Jack Wilshere: I dream of captaining England

Posted Tuesday, May 21, 2013 by YAHOO Sport

Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere one day hopes to he can reach the pinnacle of his career by becoming England captain.

The 21-year-old has been ruled out of the Three Lions' upcoming friendlies against the Republic of Ireland and Brazil with an ankle injury but is already planning a comeback into Roy Hodgson's side.

Once fit, he hopes to succeed Steven Gerrard as England skipper, insisting it would be the ultimate honor if he ever gets the opportunity.

"I want to captain Arsenal and I want to captain England. That definitely appeals to me," he told reporters. "It’s my ultimate dream. People say players are no longer bothered about wearing the England shirt, but for me it’s the pinnacle of my job because club rivalries go out of the window and the entire nation comes together behind you. It’s the best feeling.

"England have a fantastic captain in Steven Gerrard and I assume Wayne Rooney is the next in line. We’ve got a lot of big characters — but if I was ever offered the chance to captain England it’d be the ultimate honor."

Wilshere's international career has so far been held back by injuries, forcing the Arsenal midfielder to continually miss out on Hodgson's squads, but he remains positive that he will be involved with the national team again soon.

"I’m having an operation this week to deal with the irritating scar tissue caused by the screws, but it’s a minor process and I’ll only be rested up for a fortnight," he continued. "I’ve played two friendlies since Roy Hodgson took over and the whole mood has changed in the camp.

"No disrespect to Fabio Capello because he gave me my first cap and I liked him, but it just changes everything when an Englishman takes charge. The style is different, the tactics, the whole atmosphere. I think it’s changed for the better. We still have a lot of work to do to qualify for next year’s World Cup finals, but we’re still in control of our own fate."