Also I have to add that I would gamble on him as it is low risk.
Would offer him 1+1 contract.
In todays market for 10 milions you cannot get any player.
Good to have Sheer Willpower back.
Good to see Jackie in the team. I hope he is given one last chance. He combines Xhaka’s and Ramsey’s skill-sets really well (technique+bustle) and would be immense if he stays as fit for more than he’s out.
You’d be forgiven for thinking Wilshere didn’t kick a ball last year going by some of these comments, he hasn’t died for goodness sake!
As it stands, Alexis, Özil, Ox, Wilshere are all out of contract. That’s £150m + of talent we have to replace next season to remain at the same level, never mind improve. We can’t afford that, somebody has to be sold
Conte’s dig at Spurs is a good albeit unrelated read. “If [Spurs] don’t win the title, it’s not a tragedy. “If they don’t arrive in the Champions League, it’s not a tragedy. If they go out in the first round of the Champions League, it’s not a tragedy. If they go out after the first game that they play in the Europa League and go down against Gent, it’s not a tragedy. “Maybe for Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and – I don’t know – Liverpool, it is a tragedy. You must understand this. You must understand the status… Read more »
we cant really rely on him but to keep him as a back up is certainly a good thinking as far as i see the depth in the midfield…this would quite keep him out of injuries and i simply i dont think someone will give €20m for such injury prone midfielder… shine for the last time jack… be the samurai jack
If we get Lemar and he can play as an AM and a santi role in CM, i’d keep Jack as back-up to Lemar in both roles. If Lemar can play in that Santi role we would then have Granit Aaron first choice, lemar as being able to fill in, coq and wlneny as able to come in to do a certain job, and jack as back up, and potentially ’emergencically’ ox, i’d say wr are well stocked in CM.