Jack Wilshere reveals he is considering QUITTING football at 29, with his nine-year-old son asking ‘How come no club wants you?’ and NO offers on the table after being released by Bournemouth
- Jack Wilshere is a free agent this summer after his release from Bournemouth
- Former Arsenal starlet Wilshere has admitted to weighing up quitting football
- He has struggled to kick on after leaving Arsenal because of a string of injuries
- Speaking to The Athletic, Wilshere also recalled an awkward chat with his son
Jack Wilshere has admitted he is weighing up quitting football aged just 29 with no offers tabled for him ahead of the new season.
Former Arsenal golden boy Wilshere is currently a free agent, and his most recent spell in the game came with Bournemouth last year in the Championship.
Despite making 18 appearances in total and helping them to the play-offs, Wilshere was released, and he has now revealed that he is struggling to find his next move.
Jack Wilshere has admitted he is weighing up quitting football with no offers tabled for him
Speaking to The Athletic, the midfielder opened up on the pain of struggling to secure a club and trying to avoid ‘wasting’ his time by solely waiting around.
Questioned on whether he feels his career may be drawing to a close, Wilshere said: ‘Yeah, that does cross my mind quite a lot.
‘When you’re at a club and training every day, you wake up and if you’re not in a team, or even if you are in the team, you think, “Right, I’ve got to train well today. I need to show the manager I’m ready for the weekend”. I don’t have that.
Wilshere burst on to the scene at Arsenal but his career has been hit with a number of injuries
‘So I’m waking up in the mornings at the moment and I’m thinking, “Right, I need to go and train somewhere”. Normally it’s on my own… OK, I’ve been training with a club in pre-season but that’s finished now.
‘I’m back to waking up, training on my own and finding that motivation.
‘And the question I keep asking myself at the moment is: What am I doing it for?
‘I said to my agent I don’t want to be in that position where I’m waiting and waiting and before you know it January comes and I’ve almost wasted another season.
After being released following a short-term stint at Bournemouth, Wilshere is now a free agent
‘I’m not getting any younger and I don’t want that. I did that last year, so to do it again… I feel like I’d be wasting my time.’
Wilshere explosively burst into the spotlight as a youngster at the Emirates and, at just 16 years of age, was predicted to reach the very top.
He dazzled during Arsenal’s victory over Barcelona in the Champions League in 2012, but from there his time on the field has been a chastening experience.
Injuries have derailed his career and he finds himself unemployed after a two-year stint at West Ham and short spell on the south coast.
Wilshere spent just two years at West Ham before leaving and is now considering his future
He recalled an awkward chat over the lack of clubs with son, Archie (third from left), aged nine
Painfully, Wilshere has also recalled a moment where his son, Archie, aged nine, asked him why no clubs are interested in him.
‘My kids are at an age where they understand,’ Wilshere added. ‘Especially Archie, who’s nine. He’s actually having conversations with me, saying, “What about the MLS?” or “Why aren’t you playing in La Liga?”
‘He loves football. He knows everything about football. And it is difficult to explain to him. He’ll say to me, “How come no club wants you?” I don’t know. But how do I explain that to him?
‘They’ve got friends at school and you know what kids can be like, they can be quite brutal. “Why is your dad not working? Is he not good enough? Is he not good at football?” Yeah, that’s tough.’
Midfielder Wilshere admits he thought he’d still be at a top club, but the setbacks took their toll
And as the wait goes on for Wilshere, with the Premier League having also returned, he has continued to reflect on how his world came crashing down.
‘Being honest, I probably never thought I’d be in this position,’ he said.
‘Today I was running around an athletics track and struggling to imagine I would be here at this point in my career.
‘Everyone used to say to me, “(At) 28, 29… you’ll be at the peak of your career”. And I thought I would. I thought I’d still be playing for England, (that) I’d be at a top club.’
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