IT HURTS ME TO SAY IT BUT ROONEY IS BEST IN MY ROLE
JACK WILSHERE pulling no punches
THERE is a mischievous grin on Jack Wilshere’s face when he is asked about England’s rivalry with Wales. The England midfielder knows the politically correct answer to this question.
Wilshere, however, can’t help himself: ‘We know that Wales don’t like us. Do we like them? Not really!’ It’s Wilshere in a nutshell. Entirely honest. Maybe too honest.
His sincerity in interviews mirrors his commitment on the pitch. He is someone who is prepared to lunge for a 70-30 ball, not in his favour, no matter the consequence.
The midfielder’s ankles would testify to that. Nevertheless, his endearing candour makes Wilshere such engaging company.
Of course, having won his race to be fit for Euro 2016, he was disappointed not to start Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Russia.
Yet, when discussing England’s midfield, there was no thought of disparaging their performance for his own benefit. Just a genuinely honest answer. ‘I think the midfield were all great, almost faultless,’ insists Wilshere, who came on after 78 minutes.
Indeed, he reserved special praise for the man who directly took his place in the starting XI — captain Wayne Rooney.
‘It hurts me to say but he plays the central midfield position unbelievably,’ says Wilshere. ‘I’ve said it before: I think he’s our best player and he has been for many years. I’m open about that. I’ve played with him for years. He can still play up front in my opinion.
‘He has been dropping into midfield and getting the ball, which is fantastic.
‘Against Russia, he was probably our best player. Everything went through him. He’s got that range of passing, he understands the game. I love watching him and I love playing with him as well.
‘I watched him towards the end of the season playing for United in that deeper role and people were saying, “Can he do it?”
‘I’m sitting there thinking, “He’s doing it and he’s the best player on the pitch”.
‘He’s like Andrea Pirlo, because he understands the game so well. His appreciation of the strikers, he reads their runs when not many people could see the pass. To get that pass right, with the right weight, takes a special player.
‘In training as well, now and then, when he picks up the ball deep and sprays a long pass — he never gets one wrong. He’s always perfect. That’s when you can tell he has something special.
‘He’s a great captain. Even when I first got in the squad and he wasn’t captain he still put his arm round me. I remember before my debut he told me to enjoy it and relax.
‘He’s always been that kind of figure for me but now he has extra responsibility because there are a lot of young players who have never been in a major tournament.’
The fact Wilshere is even in France comes as a mini triumph following an injury- disrupted season that saw him play just 141 minutes of football for Arsenal.
The 24-year-old admits he endured some ‘dark periods’ during his injury hell. But now he is here in France, Wilshere is desperate to play his part. He looked sharp and assured in his 12-minute cameo against the Russians.
But, even by his own admission, given how England performed in Marseille — particularly in the first half — Wilshere could be set to start on the bench against Wales in Lens. The playmaker, though, believes there is room for him in Hodgson’s engine room as England prepare for Thursday’s potentially explosive Group B clash versus Chris Coleman’s side. ‘Can Wayne and I play together in this system? I think we can,’ insists Wilshere. ‘I think there are two positions there. Dele Alli did well the other night as well, so let’s not forget about him. But I don’t see any reason why me and Wayne can’t play together.’
Wilshere acknowledges that stopping Gareth Bale, who scored for Wales in their win over Slovakia, is likely to be the key to whether England can kick-start their Euro 2016 campaign.
But he does not agree with the Welsh hero’s assertion that England are lacking in passion.
Speaking last week, the Wales superstar claimed his side have ‘more pride and passion’ than Hodgson’s squad, while also saying England ‘ big themselves up before they’ve done anything’. But Wilshere says: ‘I’ve never questioned the passion of one of my team-mates. I’ve never been on the pitch and thought, “This guy isn’t worried about this”.
‘We all care. We all know what it means to people back home. Especially now, because we are a young squad — it was only a few years ago when people like Dele Alli and Raheem Sterling were 14, 15 watching this.
‘So we all know what it means, and we will be ready when Thursday comes. We have to put in the work, show some passion and pride and let the quality take over.’
‘The Welsh don’t like us . . . and we don’t like them’
On the danger that Bale poses, Wilshere added: ‘He has developed (at Real Madrid) but even at Tottenham he was world class. He has gone on from there and become a fantastic player and there is no denying that.
‘He’s going to be their biggest threat and we have to stop him getting the ball. He’s an amazing athlete, has got a great physique and is powerful when he runs. He can run all day, he doesn’t seem to stop.
‘To stop him, we need to do what we did against Russia. When we lose the ball we have to stop them counterattacking and win the ball back straight away.
‘We’ve got better and better at that over the last couple of years, so we just need to keep doing that.’
After a day off yesterday, which gave Wilshere the chance to spend some time with his fiancee Andriani Michael, the England squad will resume their preparations for the crucial Wales match in Lens on Thursday.
But Wilshere remains positive about England’s situation despite the heartache of conceding that late equaliser to Russia on Saturday.
‘I think we don’t want to get carried away too much with the frustration — we just want to concentrate on the things we did,’ said the midfielder, who gave England fresh impetus when he came on to win his 32nd cap.
‘We could have been two or three up at half-time on another day. If we can put a few more of those chances away, and I am sure we will as the tournament goes on, we will get a little bit more confident.’