Just how good enough is good enough? At what point does a player become Arsenal quality? Who decides whether he is world class or just a squad player? And are these judgements set in stone, or can a player move from one state to another? These questions are prompted by two things, the first being a vague conversation I became involved in yesterday about Jack Wilshere, the second in light of the reaction to the possible re-signing of Carols Vela.
I am fascinated by Jack for a whole variety of reasons, and it is possibly easiest just to list them.
- He is only 22
- He has on occasions been hailed as England and Arsenal’s saviour
- He is capable of the most sublime football
- There is a touch of the street fighter about him
- He is a fans’ favourite
- He scored the best team goal that anyone will ever see
- Arsene Wenger has described him as one of the most talented young players he has ever worked with
- He has spent the last three seasons either injured or returning from injury
- He is no longer a favourite of all the fans and some don’t see him as an automatic starter either for The Arsenal, or, more strangely, for England
Not so long ago there would have been little debate about his quality, which would have been seen as top, top, or world class. He was our very own Superjack, and when much else in The Arsenal world was slightly rocky, that at least was certain. But now it would seem it isn’t, or at least it wasn’t to the person I was talking to yesterday, nor indeed to Stuart Pearce who pronounced that Jack wouldn’t kick a ball in the World Cup. I happen to think they are wrong, and maintain my belief that he is an outstanding talent, but the point of this post is not to argue his, or any other’s case (that can safely be left to Twitter and the comments section)but rather to explore what lies behind the judgments that are made about a player’s ability.
Clearly the proof of the pudding is in the playing, but often it is more than that, especially as only a very small number get to see players play for a full 90 minutes with their own eyes. For those that watch whole matches on the TV their view tends to be determined by the shots the cameramen choose to take, and by and large those shots follow the ball. If, say, a quarter of the value of a player to his team is what he does when he isn’t directly and immediately involved in the play, then it is clear that judgments are not based on the full story. Given that even more of those judgements are based on recorded highlights, and that those highlights rely heavily on editorial decision making, with all the bias that such selections inevitably entail, then we can see that most fans’ view of a player is already compromised. Throw into the mix the comments of pundits, who may or may not have an axe to grind (old allegiances run deep, and few past players are totally in love with their modern successors) and suddenly the claim that player X is not world class can be seen to be distorted.
The judgements become even more tainted of course when assessing the value of a transfer target, or when the player in question is being debated in the school yard (yes, I know school yards no longer exist, but what is a comment on football without an appropriate cliché), because then a kind of macho one-upmanship comes into play. Signing Vela is of absolutely no use to that kind of fan. He will not cost nearly enough money (anything under £25m these days is seen as a “Lol, poverty”), he does not come from a well-known club, he has already been dismissed as a failure once in his Arsenal lifetime, his YouTube videos are a little underwhelming, and perhaps most crucially of all, he isn’t talked about in reverential terms by those pundits who are persuaded to talk so glowingly by the agents they spend so much time with. If the dismissal of Vela can be accompanied with a sneering comment about Wenger dithering about in the bargain basement again then so much the better, especially if the twitterliverer of that comment can at the same time proclaim that only he properly understands just what players Arsenal need to even get top 4 again.
So Vela has no chance, and I suspect that a little like Giroud, even if he does come he will spend his life being criticised for what and who he is not , rather than celebrated for what he is and what he does offer. It apparently doesn’t matter that he has improved significantly, because whilst it is apparently fine to say that a player has regressed or hasn’t lived up to his potential, it is not allowed for anyone to improve. And it is that aspect that I find saddest of all, because I believe the biggest obstacle anyone can have to living their life successfully is to settle for a fixed and pessimistic mind-set. The whole basis of coaching is to help a player unlock his potential and find improvement, the whole point of training is to make progress from where you were yesterday. The best coaches dare to see the potential in players, the outstanding ones know how to help them unlock it. Choosing to adopt a growth mind-set is the most positive difference you can make to your life, whether you are a professional footballer, or gainfully employed in some other walk of life or simply waiting to leave school and to find a job that really suits you – or even, like me, just a student of the game.
