Jack Wilshere makes positive Arsenal return but his future remains uncertain after broken leg

The 25-year-old could leave the Gunners permanently this summer

Jack Austin
Tuesday 15 August 2017 10:02 BST
Comments
Wilshere hasn't played for Arsenal in nearly a year
Wilshere hasn't played for Arsenal in nearly a year (Getty)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Jack Wilshere took to the pitch in an Arsenal shirt for the first time in nearly a year on Monday night and impressed as the Gunners’ under-23 side faced Derby County in the Premier League 2.

The 25-year-old, who played in a deep-lying role alongside Francis Coquelin, has not played any competitive football since fracturing his leg while on loan at Bournemouth last season playing against Tottenham.

And there were a few signs that his touch of class still remained in the 75 minutes he played at St George’s Park, even if he did look a fair distance short of match practice.

Wilshere only returned to full training for the first time since his injury this month and set up a great opportunity with a cross from the left before dinking a delicate, chipped through ball to create another one.

There were also the occasional bursts forward but his energy wore off later in the game, understandably.

Wilshere’s future is still uncertain with the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Granit Xhaka, Mohamed Elneny and Coquelin all ahead of him in the pecking order.

Speaking last week, Arsene Wenger said of Wilshere’s future: “That decision is not completely made. I want him to have a chance to play somewhere as well. We have to decide that a bit later.

“I wanted first him to come back, he is coming out of a fracture. It is the first week he is back in full training and we have to sit down together and see where we go from there.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in