Arsene Wenger has said that Arsenal intend to offer Jack Wilshere a new contract at the Emirates Stadium.
The England international is on a season-long loan to Bournemouth, but the Arsenal manager has revealed the Gunners are planning to give Wilshere the option to extend his stay with the club, with the Frenchman keen to arrange meetings with the player’s representatives in the new year.
At his pre-match press conference ahead of the visit of Bournemouth in the Premier League this weekend, Wenger was asked whether the midfielder would be offered fresh terms.
‘Of course,’ he said. ‘Ideally [it will be addressed before next summer].
‘We have to plan around the new year.
‘I am happy that he develops well. In the end it was a good decision to go to Bournemouth because he gets regular football. People who watch him say he is getting stronger every week.
‘The regular football has helped him develop a lot and come back to the level he needs to be.’
Wenger, however, has not been in regular contact with Wilshere during his time on the south coast.
‘I leave him to talk to his manager,’ the Arsenal boss said. ‘When I can watch him, I do watch him.’
It will be interesting too see whether Wilshere, who has 18 months left on his current deal, takes Arsene Wenger up on his contract offer.
For the first time in his career, Wilshere is outside of the Arsenal bubble, being exposed to different coaching and training ideas. So far the move to Bournemouth has worked for the England midfielder, who is getting better every week.
Will he be willing to go back and compete for a place in a very crowded Arsenal midfield next summer, or will he decide to go somewhere else where he can play every week for a couple of seasons in an attempt to get back to the player he promised to be at 18?
Do you think Jack Wilshere should return to Arsenal at the end of the season?
