Arsenal: Jack Wilshere Heartbreak A Reminder Of Unfortunate Truth

Arsenal loaned out Jack Wilshere to get some first team experience and recover his health, but that has all derailed with his new hairline fracture.

Arsenal were definitely hoping to see a whole lot of things when they loaned Jack Wilshere out to Bournemouth. The idea was to get him consistent, injury-free playing time while he adjusts to what it is actually like to play every single match day.

It wasn’t ever a question of him being good enough. We knew he was good enough, we just needed him around for more than the odd month or two when he was finally healthy.

That was going remarkably well, as he tallied nearly 2000 minutes for the Cherries. And let me reemphasize – playing time was all that was needed.

Then he collided with Harry Kane and suddenly, he has another identical hairline fracture.

Even for someone as injured as Wilshere, this is incredibly cruel, for two reasons. First of all, the initial x-rays were negative. They said there was no break. Then, they did a CT scan and found a hairline fracture in his left ankle.

Secondly, this was the exact same location he had just recovered from. As in, he just so happened to collide with Harry Kane at the exact same point of his last hairline fracture and now there is another one.

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What the hell.

I don’t think I was alone in my excitement over the prospect of Wilshere having a serious run at the Arsenal first team this summer. It seemed to be right there, waiting to happen. But now he is expected to miss the start of next season and, while this shouldn’t be shocking, the painful truth is that at some point, it has to be enough.

Abou Diaby had a point and Jack Wilshere needs to have one too. A point where we finally move on and find a replacement. As much as we all want to see Wilshere succeed at Arsenal, we can’t keep waiting for that moment.

This midfield needs help. There are plenty of options around Granit Xhaka, but few that can be actively relied upon. Nabbing someone like Isco or Miralem Pjanic could be that crucial missing piece and yes, it may block Jack Wilshere, but we have to do something.

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You have to feel sick for Wilshere, but as a club, I still feel the Gunners haven’t moved on from the hope that he can make it.