If Vela returns he will be exciting, as will Balotelli (and the thought of him coming just makes me smile – I don’t think he will, but it would be kind of fun to see what happens if he does, and there is, in truth, only one manager on the planet who I would trust to get the best out of him).
Eighteen months ago, when Jack Wilshere was driving The Arsenal forward to a Third Round Cup victory over Swansea few would have imagined it was Aaron Ramsey who would make the most progress over the next year or so – but he did, and it was due to his courage and determination, but also to the unshakeable and visionary faith of his manager. I would not offer you any odds at all on Arsene Wenger helping Jack, or any of the others he chooses to sign, unleashing that potential too. And while this may well come back to haunt me, I do want to finish by saying that fitness permitting, I believe that Jack Wilshere will be as good a player as we have ever seen at The Emirates.
Today’s post was penned by @foreverheady
Positively Arsenal 
C/F
northbank1969 June 12, 2014 at 8:50 am Edit
George, I’ve got a new post up on my blog today. A culinary journey through the menu Loyalty.
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That was an excellent read Foreverheady. I’m a great Jack fan and like you, I believe we haven’t seen the best of him yet.
George, thanks for the C/F
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Cheers for that man! Class article.
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Well, I’ve gotta say summat about this post.
Very well written and expressed, FH. I agree with you. I’m wanting to write so much about what you’ve written, but I can imagine it’d never end. Suffice to say, I think almost all of the Arsenal players are quite amazing. The stuff they have to put up with is unbelievable, whether on or off the field. I don’t think any PL players got more unpunished kickings than JW10 and OG12, yet they still produced magic on a consistent basis, IMO.
I hope Vela comes back. Even if he were only signed to sell him on for a tidy profit, but who knows, he may prefer to come back cos he wants to contribute. That’d be good enough for me. And please England, don’t play JW. Instead, play the magnificent Henderson. And leave the Ox on the bench. We need these two players for the start of next season. If you’ve watched England matches over the last 12 months you’ll know aArsenals players are targeted, much as they are in the prem or the CL.
Has anyone seen press or commentators acknowledging TH14’s absence from the WC being entirely due to assaults from Chablis and Rose, v totty?
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i love jack. the first time i saw him play in the emirate cup, i rushed home to boast among my friends who support other clubs that we have a young player who is better than messi. he was playing on the wing at the time just as messi was at barca, hence my comparism.
couple of years later he was the best player in a match between us and barca. my prediction somehow came to pass.
what i notice at the time was jack who wanted to become an arsenal legend, play the arsenal way and looked up to a certain cesc fabregas. pass the ball like him and have his kind of vision. he was on the rise until he was invited to play for england. he suddenly became the best talent to come out of england. he was likened to paul schole, gerrard and lampard. he then began to see himself as the messiah who will help england win the world cup.
he began to play the english way rather than arsenal way. then the tattoos. he now wanted to play for england more than arsenal, hence his role model became, beckam, gerrard and lampard.
now he plays for arsenal with the mentality of an english player. until he changes this mentality and begins to look up to players like ozil, cazorla and ramsey, he may not get to realise his potentials in an arsenal jersey.
this is the more reason i wanted us to get cesc back in this team. so he can talk some sences into my beloved jack.
as for pearse, he is an arsehole.
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Jack must must must remain fit and play football. His string of injuries over the last three seasons has been massively disappointing, most of all I suspect to him. You can see his confidence is down. And what is inexplicable is that he appears not to be built like a delicate stork where one might expect a player to succumb to the rough and tumble of the PL, but like a brick shithouse who is designed to batter through the challenges and stay fit for 50 games a season.
It is inconceivable that AW, the medics and physiologists are not studying and restudying Jack’s injuries and recovery patterns carefully to try and break out of the cycle of injury and loss of fitness and not playing, leading to greater suscepitibility to injury, further drop in fitness etc.
The positive aspect of Jack’s problems is that he is still very young, and players at AFC have had similar protracted periods of injury during which their careers are on hold and it seems they are destined for the exit. Theo’s early years were equally injury ravaged and directionless.
Good piece Tim – again you get the thinking going
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Very well written piece. Cheers mate.
