Why Arsenal should take Darren Bent’s advise and re-sign Jack Wilshere

In an interview with TalkSport (h/t Mirror), former Tottenham striker Darren Bent has suggested that Arsenal should sign free agent Jack Wilshere.

He said that a creative player like Wilshere will be the much-needed link between their defensive midfielders and attackers. Bent, however, suggested that the deal doesn’t have to be a normal contract but on a ‘pay-as-you-play’ basis. (h/t Mirror)

Profile

Born in England in 1992, Jack Wilshere joined Arsenal’s youth academy as a 9-year-old in 2001. The prodigal midfielder earned his call up to the senior side in 2008 as a 17-year-old. After 8 appearances in his first year, he was loaned to Bolton Wanderers for the 2009/10 season.

After his loan spell, he became a regular feature in Arsenal’s line-up. Apart from his rotten luck with injuries, the Englishman played regularly for the Gunners and became a focal point of Arsene Wenger’s style of play.

However, the promise that he once showed against FC Barcelona in 2011 never quite came to fruit and the midfielder slowly grew out of favour at the club as his injuries seemed to take a toll on his game. He was loaned to Bournemouth in 2016 before being permanently sold to West Ham United in 2018 after 17 years with the club. (h/t Transfermarkt)

Jack Wilshere can be the creative playmaker Arsenal desire

The 28-year-old’s heatmap in his last season at Arsenal displays that he is capable of playing in between the defensive midfielders and the forwards. His slick passing, eye-of-a-needle vision and elegance on the ball make him an effective midfielder for any line-up.

Arsenal are reeling in 12th position in the Premier League table, and the blame for it lies in the creative department. The midfielders are simply not creating enough chances. None of their central midfielders has more than one league assist this season.

The Gunners have now gone 5 league games without scoring a goal from open play after their dreadful 0-0 draw with Leeds United where the team was outrun in every department. In that regard, the midfield is crying out for a creative central midfielder.

Wilshere is a great solution for this problem; one who shouldn’t take much time to settle at the club given his 17-year-long stay there before his departure in 2018. Arteta tends to play a 3-4-3 formation at Arsenal where there are just two midfielders on the pitch.

Arsenal have already found their defensive midfielder in Thomas Partey but the other slot is an area where changes could be made to improve creativity. This is where Jack Wilshere might possibly be deployed if Arsenal were to show any interest in him. He can lift some creative burden off the shoulders of the wingers and offer Arsenal a new creative force down the middle.

Verdict

Jack Wilshere left West Ham United this summer and is now a free agent without a club. The midfielder is also only 28 years old and is not really on a stark physical decline.

As Darren Bent says, the deal is unlikely to happen but it is one that should happen given the circumstances at Arsenal. Wilshere himself believes that he is fit to play at the top level. The opportunity for a reunion would certainly entice him as well.