Manuel Pellegrini never makes a secret of his admiration for Jack Wilshere.
The West Ham United manager is a big fan of Wilshere’s technical ability and was delighted to bring the England international to London Stadium last summer.
Injuries have not allowed Wilshere to demonstrate his undoubted talent in a Claret and Blue shirt on a regular basis, but, having produced an impressive cameo in last weekend’s Premier League win over Southampton, Pellegrini is hopeful that the No19 will make up for lost time next season.
“If the injuries respect him, of course Jack can be a big player for us,” he confirmed, having earlier confirmed that Wilshere will be in the matchday squad for Sunday’s season finale at Watford. “He has a lot of quality and is now working very well.
“We hope, in the same way that when we bought him, that he can play [a full] season and of course that will change our team.
“I know this because I see him working every day.”
The more amount of times Jack has the ball, the more attacking a team we are going to be
Manuel Pellegrini
When asked what role he sees the 27-year-old playing in his team, Pellegrini was not willing to pigeonhole him into one particular position.
Instead, the manager sees Wilshere as a player who can adopt a freer attacking role that he can build his offensive tactics around.
“I see him playing as Jack Wilshere,” he smiled. “His style of play will not change. I don’t see him playing as a winger or full-back!
“Those kinds of player must play free, with a duty inside the team as a tactical unit.
“But when we have the ball, he must move around different zones to receive it. The more amount of times Jack has the ball, the more attacking a team we are going to be.”