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Great piece Tim
I had a frustrating discussion with my younger brother last Sunday about the prospects of the England team. We got onto discussing Jack. He rates Jack as a ‘good player’ but not nearly as good as Adam Lallana. I would switch that ranking of course. However, what was more instructive for me was that I know that my brother does not have satelite TV and therefore cannot watch much football. So, how can he make such a comparison? He also reasured me that Liverpool will finish above Arsenal next season, that they are two players away from being a world class team, Arsenal struggle to attract top players, Wenger is not a tactician, we finished fourth but the gulf in class between us and the teams above us was huge, the winner of the EPL must win the mini-league of the top 4, our injuries were not influential etc. Also, he is a West Ham supporter. I have no idea why he really detests Arsenal and Wenger. He denies this but I heard him enough to know otherwise. But more worrying is that he is a highly intelligent aeronautical engineer who is very reasonable in all other discussions. What happens to some people when in comes to football?
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Arsenal struggle to attract top players, Wenger is not a tactician, we finished fourth but the gulf in class between us and the teams above us was huge, the winner of the EPL must win the mini-league of the top 4, our injuries were not influential etc.
ill break the code georgaki dont worry
Arsenal struggle to attract top players = arsenal not the top top top destination nor the top top top payer of salaries…therefore without those top top top ronaldos messis suarez etc you wont win.
wenger is not a tactician = wenger relies more on his philsophy and insists that players perfect it. when it happens the team is unstoppable. when it doesnt work wenger can change a thing or two but primarily the whole plan relies on the appetite, psychology and form of players, whereas modern football fans want the manager to cut and sow wherever possible all the time.
we finished but…huge – we had terrible psychological collpse in important games of the deathrun.
the winner of the epl must win th emini-league of the top4 = not true ..when liverpool lost the title ( when with rafa)…united had 4 points from possible 18 in top4league
our injuries were not influential = injuries or no injuries the players failed mentally to own liverpool chelsea everton and even beat them without playing well.
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Georgaki P @2:30pm
“What happens to some people when in comes to football?”
It’s practically imposible to accept criticism of our beloved team. Reasonable doesn’t even enter the equasion.
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*equation*
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i dont want jack to even play for england against italy. they are going to lose. and if they do lose and jack plays, its because of jack but if they win ( they wont) its someone else who takes the glory even if jack plays. this is what jack and other arsenal players who play for england fail to see. if i have my way, no arsenal player will play for england.
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Georgaki: I think that many people in then UK (perhaps like your brother) watch most of their football on Match of the Day, and get most of their opinions from the pundits on that show. Unfortunately, it does not always occur to them that the BBC might be in any way biased (about anything, let alone football) and so those prevailing and fossilised orthodoxies become set in stone.
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Really excellent post, forever. I agree with Anicoll that Jack’s progress really depends on improving fitness and overcoming this cycle of injures. A his age tere is yet time to fulfill his talent, but injuries have robbed him of quite a bit of that crucial developmental period were inconsistency solidifies into a more established level of performance through match experience. Hopefully he’ll stay fit, hav a good WC, and build on it during preseason for solid preparation for a great season with Arsenal.
On te Vela question, the debate simply seems a reflection of an anxiety that Vela’s return would mean no further spending on a striker. What is not to like in an improved, pacy wide forward who knows Arsenal at 3.5million? I hope we bring him in. However, it doesn’t obviate the need for someone who can play up top alone in our system or add something different as a central striker to backup and compete with Giroud. Giroud himself recognizes the need for this and, all credit to him and his excellent attitude, actually welcomes another top striker. No one has really been making the case for Vela being a central lone striker for Arsenal, so he would be a welcome and exciting addition, but unlikely to be the player we seem to be looking for since last summer.
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http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/jun/12/chelsea-sign-cesc-fabregas-from-barcelona
unbelievable
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Hunter; Roman’s call I suspect, just as Torres was. Doubt their manager that delighted to be honest.
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Since we do more more creativity in midfield available, Jack will more and more be eased back into the team. just wish the WC wasn’t at this time!
