Jack's still just a boy

It was a damper seeing Jack Wilshere getting sent off in the dying minutes of the match yesterday. He was the standout player by far for the Gunners in yesterday’s hard fought victory. It was not vintage Arsenal, showing that we still have not gotten out of our rut this weekend but Jack’s performance apart from the red-card, was just simply awesome.

He was at the heart of everything good about Arsenal. I thought he was a bit weak in defence during the early part of the season but his defensive game has improved by leaps and bounds and his show yesterday proved that. It is a pity that we won’t have him for the next 3 games especially the one at Eastlands next week. Probably the good thing about the suspension is that the boss can use him for the mid-week matches and have no fear of him burning out.

This morning’s papers and even some Arsenal fan blogs have condemned young Jack for the tackle on Zigic. I admit that it was a bad tackle but I personally don’t think that it was as bad as the Shawcross or De Jong version of bad tackles. If you watch the replay carefully, Wilshere’s studs were not showing and his foot was on top of the ball but touching it. In Shawcross’s tackle, the defender’s leg’s were not anywhere near the ball. I know it might sound like defensive but it’s just my stand on what I saw was a mistimed tackle and not an ugly tackle as we have come to know.

As for Jack, let’s us remind ourselves that he is still just a boy of 18 years. It will be a good lesson for him to know when to put your foot in and when you just let it go. I remember a certain Wayne Rooney and our very own Cesc Fabregas who were getting red carded in their youth for over-zealous play. Let’s put it down to the exuberant of youth. I would take that over a player with lackadaisical attitudes like we have seen in some Arsenal players.