Jack Wilshere breaks silence on leaving Arsenal as former midfielder agrees deal to leave Under 18s role to become assistant manager at Norwich
Jack Wilshere is set to leave Arsenal as the former Gunners midfielder has agreed a deal to join the coaching team of Championship side Norwich.
Wilshere, 32, has been head coach of Arsenal’s under-18s since 2022 but has revealed he is excited by the opportunity to join manager Johannes Hoff Thorup’s staff to help boost Norfolk’s own promotion.
The former midfielder believes the move will further his own coaching career.
Arsenal and Norwich have agreed a compensation package for Wilshere, with the former England international expected to join his new team at Carrow Road next Thursday.
It is believed the deal was pushed through by Norwich sporting director Ben Knapper, who used to work at Arsenal.
Arsenal Under-18s head coach Jack Wilshere will leave the club to join Norwich
Wilshere, 32, will join the coaching staff of Championship side Norwich
The move from Norwich is one that Wilshere believes will advance his own coaching career
According to the Standard, Norwich boss Thorup believes recruiting talent of Wilshere’s caliber will create more ‘interest’ and ‘excitement’ around the club.
Thorup told BBC Radio Norfolk: ‘We need to make sure we have people in the building who would be of interest to other clubs.’
He added: ‘We’re about to build something special, and an environment, a culture and way of playing that is exciting, so people want to be here.
“And people from the outside are looking at the people here and that’s a good connection because it creates some interest and excitement, and that’s what we want.”
Wilshere had held talks with MLS club Colorado Rapids last October about becoming their manager, but opted to remain in north London with Arsenal.
The former midfielder played for Arsenal’s first team between 2008 and 2018
Wilshere retired from football two years ago at the age of 30, having last played in the Danish Superliga for AFG.
He had signed a professional contract for Arsenal in 2008 and subsequently had spells at West Ham and Bournemouth after leaving the north London club in 2018.
He took up his current role with Arsenal’s Under-18s in July 2022 and led the youngsters to an FA Youth Cup final in his first season as manager.
Wilshere is a popular and respected member of the Emirates coaching staff and represents a natural figurehead for the club’s youth academy, having come through it himself when he signed for it as a nine-year-old in 2001.
