Did Arsenal sign their first January signing in secret?

Arsenal took advantage of the national break for a training camp in Dubai, where the English midfielder Jack Wilshere, who has been out of contract since July, also travelled with the team. Is this the first reinforcement of the Gunners in the already ending transfer window?

The 30-year-old midfielder has been without a contract since the end of the 2020/21 season, having last played in a Bournemouth jersey. He joined Arsenal’s training sessions at the beginning of October in order to get physically fit and find a new position more easily.

Only, the stay at Colney has already stretched to three months. Now the Gunners’ offspring has travelled with the team, unlike Aubameyang, to sunny Dubai, where the current sixth Premier League side is preparing for the upcoming league schedule.

There would have been nothing strange about travelling with the rest of the squad, except that Wilshere, who for three months donned a training kit with the initials JW, now takes to the training ground wearing jersey number 12.

The number 12 was last worn by Willian at Arsenal, but he agreed to terminate his contract before the current season. As a free agent, the former England international could expand the Gunners’ central midfield at any time. If he hasn’t already.

Mikel Arteta has only three players who are primarily defensive or central midfielders at his disposal – Xhaka, Partey and Lokonga. For the club and the players, the ideal form of contract would be pay-to-play, meaning that Wilshere will only be on the payroll if he starts a competitive game.

The Stevenage native has been at Arsenal since the age of nine, playing a total of 198 games for the A-team. In 2018, at the age of 26, he left for West Ham after his contract expired. After one season at Bournemouth, he became a free agent.

Will we see the once great talent of English football again in a jersey with a cannon on his chest?

Source: Twitter, Transfermarkt