Wenger cautious as Wilshere plays down knock

Jack Wilshere is hoping to be fit for Saturday’s match at Crystal Palace despite sustaining a knock to his troublesome ankle although manager Arsene Wenger says the England midfielder will be assessed over the next couple of days.

The England international was replaced by Santi Cazorla just before the hour mark having struggled to get his passing game going – he had only a 65% pass completion rate according to @Orbinho  following lengthy medical treatment in the first half.

Talking about the problem after the game, Wilshere stressed it wasn’t a major problem.

“It was one of those things. I jarred my ankle and I’ve done it before. I know, five or 10 minutes, I could run it off.

“If you’re a footballer you want to be in the big games.”

Aware that Wilshere’s youthful exuberance often blinds the 21-year-old to the dangers of playing injured, Wenger gave a more sober assessment of the situation.

“You could see he was not completely himself and that’s why I decided to take him off.

“At the moment it is his desire to play that gets him through the game,” Wenger said.

“We will see how he responds in the next two or three days, we have to wait for the medical assessment.”

Naturally, having lost Jack for the best part of two seasons over the course of the last three years it’s obvious that he needs to be treated carefully. For all his talent and drive, we’ve enough options in midfield to be cautious as and when he dips into the dreaded ‘red zone’.

But i think it is not really right playing the lad out of position, it makes him overwork himself most especially when playing on the either wings.