Footballers at the top level these days get a bit of bad rep for being primadonnas but Jack Wilshere seems to have bucked that trend. Remember when Paul Scholes was on Sky Sports and he criticised the Arsenal midfielder, saying:
Jack Wilshere came on the scene and looked a top young player but he has never really gone on. He needs the characters like Vieira next to him to take him to the next level. He doesn't look any better player now than he did when he was 17.
One would have expected Wilshere to have a 'Screw you Paul Scholes' reaction to his comments but it turns out he actually took Scholes on face value and rang him to discuss how he can improve. Speaking about their conversation Wilshere said:
If it had come from a rubbish player I could say, 'What are you talking about?' but it came from Paul Scholes. For me, he’s the best English midfielder of all time.
The 22-year-old DM'd Gary Neville on Twitter to get Scholes' phone number, with Neville responding 'Go easy on him.'
Wilshere describes how the discussion went:
I just wanted to hear what he thinks. I respect him so much. We had quite a good chat. He’s entitled to his opinion. He explained it a bit better and told me what I should work on.
He was right in a certain way. I have had bad luck with injuries but I can’t keep saying I’ve been injured a lot. There comes a time when you stop being a kid and I think that’s what he’s referring to. This season I’ve improved a lot, scored a few more; got a few more assists.
It’s those stats that matter. That’s what I have to build on.
When Paul Scholes speaks, you listen.
hat-tip: BBC Sport