Well, i will take vela back simply because we do need more firepower up front and we sold him in the first place, at least we were more in favour of the sale than cesc for example…
Concerning cesc, i guess we had to do what we had to do… He said he was only going home to barca no one planned for him to come back just 3 yrs on… he really messed up a team built around him, guess he has 2ce showed himself unreliable – 1st bailing out on a team built around him and then now coming back just 3 yrs later and then to our London rivals! he should have moved back last year when so much build up in midfield was still going on. it cannot always be about him and his timing… really! Now our priority is actually upfront!i guess we had to do what we had to do… He said he was only going home to barca no one planned for him to come back just 3 yrs on… he really messed up a team built around him, guess he has 2ce showed himself unreliable – 1st bailing out on a team built around him and then now coming back just 3 yrs later and then to our London rivals! he should have moved back last year when so much build up in midfield was still going on. it cannot always be about him and his timing… really! Now our priority is actually upfront!
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Poor statements from Cesc.
Shevchenko, anyone?!
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He didn’t want to stay when we needed him the most, now we don’t need him he is desperate to come back. Let’s see how happy he will be knowing that the specialist in failure one doesn’t even rate him properly and that all the clubs he cares about don’t want him, either. Watching Chelsea play is going to be even worse from now an, something I thought unimaginable. I guess Mr. F word won’t be coming to the Emirates this season, he can probably expect a reception that will dwarf the treatment Cashley and the little Dutch boy get.
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its hideous
i feel awful
i understand wenger’s logic, but still we shoudlnt be allowing such things to happen….
they take our player..we get no money..we get to watch him under mourinho trolling us big time…..this sucks
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@Hunter
Full agreement. Even with our plethora of midfield options, he still would’ve improved us. But I guess that even if your budget is bigger than in seasons past it is still limited. And the prospect of having to replace several players as well as having to strengthen means that we can’t buy a 30 million player just to spite our rivals. Doesn’t absolve him from the crime of choosing Chelsea. He said he had several offers, and I no known universe playing for Chelsea under Mourinho is anywhere near the “best option”.
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cant fucking believe this…..
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yes ok plethora but arteta is fucking 32 and a bit of a kitten ..rosicky 33…jack and ox nowehere near his level or talent….wtf ??
ozil jack and ox better fuckign repay wenger for this and humiliate chelsea 6-0 everytime we meet them…plus the treble …
worst and most ironic twist of fate ever….our cesc.? playing for chelsea…while we had the option to get him back? CRIMINAL.
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The boy with Barca DNA was flogged by Bunga Bunga Barcelona because of the scale and trauma of the Neymar bung. To Chelsea. A club Barca hate? Hmmm. Certainly by their fans!
Hunter, it is funny. No point in giving a shit about what happens/happened to. The F Word. After all. He F’d off. Those who blamed the manager for this player’s awful conduct back then, the running down of the club by his prospective club, are in a bit of a pickle now! And of course he’s going to Gazprom for the wages.
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fuck the world cup too …what the point in life anymore? fucking chelsea and roman and ourinho nad fucking balir and gordon and english f.a for allowing this money laundring clubs…disgusted….who wants my season ticket ?….fuck football!
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The player was not needed in my opinion and evidently the club thought the same – there are more important fish to fry to sharpen our appetite for next season’s battles.
On a personal level if Cesc feels playing for Mourinho is his best move good luck to him – there are plenty of his Spanish international team mates who know Jose from his hysterics in the Madrid dressing room that will put him right if he asks them.
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Great post FH. Very good.
You. Can’t comment on his injuries as some have done without co me ting onthe. Lack of protection. Yes, he has lost a bot of confidence and is, surprisingly after injury, making similar errors to those which Rambo was…no biggie.
There’s a reason why England/U.K. Has produced less classic Tens over the years…why Beardsley Scholes and Le Tissier were criminally under used by the national team. And refs like Probert and deano are undeniably part of that reason. There’s no point pretending that isn’t the case: Le Tissier, Scholes, Beardlsey, this is not an observation* open to interpretation, it is a pattern.
*PB got 55 odd caps, PS 66, but they should have had so much more.
