West Ham United midfielder Jack Wilshere has opened up on his decision to leave Arsenal and link up with the Hammers in the summer of 2018.
The 28-year-old joined West Ham as a free agent in July despite being offered a contract extension by the Gunners in March.
Arsene Wenger’s successor Unai Emery made it clear from the very beginning that Wilshere wasn’t going to be a part of his first-team and starting XI, and the midfielder didn’t hesitate to leave.
His West Ham career hasn’t gone as expected as he has struggled with injuries thus far, playing just 16 games across all competitions since joining them.
Wilshere earns £100,000-a-week at the London Stadium outfit, and it remains to be seen if he will be handed another deal with just a year left on the current one.
He is currently back training with David Moyes’ squad and is expected to play a role as the Hammers look to escape relegation if Premier League action resumes.
Wilshere has admitted that he needs to get fit and start playing regularly for the team, and that will be music to the ears of the fans.
“It just felt like it was the right time to move on. I had done it before and it was a loan move to Bournemouth, but I enjoyed it. I had a great time at Bournemouth, and I knew there was life outside Arsenal,” Wilshere told BBC 5 Live Sport.
“I just thought that it was the right time to move on, times were changing at Arsenal. Things were changing, I spoke with the new manager as well and he was like “you can stay but you’re not in my starting XI.”
“It just felt like it was the right time to move. It was tough, and I still look back and sometimes and I think should I or should I have not, but it is what it is and now I’m at West Ham and I need to get fit and start playing games for them.
“I knew there was life outside #Arsenal. I just thought that it was the right time to move on.”@JackWilshere tells @RobbieSavage8 about the difficult decision to leave the Gunners after 17 years at the club.
PODCAST 👉 https://t.co/7tygxhNnAp pic.twitter.com/ev2ZQ7wiku
— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) May 26, 2020
On his day, Wilshere is one of the best midfielders in the top-flight, and it will be interesting to see if he will ever recover that long-lost form in an Hammers shirt.
