Arsenal Transfer News: Jack Wilshere's Faith in Arsene Wenger Misplaced

Just as no one player is bigger than the club, no single manager can be bigger than the club he coaches. Jack Wilshere would do well to keep that in mind.

The 21-year-old midfielder spoke to Zapsportz.com (h/t Goal.com) and said:

"

I want to win things with Arsenal and I want to be there in the future. But if the boss leaves then things could change.

Arsenal are always in my heart and by signing a deal for the next five years (it) shows my commitment to them and their commitment to me, so at the moment everything is good.

Arsene Wenger has been there for so many years and he's always delivered trophies. We've had a little dip in the last five or six years, but he's a great manager and people who question his ability are ridiculous.

He's qualified for the Champions League for 16 years so I think he's the right man for the job.

"

Let's not forget that Wilshere said two years ago that he would stay at Arsenal for the duration of his career.

It's one thing to back your manager. It's something different to claim that the sacking of your manager could mean you want to leave as a result. That's taking loyalty to the extreme.

If Wilshere is truly loyal to Arsenal, he wouldn't leave the club just because the man running it has left. He should feel safe enough that whomever the club's board could choose to succeed a sacked Wenger would move the Gunners forward.

The best clubs shouldn't be overshadowed by one man. It's not as if Manchester United are going to get relegated or even drop out of the top four anytime soon, following the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson.

Arsenal are a club that has a certain way of doing things. This precedes Wenger, and it would continue when he leaves—whenever that may be. The club is not going to hire the kind of manager that doesn't follow the ideals promoted by Herbert Chapman, Bertie Mee, George Graham and most recently Wenger.

Look at Barcelona. They have a definite identity and try and run the club in the right way. In their search for a manager, they refrain from hiring somebody who's going to throw off that identity.

When Frank Rijkaard's tumultuous tenure came to an end in 2008, Barca hired from within and took a chance on Pep Guardiola. It paid huge dividends, and when Guardiola left, Barcelona again relied on a man who knew the Barca system in Tito Vilanova. Although Gerardo Martino has no ties to the club, he's very much in the Barcelona mold.

Arsenal aren't Real Madrid or Chelsea. They don't try and burn through managers every few seasons and just look to hire the biggest name available.

When the Gunners targeted Wenger in 1996, he was a relative unknown working with Nagoya Grampus in Japan. Arsenal had faith that this was the man to lead the club in the future, and they weren't afraid to wait until he could take over following the Japanese season.

It's fair to think that upon Wenger's departure, the club would do its due diligence. Arsenal might not hire the biggest name, but they'll hire the right name.

Perhaps the bigger issue is this almost blind faith the English star seems to have in Wenger. He acts as if the Frenchman is blameless for Arsenal's drop and title drought in recent years. In addition, he describes that drop as just "a little dip."

What looks to be increasingly clear is that Wenger isn't the manager who can return the Gunners to the pinnacle of English football. A 3-1 win against Fulham is nice, but it was just a week ago that the club lost 3-1 to Aston Villa.

Arsenal have a young squad with a lot of talented players. If the club would spend the money to bring in experienced stars, then perhaps you've got a team that would truly challenge Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United for the Premier League title and even Europe's best in the Champions League.

Either Wenger doesn't want to make those necessary signings, or he doesn't know how. Whichever one it may be, it spells prolonged problems for the club.

The Arsenal board would have plenty of reason to sack Wenger right now—or at the very least—not offer him a new contract.

In the event that happens, Wilshere would be smart to keep his loyalty to the club.

The manager can change. The badge stays the same.