Jack Wilshere

Arsenal

Early career

Wilshere joined the Arsenal Academy in October 2001 at the age of nine, after a short spell in the Luton Town youth programme. He rose through the ranks, and at the age of 15 was named the captain of the under-16s. In the summer of 2007, Wilshere featured in the Champions Youth Cup in Malaysia and upon his return to England, Arsenal Academy coach Steve Bould gave him a start for the under-18s first match against the Chelsea under-18 team. He scored his first goal against Aston Villa under-18s in a 4–1 win. He then scored a hat-trick against Watford under-18s, helping his side to an Academy Group A title. He finished his first full season with the under-18s with 13 goals in 18 appearances, most of which came when he was 15. In February 2008, he made his debut for Arsenal Reserves aged 16 against Reading, and scored Arsenal's only goal of the match, which ended in a draw. He scored a memorable goal against West Ham reserves in March, picking the ball up and curling a shot into the top left corner under the watching eye of first-team manager Arsène Wenger. He managed to record two goals and two assists in just three appearances for the reserves at the end of the 2007–08 season. He played in the under-16s' victory in the Ferroli Cup, being named as player of the tournament. He played an important role in Arsenal's 2008–09 FA Youth Cup win, scoring goals in the semi-final and producing a man-of-the-match display in the first leg of the…

Youth

Since 2006, the England national youth teams played Wilshere in an age group above his age. Wilshere was just 14 when he played for the England national under-16 team at the 2006 Victory Shield. At the age of 15, he began playing for the England national under-17 team. He was then named in the squad for the 2009 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in May, starting the first two matches, particularly impressing in the second match against Germany before going off with an injury which kept him out of the final match. After the tournament, he was named among the 10 future stars from the tournament. On 11 September 2009, he also came on as substitute for his England under-21 debut against the Netherlands in a 0–0 draw.

Senior

On 7 August 2010, Wilshere was called up to the England senior team for the first time for their friendly against Hungary. He made his England debut in the match played on 11 August 2010, coming on as an 83rd-minute substitute for Steven Gerrard. This made him the 10th-youngest player ever to play for England, at the age of 18 years and 222 days. On 9 February 2011, Wilshere made his full England debut when he started in a friendly against Denmark. He impressed despite playing in an unfamiliar role just in front of the defence, and was praised by manager Fabio Capello. On 25 March 2011, Wilshere made his competitive debut for England in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. He made one further…

Arsenal U18s

On 11 July 2022, four days after announcing his retirement from playing, Wilshere was announced as the new head coach of the Arsenal under-18 team. He led the team to the final of the 2022–23 FA Youth Cup in his first season in charge, in which they lost to the West Ham.

Norwich City

On 23 October 2024, Wilshere left Arsenal to join EFL Championship club Norwich City as a first team coach, working under head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup. On 22 April 2025, Wilshere was named interim manager of the club, after Thorup was dismissed and his assistant Glen Riddersholm also left the club.

Luton Town

On 13 October 2025, Wilshere was appointed manager of EFL League One club Luton Town. He achieved his first title as manager by winning the EFL Trophy, securing a 3–1 victory over Stockport County in the final.

Wilshere was born on 1 January 1992 in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. He grew up in nearby Hitchin, and captained his school team. He captained the Priory School football team to County Cup and District Cup glory from Year 7 through to Year 10, and also added the Under 15s National Cup to his list in Year 8. He was a boyhood fan of West Ham United, his idol being Paolo Di Canio.