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Scholes: Penny has finally dropped for Wilshere

ESPN staff
October 15, 2014
The ESPN FC panel discuss Arsenal's chances of finishing in the top four

Paul Scholes says the "penny has dropped" for Jack Wilshere after the England midfielder impressed during the Euro 2016 qualifiers against San Marino and Estonia.

Scholes was heavily critical of Wilshere in March after Arsenal were held by Swansea, saying "he doesn't look any better now than he did when he was 17".

Wilshere accepted the criticism - "it came from Paul Scholes and for me he was the best English midfielder of all time" - and has gone on to become a vital player for club and country.

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However, in his column for the Evening Standard, Scholes wrote: "Jack Wilshere had two very good games for England over the last week. I would go one step further than that and say that at the moment he is England's best player.

"I think the penny has dropped and he has added another dimension to his game. He has always been capable of intricate passing. Now he can play the ball long, too. The quality of some of those passes into Wayne Rooney in Estonia was high.

"You cannot underestimate the importance of eye contact between a midfielder and a striker in those situations. With the great forwards I played with it was often the case that you did not need a call or a signal. Often it was just a look and it was enough to know where they were going.

"Wilshere and Rooney seemed to have that."

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