2010/11 Player Review: Jack Wilshere

Jack started the 2010/11 campaign as a highly-rated youngster hoping for a chance in the Arsenal first team. He ended it as a fully-fledged international, the bedrock of Arsène Wenger's midfield, the Club's Player of the Season and the PFA Young Player of the Year.

The term 'meteoric rise' is reserved for those who come from nowhere to imprint themselves on the public's consciousness and Jack did exactly that - even surprising himself with the progress he made in such a short time.

He made his international debut in August and emerged as the poster boy for a new generation of English talent in the wake of a poor showing at the 2010 World Cup. Later that month the absence of Cesc Fabregas and Alex Song gave Jack the chance to start his first Premier League game for Arsenal - at Anfield on the opening day of the season.

That went well enough and the teenager simply went from strength to strength. He might have expected 20 to 25 appearances given Arsène Wenger's battery of midfield talent but Jack's quality and consistency made him undroppable. He wound up starting more first-team games than any other Arsenal player last term - not bad for a lad who was still learning his trade.



Wenger's decision to deploy Jack in a deeper midfield role helped him acclimatise to the pace of the
Premier League and before long he was dictating the tempo of Arsenal's forward play with his range of passing and ability to drift past opponents. Jack only scored twice - against Shakhtar and Aston Villa - but you sense that the goals will flow in time.

Jack's tenacity and loyalty - as well as his quality - made him an instant hit with the Arsenal fans and they crowned him their Player of the Season in May with 41.4 per cent of the votes cast in the Club's official poll.

The teenager has already achieved so much - but this is surely only the start of a long, illustrious career.

SOUNDBITE
“Before people would tell you that you have to do this and that when you are a pro but until you are actually there, experiencing it, you don’t realise what it means. You have to eat well, prepare well, rest well – it’s a 24/7 job – it’s not just about training and playing the games. Everything away from that is so important too. If you are not ready for every game then a top class player will take advantage of it.”

JACK WILSHERE 2010/11 SEASON STATS
Competition Appearances Goals
League 31+4 1
FA Cup 1+1 0
Carling Cup 5 0
Champions League 7 1
Totals 44+5 2

FINEST MOMENT
Jack ended up on the losing side over two legs against Barcelona but no one impressed the Catalan giants more. He went toe-to-toe with Xavi and Andres Iniesta for 180 minutes, inspiring his team to a memorable first-leg win at the Emirates before putting in a huge shift in the Nou Camp. Europe sat up and took notice.

FINEST MOMENT
Jack ended up on the losing side over two legs against Barcelona but no one impressed the Catalan giants more. He went toe-to-toe with Xavi and Andres Iniesta for 180 minutes, inspiring his team to a memorable first-leg win at the Emirates before putting in a huge shift in the Nou Camp. Europe sat up and took notice.

Birmingham City 2-1 Arsenal-Carling Cup

A last-gasp defensive mix-up put paid to Arsenal’s hopes of Carling Cup glory at Wembley on Sunday.

With one minute left on the clock, a long free-kick from Ben Foster was flicked on by Nikola Zigic and seemed destined for the arms of Wojciech Szczesny. But the keeper, distracted by Laurent Koscielny’s attempt to clear, fumbled the ball into Obafemi Martins’ path.

The Nigerian couldn't believe his luck and rolled it into an empty net.

It was heartbreaking for an Arsenal side that had looked the stronger as a gruelling Final headed towards extra time. Zigic had headed Birmingham in front in the first half but Robin van Persie equalised with a fine volley.

All that mattered for nothing in the end. Now Arsenal must pick themselves up and stay on track in three other competitions.

This hurts, but it could still be a season to remember.

When Arsène Wenger woke up on Cup Final morning he had two decisions to make. Who replaces Cesc Fabregas, who tweaked his hamstring against Stoke? And who steps in for Theo Walcott after he sprained an ankle in the same game?

Andrey Arshavin was a predictable deputy for the latter but Wenger sprang something of a surprise when he selected Tomas Rosicky instead of asking Samir Nasri to fill that Fabregas-shaped void.

The absence of their creative hub and speedster had certainly weakened Arsenal but they still emerged at a colourful yet rain-sodden Wembley as firm favourites to see off Birmingham, a club that had waited considerably longer for silverware - it’s 48 years since they won this very prize. But Arsenal have slipped up in similar circumstances before: remember Luton in 1988 and Swindon in 1969?

Wembley has changed rather a lot since then but the threat of an upset was the same. Within two minutes of the first whistle, this year’s underdogs reminded Arsenal why complacency was not an option. Lee Bowyer raced through on goal and was unceremoniously taken out by Szczesny. A cast-iron penalty was wiped out by the offside flag - and replays showed the linesman was wrong.

