Jack Wilshere and Fran Merida: Time to Leave the Nest

With the Bolton game looming large, Wenger decided to rotate his squad and handed starts to Jack Wilshere and Fran Merida...the duo disappointed.

Wilshere has been off the boil for a while now and he seems a totally different player than the one who made England dream at the Emirates cup. His touch seems heavy, his dribbling is non-existent, and he just can't seem to get into games as he used to.

Merida hasn't played as badly as Wilshere has recently, but he was awful today against West Ham and the worrying thing with him is that he's been at the club for a while without developing as expected. His reserve game performances and his breathtaking performance at the U20 world cup prove that he is a real talent, but he hasn't been able produce that form consistently for Arsenal.

The thing to note with both players is that they play very well at home. Merida scored a stunner against Liverpool in the Carling cup. Wilshere was also impressive in that game. The problem seems to come when the duo play away from home. Their confidence seems to drop considerably and their inexperience starts to show.

The good thing about this is that being inexperienced is far easier to overcome than simply lacking talent. There is no question about either of them having the talent to play for the Arsenal, all they need is some games. A loan move for Wilshere has been talked about and I'm crossing my fingers that this happens. Surprisingly though, there's been no mention of a loan move for Merida.

There was a possibility of him going on loan at the beginning of the season, but Wenger blocked that move and Merida stayed on. That was a good move, but Merida is not going to get too many games this season (and on today's evidence, he shouldn't) and I think a loan move for him is of equal (if not more) importance as it is for Wilshere.

And the move shouldn't be to a la liga team as it has been in the past, and almost was this season. He needs to move to a premiership or championship team, he needs to get used to playing in England. In today's game, and in the final champions league game, the difference in the level of play between Ramsey and the aforementioned duo was astonishing. The Welshman looked far more accomplished and that is purely because he's had games; he has more experience. Merida and Wilshere are just as talented as Ramsey and with games the two could make real contributions to the team next season.

These two players have huge futures in Arsenal, but they need experience first. Merida especially, as I feel he might be in danger of stalling in his development. If I were Wenger, I would definitely loan them both out.