Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has defended Jack Wilshere, insisting that the English playmaker is not a smoker, after the 23-year-old found himself embroiled in yet another smoking controversy.
An image of Wilshere surfaced on social media on Wednesday of him holding a shisha pipe after initially being posted on Instagram, which was immediately taken down, sparking outrage from the Gunners faithful.
Wenger, however, believes it is up to the midfielder to choose his lifestyle when away from club duty, whilst also claiming the player expressed remorse towards his manager for his actions.
“I’ve spoken with him about that [smoking] and he’s not a smoker,” Wenger stated.
Jack Wilshere caught holding a shisha pipe in another smoking controversy involving the Englishman
“He is, of course, sorry for what has happened. It’s down to him to master his life. He had the day off the next day and he went out to watch the Super Bowl. When he’s here, he has to follow the rules that we dictate here; when he’s out of his job, it’s his own responsibility to behave like he wants to behave.”
“I observe him well and he behaves in a very professional way. Every morning, he’s certainly one of the first in and every afternoon certainly the last out. He works very hard. He’s gone through some bad spells in his career and always recovered. It would be wrong to give him that kind of reputation because he’s a serious player.”
Speaking in a press conference ahead of Saturday's highly-anticipated north London derby tie away to Tottenham, Le Prof hinted that superstar summer signing Alexis Sanchez could in fact stand a chance of playing a role in the weekend fixture.
Despite previously ruling him out of the game with a hamstring injury, the long-serving French boss had this to say when asked whether the Chilean will be making the trip to White Hart Lane:
“I don’t know yet – I need medical advice on that,” the Arsenal boss added. “I need, as well, to see what he can do in training. He wants to play, of course. He’s very keen. He feels he can defy the medical people. He is so keen to play that he thinks he can get over strains.”
Could Sanchez be fit in time for Tottenham vs Arsenal?
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