'What if?' is a question that has haunted many former footballers but it is one that has probably haunted former Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere more than most.
Injuries have plagued the academy graduate's career, hampering what could have been a glorious legacy at the Emirates Stadium. After leaving Bournemouth in the summer he now finds himself as a free agent.
The man who once put on a midfield masterclass against a Barcelona side containing Andres Iniesta and Xavi is struggling to find a new club, but believes that using his past injury record as an excuse is lazy.
After leaving the Emirates in 2016, Wilshere joined Bournemouth on a season-long loan. He then moved to West Ham on a free transfer before signing a short-term deal with the Cherries in January.
"I think it's a perception and I’ve had this opinion from a few clubs; ‘great player, but an injury waiting to happen’," he said during an interview with Under The Surface.
"I haven’t been injured since before lockdown, and it was not a serious injury, I've trained every day.
"When I was at Bournemouth I was available for every single game, so I feel like it's a lazy answer because I can. Give me a chance, let me prove myself to you then, show you that I’m fit.
"It's frustrating and it sort of breaks your spirit as well because you know especially when you're training on your own and every day you're like there's not much you can do on your own, you have to run and it's hard and it's boring, and then to get that answer it's like ‘well why am I doing this? Why am I breaking myself every day?’, waiting for that opportunity to come, when I'm just getting answers like that."
Wilshere made 198 appearances for Arsenal across his eight years in the first team, scoring 14 goals and assisting 30 more in that time.
Mikel Arteta recently offered Wilshere the opportunity to return to his boyhood club to keep in shape, an offer that the midfielder said he was grateful for.
