The former Arsenal and England international star Martin Keown has been giving his thoughts and answering questions from readers of the Daily Mail in the aftermath of this summer’s record breaking transfer window, which saw Arsenal chip in significantly to the more than £1 billion spent by Premier League clubs.
As well as declaring himself pretty underwhelmed by the signing of Moussa Sissoko from Newcastle by our north London rivals Tottenham (Keown thinks it was an unnecessary purchase which the spuds can scarcely afford as they build a new stadium) he spoke about one of the biggest talking points of the last few days, the loan move of Jack Wilshere to AFC Bournemouth for the season.
Like many Arsenal fans Keown only wants to see young Jack achieve his awesome potential but it seems clear that he feels sorry for the position our midfielder finds himself in, having to give up (temporarily at least) on the club he loves and has been with since the age of nine, which is why he described it as a sad situation.
Keown said, “This one really caught me by surprise and I can’t help but feel there is an element of sadness to the situation.
“I think Jack is Arsenal’s best left-footed midfielder since Liam Brady, but injury has robbed him of much of his career.
“I hope this is the first step to getting him back on the field regularly, it’s not the time to worry about his performances.
“I’m glad he’s not hiding and that he’s choosing to put himself on show. And I also think it shows a degree of selflessness on Arsene Wenger’s part – he’s such a talented player but he shouldn’t be trapped into not being able to play.
“This will be hard for Jack – he loves the club and has been with them since the age of nine, and it’ll be tough for him to watch them from afar.
“But I think he loves playing football even more, and this move should be good for him.”
If it is good for Wilshere then most Arsenal fans will see it as a great move in the long term, but it could also be good for the club in the short term, for the same reason that Keown describes it as sad. Jack loves Arsenal and although he will not be playing for us this season and will not be able to play against us, he will be facing all of our rivals for the Premier League title and I am sure he will want to do everything in his power to take points off them and give the Gunners a boost in the quest to become champions again.
How do you think Jack’s time at Bournemouth will go?
Bob.
If Jack stays healthy – this will be an amazing opportunity for him. He just needs to play and stay fit, he is a fantastic talent.
Go Jack – show us all what you can do!
Get in G-train!! Tidy one-touch finish. Giroud 1-01 right there
My team for Southampton!
___________Sanogo
______Sanchez Ozil Walcott_
________Xhaka Cazorla
Monreal Koscielny Mustafi Bellerin
___________Cech
Perez/Giroud for No Go-al
Don’t you dare disrespect Sir Goalo
Hope makes good use of his loan spell on the southcoast but I wouldn’t want to be in his boots come next year if we happen to to lift the league trophy with him having to look from a distance..
why? when would you unleash the bear? I say, sooner rather than later… Give him a chance to catch-up in the golden boot race… Actually what are his odds at at the moment? might put a cheeky 10er on it 🙂
The best left footed midfielder ??
Wilshere is better than ozil ?????