Manuel Pellegrini glumly summed up Jack Wilshere's current injury predicament at West Ham by saying the harder the midfielder works, the more pain he feels.
Wilshere penned a three-year, £100,000 a week contract in east London as a free agent in the summer of 2018 but the move from Arsenal has been nothing short of a disaster for both player and club.
The midfielder has made 16 appearances in a year and a half at the club, a dreadful return but not an entirely unexpected one for a player who has battled with injury problems throughout his career.
But the three-year contract given to him after his release from Arsenal is particularly egregious with a return of one goal and one assist since Pellegrini signed him.
Wilshere has suffered two ankle injuries and is currently sidelined with a groin problem that Pellegrini initially said was a "small" injury - and that was two months ago. He hasn't played since a 20-minute run out off the bench against Everton on October 19.
What is even more frustrating is the 27-year-old has a full pre-season behind him and looked in excellent condition and form during the summer friendlies.
The Hammers boss was asked yet again for an update on Wilshere ahead of the trip to Crystal Palace, which Wilshere won't be involved in, and his reply was almost inevitable.
"Jack continues every week trying to work but when he works harder he starts to feel pain in his groin," the manager respnded.
"He is seeing different doctors to see what has happened.
"He's a player we need a lot, a different player, but if he's not 100 per cent recovered it's difficult for him to work."
