Arteta endorsement, Knapper link and youth: Why Wilshere makes sense for City 

Arteta endorsement, Knapper link and youth: Why Wilshere makes sense for City

Ask any football fan about Jack Wilshere, and they’ll reference the talented player who burst onto the scene more than 16 years ago.

They will remember his historic performance in 2011 against Barcelona’s elite midfield, his win as PFA Young Player

of the Season that same year, or even his incredible goal against Norwich City, which stands as one of the greatest

team goals ever.

They will discuss the injuries, unmet expectations, and how the physical limitations of the English midfield heir

ultimately let him down. They’ll recall his short stints at Bournemouth and West Ham in the future, as well as the

general grief surrounding his retirement at the age of thirty.

However, it is not the Jack Wilshere the Canaries have selected to lead their first squad. Although Wilshere’s time as

a top player may have influenced his work in the present, the Avant Training Centre has evaluated him solely on the

basis of his coaching resume to far.

Ben Knapper, the sporting director, has determined that the 32-year-old possesses all the traits Johannes Hoff

Thorup needs in his coaching setup, rather than just picking a name that sounds interesting.

Cast an eye over his brief coaching career so far and it’s easy to see why, from connections with staff already at

Norwich to playing style and philosophy.

The Canaries have looked beyond Wilshere, the player

For the first point one need look no further than the ex-Arsenal theme beginning to creep in at Carrow Road. Most

obvious perhaps is the link to Knapper, whose time in the Gunners’ analysis team overlapped with Wilshere’s prime as a player.

Then there’s Tony Roberts, the head of goalkeeping appointed to replace Paul Clements after his departure. He too

worked with Wilshere as a player, and was around the first-team environment when he was plying his trade in the 2010s.

That North London influence is starting to become what many expected when Knapper first arrived in Norfolk. It’s

taken time, but suddenly connections with one of the world’s biggest clubs are sprouting up rather regularly behind the scenes.

City sporting director Ben Knapper worked with the 32-year-old at Arsenal

That’s not the only theme that’s developing at City, however, with youth another consistent thread in the current

Colney rebuild. It’s been apparent in the words spoken, the players signed, and now the staff hired too. Head coach

Thorup is just 35, set-piece chief Nick Stanley 34, and Wilshere is set to become the youngest at 32.

It’s not just his age that helps that mission, though, given the aforementioned role he had with Arsenal’s under-18s.

He’s just the latest in a series of staff to have spent significant time with young players, after experienced youth coach

Thorup and once-Danish under-17 boss, his assistant, Glen Riddersholm.

Wilshere has spent his two years since retirement in charge of the youth side at the Emirates, making the FA Youth

Cup final just nine months after his appointment, and that focus on maturing players is clear when he discusses the

job.

If a coach is truly going to help someone grow, I believe their first task should be to strive to understand them.

Try to establish a relationship with that individual so that you may be confident in their support if you need to be

firm with them and make demands. However,

Another element in Wilshere’s favour will be style of play, as he aims to transplant what he’s learned with Arsenal

onto the City first team. The good news on that front is that the tactical DNA he’s been working with isn’t dissimilar

to what’s been coined ‘Hoffball’.

He’ll hope to improve a system that’s also attached to possession, proactivity, pressing and attacking, and he’s used

to putting style of play above all else.

“I loved it,” he told official club channels after a tough 1-0 victory over Hitchin Town for his previous team. “We

suffered a lot in the first half. We were trying to do things the right way and play out like we do here at Arsenal, and

they were aggressive in their press, jumping us all over the place. But we still tried to do it, so I liked that from us.

“Maybe we could have managed those moments a little bit better, but we’re Arsenal and we play a certain way.”

“First of all I am really happy that Jack is part of the setup. I think he has done really well, he has brought something

that was very necessary in the academy and around the place.

“These things are going to happen when people are doing well. You are going to get attraction, and then it will come

down to him to make what he believes is the best decision for his career.”

Mikel Arteta, the manager of Arsenal, has hailed City’s newest addition.Such support raises questions about how the

game views City’s most recent potential recruit. Only eight months after he was connected to the top position at

Scottish Premiership team Aberdeen, there’s a sense that this is a major coup for the club. Before Thorup was

appointed, several supporters had hoped to hire him as head coach, so there will naturally be some external

anticipation for his arrival.

He will be a valuable addition to Norwich and a step in the right way if he can fulfil that promise. Of course, deeds

speak louder than words, but the belief that no one is better exists behind closed doors.

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