Jack Wilshere has pledged his future to Arsenal, his ‘home’ and his ‘perfect’ club, after returning from injury.
Speaking of his desire to emulate legends like Tony Adams, Wilshere believes his bond with the Gunners has been strengthened during his long fitness battle and he has no intention of following Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie out of the Emirates.
The 20-year-old England midfielder said: ‘I’ve been at this club 10 years and to come through the academy at Hale End and break into the first team is a great story. It’s a dream.
‘To have my family 20 minutes from the training ground and an hour from the stadium is perfect for me. Cesc wanted to go
home. Home for me is Arsenal. Cesc wanted to go back to his family and friends.
‘My family and friends are 20 minutes away. It’s perfect.’
Wilshere is banned from today’s home game against Fulham but wants to pile up his appearances for the club and bring the Barclays Premier League title back to Arsenal.
He said: ‘I’ve played 39 games in the Premier League, which is nothing when you look at players like Tony Adams and how many appearances they made.
‘That’s something I want to do.
‘Our ambition every year is to challenge for the Premier League title. If we didn’t think we could do that, we would be under-achieving.
‘People might say we’re a long way off — and the table doesn’t lie, we are a few points behind — but we know what we have to do.
‘We know we can’t afford to drop points.
‘We know we need to be in the top four. We know we need to win a trophy and get in the Champions League again.
‘We do it every year and there’s no reason why we can’t do it again.’
Kick-off: 3pm at Emirates Stadium. Radio: BBC 5 Live.
Referee: Phil Dowd. – Daily Mail