Shaken into life by that early scare, Arsenal advanced.

After seven minutes Van Persie fizzed an audacious effort past the angle after Wilshere had clipped an ambitious return ball into the box. A minute later Nasri cut inside from the right and found Arshavin with a clever angled pass. The Russian span his marker and shot low but Foster blocked with his legs. Then Nasri shanked high and wide after a slaloming run into the Birmingham box had taken him past three defenders.

The tone seemed to be set: Arsenal probing, Birmingham stifling. But the underdogs were rather more ambitious than that.

Keith Fahey tested Szczesny with a curler from 20 yards but their main threat came from Zigic. Birmingham looked to him for knockdowns into the path of their midfield runners and the six-foot-eight striker had already caused Johan Djourou and Koscielny plenty of problems before he opened the scoring in the 28th minute.

It was a simple enough goal: Sebastian Larsson picked out Roger Johnson with a right-wing corner, he nodded goalwards and Zigic rose high to flick a header past Szczesny despite the best attempts of Nasri on the line.

The ghosts of Swindon and Luton were back to haunt Arsenal and, although Van Persie headed just wide seconds after the goal, the Cup almost slipped away in the next ten minutes.

The red-and-white half of Wembley had Szczesny to thank after the goalkeeper rushed out to make a point-blank save from Zigic after he got clear inside the box. Then Djourou made two vital interventions in a matter of seconds to stop crosses reaching their intended target of Zigic.

Arsenal were struggling to contain the Serbian but their own centre forward would steal the spotlight from him six minutes before the break. Wilshere made it possible with a surging run and a thumping drive that crashed off the crossbar and Arshavin collected the rebound and wriggled past his marker to cross for Van Persie to volley into the corner. Arsenal were all-square.

Nasri stung the hands of Foster in first-half stoppage time and Rosicky flashed a first-time shot wide at the end of a quicksilver move three minutes into the second half. The tide seemed to be turning.

But just when you sensed Arsenal were taking a grip, Birmingham almost caught them with a sucker-punch. This time Jean Beasejour robbed Djourou and the ball rolled for Fahey, who saw one shot blocked and a second effort cannon off the post with Szczesny helpless.

Van Persie, injured while scoring his goal and only just back from a hamstring problem, made way for Nicklas Bendtner with a little over 20 minutes left. The Dane is remembered fondly among Birmingham fans for his successful loan spell at St. Andrew’s four years ago. This was his chance to tarnish that reputation.

He so nearly did within six minutes of coming on. Cutting in from the left, Bendtner unleashed a shot that took a deflection and tested Foster’s reflexes to the limit.

It was the second time in quick succession that the keeper had saved his team after keeping out Nasri’s venomous drive moments before. Moments later he hacked clear as Rosicky tried to dink the ball over him and Nasri was thwarted once more as Arsenal piled on the pressure.

If you had to pick a winner at that stage, it would have been the Gunners.

Newcastle United 4-4 Arsenal - Barclays Premier League

It was the best of games; it was the worst of games.

For 45 minutes on Saturday, Arsenal were unplayable. They led within seconds and looked out of sight after ten minutes thanks to a three-goal salvo from Theo Walcott, Johan Djourou and Robin van Persie. When the Dutchman added a fourth before the break, all bets were off.

Then it all went wrong.

Djourou hobbled off, Abou Diaby was sent off for shoving Joey Barton and Arsenal unravelled. Barton rolled in one penalty and converted a contentious second after Leon Best had struck from close range. Cheik Tiote completed the great escape and Newcastle, having chased shadows for so long, had chased down a point.

It was the ultimate ‘game of two halves’ and, at the end of it all, Arsenal had squandered a gilt-edged chance to pile the pressure on Manchester United at the top of the Premier League.

The leaders’ own slip-up at Wolves means this setback is anything but terminal but Arsène Wenger has a job on his hands to lift his players ahead of the next test – against United’s conquerors.


The major injury doubt ahead of this trip north was Alex Song. He was given a 30 per cent chance of recovering from the leg injury he sustained against Everton in midweek but failed to beat those odds. Diaby stepped up from the bench and so did Andrey Arshavin – the Russian replaced Tomas Rosicky.


There was a familiar face on the Newcastle bench – Sol Campbell – and by common consensus this was a good time to face the former Gunner’s latest club. Andy Carroll would not have been fit to face Arsenal but his £35million deadline-day departure to Liverpool had left St. James’ Park under a cloud.


Lest we forget, Carroll’s towering header won the reverse fixture at Emirates Stadium this season and, in his absence, the likes of Djourou and Laurent Koscielny were probably expecting a more comfortable afternoon.


