Gareth Southgate has said that the door remains open for Jack Wilshere, despite the midfielder missing out on the latest England squad.
The West Ham star failed to make Southgate’s squad for this summer’s World Cup in Russia, and was again left out this week when Southgate selected his group for the upcoming games against Spain and Switzerland.
However, he remains in the England manager’s thoughts.
“I haven’t spoken to Jack but we watch all the games and we watch all of the players and we’ll select them on their performances,” he told the Sun.
“But the door is definitely not closed to anybody, because with just 65 English players playing in the Premier League why would we rule out the potential of anybody?
“At the moment it is worth me looking at and investing in some of the younger players available, but the key for Jack is to play well.”
OPINION
Wilshere really needs to start putting in better performances for his new club before he can start to think about an England recall. The former Arsenal man has struggled to find his best form at West Ham thus far, so it was no surprise to see him left out of the most recent England squad. Southgate is someone who selects players based on merit, Adam Lallana notwithstanding, so Wilshere needs to be playing a lot better than he currently is in order for him to wear the Three Lions shirt again. The whole Hammers team is struggling at the moment, of course, but Wilshere needs to be a leader and help pull the club out of the doldrums. With 34 caps he is one of the most experienced English players around, and he’ll be desperate to get back involved with the squad. But club football comes first at the moment, and he needs to take a long look in the mirror as far as that’s concerned.