Wilshere reveals Wenger told him to find a new club

LONDON: Jack Wilshere (pic) has revealed Arsene Wenger told him to quit Arsenal.

The Gunners star was riding a gym exercise bike at the start of the season when the Emirates boss advised him to find another club.

Wilshere, firmly back in Arsenal’s plans after deciding to fight for his place, admitted: “He said ‘I am going to be honest with you and at the moment we are not going to be offering you a contact. So if you can get a contract somewhere else, you can go’.

“I was on the bike in the gym, so I didn’t leave the room. It was a strange one, because maybe part of me knew all this already – all I needed was some clarity on where I stood in the football club. “He said I could fight for my position. “And I always had confidence I could get back into the midfield if I got my fitness back and kept it – and I did that. I proved that I could get into that team.

“It was boiling up for a while because everybody knew I had a year left on my deal and I had been out on loan, got injured, and wasn’t really in his plans.

“Obviously I was not happy with that but at the same time I was happy he was being honest.

“He gave the opportunity with three or four weeks left in the transfer window but I did not find anything that I wanted and at the same time I was not really fit.”

Wilshere has worked his way back into the Arsenal side and is now in talks over a new deal.

He added: “I have three months left on my contract. Ideally, yes, I want it sorted as soon as possible.

“I want to go to the World Cup and enjoy it but we have three months till then and a lot can happen.

“Ideally from my point-of-view and the club’s point-of-view, they will probably want it sorted.”

Wilshere even went on to captain Arsenal this season in the 2-2 draw with Chelsea back in January.

The midfielder, Arsenal through and through, admits he would like the role full-time.

He added: “When I did it for Arsenal, it was a great feeling, probably one of the best moments of my career.

“It was the Chelsea game and I remember on the day of the game, I was looking around and thinking ‘I’ve got a chance here to be captain’.

“It wasn’t until 45 minutes before kick-off when the boss said you are going to be captain.

“It was a great feeling and I’ve since done it a couple of more times and it is something I want to do at Arsenal more because I really enjoy it and I feel like I’ve got a special bond with the fans.”

Although Wilshere would prefer to re-sign with Arsenal, he has not ruled out a move abroad.

He added: “I had offers before but it just felt it wasn’t the right time in my career because I’d missed too much Premier League football and I missed playing in the Premier League. But I definitely wouldn’t say no.” — The Sun, London