During his time at Arsenal, it was known that Jack Wilshere was a West Ham United fan after pictures of him in a Hammers kit circulated on social media. Wilshere was a highly rated youngster who starred for the Gunners on many occasions. This included a memorable performance in the Champions League against Barcelona.
Wilshere was seen as the future of English soccer, but injuries took their toll on the player. When his contract at the Emirates Stadium expired, it was West Ham that was Wilshere's next destination. He continued to struggle with injuries at the Hammers, which meant he made just 19 appearances in total for the club. His only goal for West Ham came in a 2-0 win over Newport County in the EFL Cup.
The midfielder lacked so much game time at West Ham that he is now more remembered for jumping out of a tumble dryer to scare Declan Rice. Wilshere had a three-year contract at West Ham, but it was cut short by mutual consent with a year remaining on it. He went on to play for AFC Bournemouth and the Danish side, Aarhus Gymnastikforening, before retiring at the age of just 30.
Jack Wilshere is now a promising coach
Given his potential as a player, it is a shame that injuries prevented him from living up to the hype. However, Wilshere is now making up for it as a manager. His first coaching job was with Arsenal's Under-18s, whom he took to the FA Youth Cup final, where they lost to West Ham.
Wilshere then stepped up to senior soccer as Johannes Hoff Thorup's assistant at Norwich City in the Championship. He was also briefly the Canaries' caretaker manager for two games. Wilshere was undefeated as Norwich's caretaker, beating Cardiff City 4-2 before drawing 0-0 with Middlesbrough.
Norwich did not make Wilshere their permanent manager, but he soon got a new job as the boss of Luton Town. Wilshere also had ties with the Hatters as he played youth soccer for them before joining Arsenal's academy.
He currently has Luton 10th in League One, and they play Plymouth Argyle today. Plymouth also has a notable manager in former Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley. It remains to be seen how far Wilshere can go as a coach. He is going about it the right way in gaining experience in the lower divisions of English soccer. His time at West Ham as a player was brief, but maybe he could return to the London Stadium as a manager.