Welcome back Jack, it has been a while. Seven months in total. Jack Wilshere returned to the Arsenal starting XI last against Sunderland for the first time since an ankle-ligament injury against Manchester United in November.
Playing at the Emirates Stadium will not be quite as he remembered it, though.
Supporters’ admiration for him is still as intense and his reception before kick-off was testament to that. But the landscape of Arsenal’s attacking set-up has changed since he had ankle surgery.
His best position is undoubtedly in central midfield — Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger knows it, and so too does England coach Roy Hodgson.But Wilshere started the match against Sunderland on the right wing. That is not where he wants to be but his chance of playing centrally looks remote.
Santi Cazorla is Wenger’s undisputed first-choice middle man as he loves his creativity, balance and poise.Francis Coquelin, who was rested, is the preferred partner for the Spaniard. He has been one of the success stories of Arsenal’s season and Wenger believes his work-rate and defensive acumen provide the perfect foil for Cazorla to strut his stuff.
But here, perhaps, is the telling factor. Wenger chose to hand Aaron Ramsey, who has occupied the right-wing slot in recent weeks, Coquelin’s central role so Wilshere, at the moment, is the fourth-choice central midfielder. Is Wilshere — a man who is key to England’s future — comfortable with that?
Wilshere loves being in the thick of the action; in the engine room where matches are won or lost. You could tell that against Sunderland, as he moved inside at any available opportunity.
Make no bones about it, though. Wilshere is fit and raring to go. He buzzed around the pitch on his return with his usual gusto and purpose.The panache in his passing is still there, too. A brilliant through-ball to set Mesut Ozil away early in the second half underlined that.The problem for Wilshere is that just as he is getting his groove back, Arsenal have two games left. He may well get another start in their final Barclays Premier League game against West Bromwich on Sunday but, unless injury strikes, he will be on the bench for the FA Cup final against Aston Villa six days later.There are, of course, the summer England games for Wil-shere to look forward to. And Hodgson, who was at the Emirates, would have been satisfied by Wilshere’s contribution.But he was replaced by Theo Walcott in the 67th minute and must now ask himself: is the Arsenal midfield now so congested that it is time to consider leaving the club? – Daily Mail