But perhaps not as comfortable as the first half turned out.


A roar greeted the home side as Phil Dowd blew the first whistle but the black-and-white hoards were silenced within 43 seconds. That’s how long it took for Walcott to slip a low shot past Steve Harper after Arshavin’s flick had found him in his favourite position, just right of centre on the shoulder of the last defender.


Newcastle’s fans must be sick of the sight of Walcott – he scored twice here in the Carling Cup in October – but they had other players to worry about soon enough.


The first of those was Djourou. Less than three minutes had elapsed when the Swiss centre back met Arshavin’s pacy left-wing free-kick to direct a header in off the underside of the bar. It was his first goal for the Club and rich reward for his recent form.


Dazed and confused, Newcastle were there for the taking. And Arsenal twisted the knife after 10 minutes with a carbon copy of their opener at West Ham last month. Walcott picked out Van Persie from the right of the penalty area and the Dutchman fired first-time past Harper.


When this place is noisy you can’t hear the pocket of away fans high in the upper reaches of the upper tier. Now they were all you could hear. It was almost eerie.


As Newcastle tried desperately to gain a foothold in the match, Arsenal continued to carve out chances. Walcott sent a ‘pitching wedge’ over the bar from Fabregas’ pass, Arshavin just failed to pick out Wilshere’s charge into the box, Diaby volleyed wide and Harper saved well from Fabregas following a cute flick from Wilshere.


For their part, the hosts looked most dangerous when they fizzed crosses into the Arsenal box. Mike Williamson got up well to meet one but Kevin Nolan inadvertently nodded his header away from danger.


A rather more emphatic header brought the visitors their fourth goal in the 26th minute. A flurry of one-touch passes ended with Sagna in acres of space to measure a cross from the right. Van Persie arrived unmarked to flash a header past Harper.


The Dutchman admitted after his recent Wigan treble that he had come to terms with the prospect of never scoring a hat-trick. Yet he was on the cusp of another treble. Only a wayward finish and a solid Harper save denied him that pleasure before the break.


Arsenal could not have asked for a better start to the first half. They could not have had worse start to the second period.


Within three minutes of the restart Djourou hobbled down the tunnel with a knee injury. A few minutes later Diaby followed him after being shown a straight red card for shoving Barton to the ground – a reaction to a challenge from his fellow midfielder.


Suddenly, Newcastle’s tails were up. 


Szczesny saved well from Danny Simpson after the right back bundled his way into the box but the Pole had no chance with Barton’s penalty, hit low to the keeper’s right after Koscielny was adjudged to have fouled Best.


Interestingly, Nolan wrestled Szczesny to the ground as he tried to retrieve the ball after the spot-kick – much like Diaby had treated Barton. The result? A yellow card… for the Arsenal keeper.


Szczesny made another decent stop from Williamson’s header but, with 16 minutes left, he was beaten again. This time Best did well to bring down a left-wing cross and slide the ball under the keeper.


The atmosphere was much different now and Newcastle flew at Arsenal. Szczesny came into his own, saving brilliantly from substitute Nile Ranger and handling a barrage of crosses with great assurance.


But Newcastle sensed a miraculous comeback and Barton gave them added hope when he converted another penalty after Koscielny was again penalised – this time extremely harshly.


The great escape was complete when Tiote slammed in a shot from the edge of the area and Nolan could even have won it for Newcastle when his effort skimmed just wide in stoppage time.


It was Arsenal’s turn to be stunned. But when the dust settles on this crazy weekend, only one thing will matter.

Arsenal 3-0 Ipswich Town - Carling Cup

Arsenal are in the Carling Cup Final.

Arsène Wenger’s side will play West Ham or Birmingham at Wembley on February 27 after producing a storming comeback in the Semi-Final second leg on Tuesday night.

Ipswich Town had pulled off a famous 1-0 win at Portman Road a fortnight earlier and, for an hour, looked capable of completing the job this evening.

But a wonderful strike from Nicklas Bendtner broke their resistance in the 61st minute and then, almost immediately Laurent Koscielny’s header gave Arsenal the lead in the tie for the first time.

When Andrey Arshavin set up Cesc Fabregas for a third with 13 minutes left the party really began.

This will be Arsenal’s seventh League Cup Final. The first time they won the trophy was 1987, when a young side came from 1-0 down to beat the mighty Liverpool.

That victory kicked-off a run of major honours for George George’s team in the seasons that followed.

There is a similar youth and exuberance about Wenger’s current crop and it has often been argued that one trophy will be followed quickly by many more.