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Dammit, apologies for the phat phinger syndrome in the above comment. A poor craftsman blames their tools, if they can.
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I think he was just desperate to come to London more than Manchester… maybe his girlfriend had a hand in that cos Man U needed him more and he probably would have been better appreciated there…I remember thing that for Obi Mikel back then and nothing over the years has done much to change my mind on that…cos JM has manage to hamper his attacking game. He was second MVP behind Messi in the under 20 WC back then… Although Cesc always had a little nasty side and if he did want to get back at Arsenal a little for not signing him back then Chelsea was the most annoying option!
But we did not owe him anything at all… he left us at a very critical time, cant expect to always have his way by saying a few pretty words.. As someone said, If Jose is considered his best option to play under than am certainly disappointed in him
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Hunter is in a tailspin
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So, the chavs, after selling a top quality attacking creative midfielder have signed a slower, older version.
Grrrrrrrreat!
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Like a negative spiral you mean ?!?
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‘Ello Dex.
…Whilst the Arsenal have the player that the F Word’s new manager described as,
“The best AM/10ish player inth e whole wide world” said Mourinhio. Or word’s to that affect after Özil signed for Arsenal. Özil, who is also closer in age to the core Brit Pack at the Arsenal:
It’s almost as if someone, somewhere, has a plan?
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Ay oop Fins… PG, et al…
I’m not arsed about cesc going there, although he is a quality player (just like Mata was).
It doesnt affect our plans and it wouldn’t really be the done thing to sign a player simply to stop another club getting them.
Oh noooo, far too tasteless and chavvy that kinda behaviour.
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what a brilliantly written piece.
thanks so much!
i agree with every single word you wrote :)..especially the bit about balotelli
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Dexter!!!!! … well if Cesc to Chelsea brought you out… it can only be a good thing then… i feel a little better already… add frank and stew and we are getting closer!
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w.r.t the cesc transfer.
yes i am disappointed because he chose chelsea. i love cesc, i believe he has the best set of “eyes” among current football players.
but lets face it, arsene did not want him back. if arsene wanted him he could have brought him back, i firmly believe so.
once that is the case, where he goes is his prerogative..what can we do?
believe me you, we will get the players we want and play the football we want and win the trophies in style 🙂
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Who gives a shit about Cesc? He deserted us 3 years ago not by going to the chavs.
Bye bye Sagna as well. If you need to move on so be it. I wish you no bad ills
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Hey all. Just seeing a. Lot of negativity around and just thought I’d come here looking for some solace. In all honesty, I don’t care about Cesc going to Chelsea. I’m more pissed off at the Arsenal fans reactions. Absolutely appalling. They’re blaming everyone left right and centre, and it’s quite frankly disappointing. We have some of the shittiest fans on the planet, and the more I see, the more I’m convinced. Thoughts anyone? Oh and lastly, great post as always!
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hunter!
i agree with you a 100%..
the young arsenal midfielders need to fucking pay the great man back.
if this is not enough to convince themselves of their talent god help them!
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I trust in AFC
But I’m not happy. I loved the boy…..maybe, surely, we have something better up our sleeve??????
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Where is Passenal when I need her…….
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I knew Jackie was going to be a start when I saw him curl that shot into the far upper corner for the reserves. Vela’s finishing is sublime. After years playing in a Leage with very tough defenses, he’s going to chew up the EPL.
Cesc better start working on his man marking because Mourinho wants even his strikers to defend. Hahahahahaha! Barça DNA. Pfffffffttttttt!
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Holy shit, the band is back together. What’s going on strangers?
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And all it took was an ex-lover to get it on with the flashy arrogant twat diwn the road to get us all back together…
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Just read that #wengerout is apparently trending on twitter.
I am soooo glad I fucked that shit off.
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Hey Hunter fuck it man, I’m having a Mythos……
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And to think that my eldest daughter wanted to marry him….
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beer?
i need something a lot heavier georgaki…..
this feels like a knee surgery without anesthetic
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Hunter, just think of drinking a cool Mythos, under an olive tree just by the beach in Crete or Samos….
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