Jack Wilshere's Comments About England National Team Should Be Dismissed

Jack Wilshere’s comments on national allegiance go against everything English football should stand for.

The Arsenal midfielder recently claimed the “only people who should play for England are English people,” as per BBC Sport.

Airing this opinion in the wake of Adnan Januzaj’s match-winning brace during Manchester United’s 2-1 victory over Sunderland forced many to believe Wilshere was singling the Belgian-born player out, something he denied on Twitter:

Even if Wilshere didn’t intend on aiming his comments toward Januzaj, he certainly reacted to calls claiming the 18-year-old should be selected in a future England lineup. Had Januzaj failed to grab headlines after his Stadium of Light display, Wilshere wouldn’t have spoken about the situation.

The target of Wilshere’s comments do not matter. It’s his attitude that should be questioned.

He plays for a nation that—ever since that fairytale day in 1966—constantly fails to deliver on faux-potential that is drummed up by local press. Roy Hodgson’s team, just like many Wembley dwellers before, suffer with a lack of identity and a sense of entitlement that isn’t valid after 50 years of falling short.

Not that most would admit it. Wilshere joins the air of denial, per BBC Sport:

"

We are English. We tackle hard, are tough on the pitch and are hard to beat.

We have great characters. You think of Spain and you think technical but you think of England and you think they are brave and they tackle hard. We have to remember that.

"

Most nations are not afraid to face the side that loiters five places below Greece in the FIFA World Rankings and has failed to beat Montenegro, Poland and Ukraine in recent matches.

Wilshere comments on Spain, a nation that famously called Argentinian Alfredo Di Stefano into its ranks. Right now, Vicente Del Bosque is awaiting confirmation that Brazilian-born Diego Costa can join up with the world champions, per Sky Sports.

The Gunners midfielder currently plays alongside Lukas Podolski at the Emirates, a man who was born in Poland and represents Germany. Similarly, Miroslav Klose—one of Germany’s all-time leading goalscorers—entered the world in the Polish city of Opole.

These are players who have helped their nation to success and continue to aid their country’s development of style. As much as Wilshere likes to think otherwise, they tackle just as fiercely as those bearing St. George's cross.

How can one completely judge the nationality of a player?

Just because Zinedine Zidane’s parents are both of Algerian descent, does that mean he didn’t have a right to represent France—his country of birth—in the World Cup-winning squad of 1998?

Of course he had the right. Zidane identifies as French and carries himself as French, despite having Algerian blood.

As Oliver Kay of The Times suggests, England would be wrong to fight against rules that have brought about major success in other sports, such as Mo Farah's gold medal jaunt at the 2012 Olympic Games:

For Wilshere, and indeed English football, the acceptance of foreign players admits defeat at international level. Should Januzaj don the nation’s shirt alongside your Coles, Jones and Greens, the Three Lions’ self-righteous nature would finally buckle.

Wilshere’s comments wrongfully suggest England possess an unbreakable spirit that should remain impenetrable to so-called foreign bodies.

It's that attitude, and the nation's willingness to rely on being "difficult to beat," that ensures the country will struggle to progress beyond archetypal underachievers until horizons are broadened.