Arsenal have a chance to open the floodgates at the end of February.

Try telling the 60,000 people packed into Emirates Stadium before kick-off that this was ‘only’ the Carling Cup. A trophy was within sight and both sets of fans – red or blue – clearly wanted it.

Wenger’s team selection screamed the same thing. Fabregas and Robin van Persie were retained. The only changes saw Denilson, Bendtner and Arshavin return in place of Alex Song, Samir Nasri and Theo Walcott.

At the heart of defence, Johan Djourou made his 100th appearance for the Club.

Ipswich had properly installed Paul Jewell as manager since the first leg. They arrived with a 1-0 lead, 9,000 vociferous fans and a nothing-to-lose attitude.

That was apparent straight from the kick-off when the ball was rolled back to Grant Leadbitter who tried to beat Wojciech Szczesny from the halfway line. The shot landed on the roof of the net.

Arsenal responded with urgency but nothing of consequence in the opening 15 minutes. Van Persie volleyed wide and Fabregas tumbled in the area after being touched by Gareth McAuley. Referee Mark Halsey waved play on.

Ipswich were more than holding their own at this point. Often Arsenal ‘settle’ after an early goal – this evening they did not get one.

In the 11th minute, Clichy fouled David Norris on the Arsenal left. Leadbitter swung over the free-kick and McAuley nodded over with Szczesny stranded. The keeper had come for the ball but had only collided with Sagna in the process. Both needed lengthy treatment - the keeper recovered and played on, the right back did not. He walked groggily around the touchline and was replaced by Emmanuel Eboue.

This Semi-Final had been labelled ‘a doddle’ ever since it has been made but virtually all the evidence in the first 120 minutes was to the contrary.

Midway through the first half, Arsenal did hit the bar when Van Persie met Bendtner’s cross at the far post.

Just before the half-hour, Marton Fulop dropped a Fabregas free-kick. Bendtner collected the rebound but his shot was blocked.

By now Arsenal were starting to crank up the pressure and, as a consequence, the Ipswich defence started to creak. In the 36th minute, Wilshere clipped a pass into the path of Fabregas who cushioned it with his right and flashed a shot across goal with his left.

In the last seconds of the first half, Van Persie and Bendtner ping-ponged chances across the area as Arsenal sought the lead on the night and parity in the tie.

The home side wore some furrowed brows as they walked down the tunnel at the interval. They had been the better team overall but, as at Portman Road, the defensive organisation of Ipswich had thwarted them.

It was more of the same after the restart. Arsenal were dominant in terms of territory and possession but just could not break down their opponents.

And then, in the 61st minute, Bendtner summoned up a goal of rare quality.

It all started with Wilshere spotting the Dane on the left and finding him with a raking, crossfield ball.

Bendtner took it on the outside of his right foot with such delicacy that the ball fell into his path. However there was still much to do. The 23-year-old raced through, cut inside Carlos Edwards and curled a low shot into the far corner.

It was Bendtner at his best.

Finally the Ipswich defence has been breached and, three minutes later, another followed.

Arshavin fired over a corner from the left and Koscielny thundered home a header at the near post. The visitors had shown Champions League poise all evening but their defending on this occasion was definitely Championship standard.

The dynamics of the game had now changed but Ipswich were not spent yet. Substitute Jason Scotland broke away down the left and forced Szczesny into a low stop at the near post.

However, with 13 minutes left, Arsenal made sure. Fabregas broke forward and fed Arshavin, whose wonderfully weighted return ball allowed the Spaniard to fire home through the legs of Fulop.

Late on, Norris headed over and Djourou nearly nodded past his own keeper. But these were minor skirmishes in a battle that had already been won.

Arsenal are going to Wembley once more.

Arsenal 1-1 Leeds United - The FA Cup

A last-minute penalty from Cesc Fabregas prevented Arsenal becoming the subject of an FA Cup Third Round shock on Saturday.

It looked like Leeds were going to become the first lower League opposition to knockout the North London side in 15 years until substitute Theo Walcott was hauled back and the Spaniard scored from the spot.





The goal heralded a frantic finale in which Arsenal might have grabbed a winner, mostly notably when Kasper Schmeichel saved Denilson’s piledriver.




However, Leeds were worthy of a draw. The visitors were under pressure before they took the lead in the 53rd minute when Robert Snodgrass scored from the spot. But they responded well and might have killed the tie when Wojciech Szczesny saved superbly from Luciano Becchio.

This was a belting Cup tie – a throwback to Arsenal-Leeds games from a decade ago.





And now Arsène Wenger’s side know the size of the task they face at Elland Road on January 18/19.

