Wilshere sees Red over pundit’s blast
JACK WILSHERE has hit back at Jamie Redknapp for claiming his Arsenal career is over.
TV pundit Redknapp said he “cannot see a future at Arsenal” for the England star once his season on loan at Bournemouth ends.
But after completing his first 90 minutes in the Premier League for two years, the midfielder said: “I don’t know where he got that from.
“He is entitled to his opinion. I’ve not really thought about that too much.
“I’m just trying to get back to what I was, enjoying my football and playing week in, week out and this was a massive step towards that.
“If he doesn’t see me going back to Arsenal then that’s up to him but I haven’t thought about that.”
Wilshere, 25, has been with the Gunners for 15 years and the injuryprone playmaker accepts moving away from the Emirates has forced him to prove himself all over again.
Taste
He said: “Sometimes when you’re at a top club and you’ve been at a top club your whole career and you’re playing week in week out it is easy to get into that comfort zone.
“For me to come down here and taste a different side of the Premier League where you have to fight for everything, fight for every point and work as a team, it is definitely out of my comfort zone.
“I’ve felt I’ve had to prove myself for a number of years now, being injured, coming back, playing a few games, trying to get fit, getting injured again – you don’t really get a chance to prove what you can do.”
Ever-improving Wilshere managed his first full shift for 771 days as the Cherries dented Tottenham’s title charge and stopped his bitter enemies from going top on Saturday.
Despite admitting he felt exhausted by the end, he was pleased to tick another box on his road to recovery from a plague of injuries.
Wilshere, who helped the south coast side to a fifth game without defeat, said: “By the time it got to the 88th minute I was feeling it, but that’s only normal.
“That’s where you get your fitness because you have to dig in and fight to the end.
“It matters each week as the games have gone by and I’ve been coming off thinking I need to get that off my back.
“Mentally it will help me and physically I am going to feel better for it next week.”
Four days after his Champions League heroics at Bayer Leverkusen, Hugo Lloris made another fantastic save to push Charlie Daniels’ early close-range effort onto the bar as Mauricio Pochettino’s unbeaten Spurs toiled to a third draw in a row.
As well as being captain of club and country, Eric Dier believes the France shot-stopper is the best in England.
Dier said: “For me he is the best in the league. He is very under-rated. I don’t know why that is – maybe it is because he is a very low-key guy.
“He is fantastic though. It is not just now – last season he made fantastic saves as well and now we are seeing it this season as well.
“He does everything. When you are playing against quick strikers like Bournemouth have he is not just good between the posts, he is also a sweeper-keeper, coming out off his line.
“The manager wants us to play that way and he does it very well.” Boruc 6; Smith BOURNEMOUTH (4-2-3-1): Gosling 7, 7, Francis 7, Cook 7, Daniels 6; 6, Ibe 5 ARTER 7; King 6 (Fraser 88), Wilshere 82). (Gradel 60, 6); Wilson 6 (Afobe Subs: Federici, Ake, Mings, Mousset. Premier League, UP NEXT: Middlesbrough (a), Saturday. 7; Walker TOTTENHAM (4-2-3-1): LLORIS Wanyama 5, 6, Dier 6, Vertonghen 6, Rose 6; 72), Lamela Dembele 6; Eriksen 5, Alli 5 (Sissoko Vorm, Trippier, 6; Son 5 (Janssen 62, 7). Subs: Davies, Wimmer, Winks. tomorrow. UP NEXT: Liverpool, EFL Cup, Referee: Craig Pawson 5. scored five YOUR TURN: Which Spurs star against the goals in their two league wins Cherries last season?