Ray Parlour has urged others not to dwell on Jack Wilshere’s off-the-pitch antics and instead focus on the player he is.

Wilshere was recently caught up in more controversy which, as usual, appears to be the fault of the company he keeps rather than himself. With this obviously comes its on issues but, as Arsene Wenger pointed out ahead of our match with West Ham, the media has blown the whole affair out of proportion.

Arsenal legend, Parlour, is from a footballing era where it wasn’t unusual to go out on the lash, even the night before a game. Therefore, to him, Jack enjoying an alcoholic beverage on occasion isn’t exactly a crime. In addition, the former Gunner urged others not to dwell on what the 24-year-old is doing off the pitch.

“Jack is a magnificent player,” said Parlour.

“You see that when he puts that English shirt on as well. He has played so well under Roy Hodgson. He has played in an advanced role for Arsenal, a deeper role for England and he can play anywhere in midfield, but he has got to get himself fit – that’s the most important thing for Jack – is to play on a regular basis.

“He has had so many injuries over the last two or three seasons, which really has affected his career, so he will be hungry to come back work so hard off the field. 

“Look, there’s front page paper news that we don’t really need to dwell on, Jack Wilshere has to be on the back pages. Get back into the side and then he’ll be hoping that he’s in the next squad going to the Euros.”

The whole drama surrounding Jack is completely unnecessary, and I think the media latch onto him because he’s the only vaguely ‘controversial’ member of the Arsenal squad. Wenger runs a tight ship when it comes to our players’ personal lives making headlines so if one of them does ‘slip up’ (and I used to term loosely), the press are waiting to pounce.

Jack is set to return to action soon. Let’s hope his football will do the talking.