Arsenal: Jack Wilshere can now officially be pissed off

Arsenal’s infuriating loss at Watford should have riled up everyone associated with the Gunners, but no one more than Jack Wilshere.

From the minute the Arsenal starting XI was released to face Watford, there were questions. I, for one, was quite pleased to see Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez not included, with Alexis not even in the squad.

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If these two guys don’t want to be here and other players do, then the other players should get priority so long as they are effective.

However, the questioning really started heating up when Jack Wilshere was not included in the starting XI. Mostly because, from the start of the match, the lack of a midfield pivot left Arsenal looking a bit stale in the attack, as their transition game was pretty feeble and powered completely by Alex Iwobi.

Keep in mind that Arsene Wenger had previously said that Jack Wilshere was at the best he has seen him in quite some time, referring both to his abilities and his fitness. This sentiment was echoed by Wilshere, who said almost the exact same thing.

Wenger would go on to say that he planned to give Wilshere his chances in the first team, particularly in the next couple of weeks, in order to judge if he was ready for consistent first team action, which, again, Wenger said Wilshere would be receiving. Although he did do the typical Wenger thing and say, via the Guardian, that Wilshere “wasn’t ready” to start because of how ferocious it is in the Premier League.

It’s the same problem that kept Sead Kolasinac and Alexandre Lacazette out against Liverpool, this incessant need to protect his players. Although with Wilshere, it’s at least somewhat understandable.

Still, it all seemed to point perfectly to this game, and oh how we needed him before the 80th minute when he was scheduled to come on. When he returned to the bench because of an injury to Laurent Koscielny that forced Rob Holding on instead, you just had to wonder. What was Jack Wilshere thinking?

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I get why he was pulled back. My criticism of the handling of Wilshere’s situation has nothing to do with that. What it does have to do with is why he was even in that situation to begin with.

Mesut Ozil was sent on first, and then Olivier Giroud, neither of whom have the power to change the flow of a game. Especially one going so much in the opposite direction. Now, at the time of the first substitution, it was still 1-0, but the momentum was clearly shifting, as it had been all half.

The game needed an influence, not a passenger who goes with the flow of the game like Ozil or eve Giroud.

Anyway, what I’m getting at is this. For someone like Jack Wilshere, who everyone, player and manager alike, is acknowledging is at the top of his fitness and ready to go, to watch his team crumble and wilt like that without being trusted enough to make a difference, well, that is hard to stomach.

And we all know how headstrong Jack Wilshere can be. He is not going to be happy at this whole situation, that ended with him being pulled back from being subbed on, albeit for legitimate reasons.

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And if he isn’t handed his opportunity soon, I do worry that he may get even more pissed, and for the record, he has every right to be. The lad is ready and this is his club. It’s time to let him do his thing and let everyone who can’t, sit back and watch.