Jack Wilshere has confirmed that he will be leaving Arsenal this summer, and several NUFC fans have urged Rafa Benitez to make a move for the midfielder as a result.
The England hopeful is a player we’ve been linked with on several occasions over the past 6 months, with us and several others Premier League clubs having been aware of his contract situation at the Emirates.
Despite returning to some form under Arsene Wenger last season, it emerged last night that he will not be signing a new contract under new boss Unai Emery – meaning he will be available on a free when his contract expires later this month.
With Rafa working on a limited budget and our team needing an injection of creativity and spark, a move for Wilshere makes sense in some respects (and NUFC fans have urged us to make a move on social media), however there’s one big reason why I can’t see it happening. Wages.
Free agents can be bargains, but Wilshere is guaranteed to demand huge wages and the agent/signing on fees will be big too.
I think we’d have to make him our highest paid player to get him, but I don’t see Ashley sanctioning that for a player who’s as likely to miss most of the season as he is to be a hit at St James’ Park.
In theory he could be a brilliant buy and I can see why some fans are urging us to make a move, but in reality it’s probably a non starter.