As early as Thursday, the manager had told Arsenal TV Online there would be “many, many changes” – he did not disappoint.



There were nine in total. Only Alex Song and Johan Djourou were retained from the 0-0 draw against Manchester City on Wednesday night.





But there were seven common players from the 2-2 draw at Wigan just before the New Year. As at DW Stadium, Marouane Chamakh and Nicklas Bendtner were both chosen but it was the Dane who was pushed out wide.




The most significant starter was Kieran Gibbs, who had been out with an ankle injury since the win over Partizan Belgrade on December 8.




However, Aaron Ramsey was the on the bench. It was his first appearance in an Arsenal first-team squad since suffering that horrific broken leg at Stoke on February 27.

Szczesny took the gloves for the fourth time this season. The young Pole seems to be specialising in big games right now. His debut had come at Old Trafford in December and – perhaps it was just Third Round day, perhaps it was the 9,000 fans Leeds brought to Emirates - but this game felt almost as important.

Simon Grayson’s side arrived in fifth position in the Championship with designs on returning to the top flight. The statistics told us they were the second highest scorers and conceders in the division. Perhaps the perfect combination for a Cup tie.




And Grayson brought back Sanchez Watt, on loan from Arsenal, to help with the former.




The opening ten minutes were all bluster. Leeds were full of energy but did nothing with it.




Arsenal’s first chance should have put them ahead. In the 11th minute, Tomas Rosicky, who was captain for the day, curled a defence-splitting pass into the path of Andrey Arshavin. The Russian was clear but never quite had control. He did get a decent shot away but Schmeichel stood up well to block.



Seconds later, Szczesny raced out to prevent Becchio going through. The ball bounced up dangerously but Denilson kept a cool head to pass his way out of trouble.



Gradually Arsenal roused themselves and, by the half-hour, were firmly on top. In quick succession, Arshavin’s shot was turned aside by Schmiechel, as was Denilson’s drive, then Sebastien Squillaci’s scrambled effort was hooked off the line. Finally Chamakh’s header was booted away by Becchio.


Suddenly it was all Arsenal. 


In the 33rd minute, Arshavin tossed a corner into the heart of the area and Chamakh rose highest to make a clean, firm contact. Had it not gone straight at Schmeichel, Arsenal would have been in front. 


The home side struggled to keep the same intensity before the break but they were still asking all the questions.


In injury time, Bendtner broke down the right and fired an angled shot towards the near post. Schmeichel made an ungainly save.


It was more of the same after the restart. In the opening seconds, Song raced down the left only for his cross to escape its intended target. Ditto Bendtner on the right a couple of minutes later.


At this point, the stats said Arsenal had enjoyed 68 per cent of the possession. So it was pretty unarguable that the penalty came against the run of play. But the decision was clear.

Max Gradel cut in from the left and went past Denilson, who clipped him. Szczesny got a hand to the spot-kick from Snodgrass but could not prevent it going in.
 


Wenger’s response was immediate. Fabregas replaced Song. 


Leeds had been defending deeply since the interval but now they were penned back. On the hour, Emmanuel Eboue’s dangerous cross was touched away from the waiting Chamakh by Andy O’Brien’s flick.


But the visitors were now playing with more confidence when they did break and Becchio could have added a second in the 63rd minute. The Argentinean met a Snodgrass corner at the near post with a spiteful header. Szczesny thrust out his right hand to turn the ball aside.
 


Walcott replaced Chamakh with 23 minutes left. Arsenal’s attacking trio was now Arshavin on the left, Bendtner through the centre with the Englishman on the right. Fabregas was operating in the hole.


The home side were now fully in pursuit of this tie – and it did not help their game.


For the first time, Arsenal began to look a little ragged. While, to their credit, Leeds were still looking for a second. The closest they came was when Snodgrass fired a free-kick just wide in the 71st minute. 
 


Shortly afterwards, Wenger played his last card – Carlos Vela for Rosicky. 
 


Arsenal were gambling going forward. Bendtner headed over and Arshavin’s shot was blocked but this was starting to look ominous.
 


Four minutes from time, Arshavin flicked Walcott through on the right but his attempted chip was too close to Schmeichel.


Just after that, Arsenal thought they had won a penalty when Walcott was clipped by Alex Bruce. In fact Bendtner was called offside.
 


In the final minute Walcott did win a spot kick when Bradley Parker pulled him back. Fabregas converted the penalty. 



Bendtner might have won the tie in the final seconds but blasted wide. With almost the final kick Schmeichel saved wonderfully from Denilson's long-range effort
.

That would have been harsh on Leeds, who thoroughly deserved another chance. 
 


Elland Road will be rocking if the replay is anything like this pulsating game.