Stuart Pearce questions Jack Wilshere’s decision to withdraw from England Under-21 squad for European Championships

Jack Wilshere and Anthony Annan

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England Under-21 manager Stuart Pearce has queried Jack Wilshere‘s decision to withdraw from the squad for the European Championships this summer.

The midfielder, who has four full international caps, was advised by Arsenal to miss the tournament to avoid fatigue after a season in which he has made 49 appearances for the Gunners.

Pearce, who led England Under-21s to the final of the last European Championships, believes that Wilshere is no different to other players in terms of tiredness.

He told reporters: “I would say that every player at this stage of the season would be reasonably tired.

“I’m talking about Spanish internationals, who we have to face, Czech internationals, who we have to face.

“Across the board at the end of a long season, players are more susceptible maybe to injury.”

The former England defender also hit out at Arsene Wenger, claiming that the Arsenal manager should have taken his own advice and protected Wilshere.

He continued: “One thing’s for sure – Arsenal have not left him out of the side in the last six weeks of the season, even though the stats show he is in the red zone.

“I think Jack’s got his own mind. Arsene just didn’t want him to go full stop.”

However, Pearce refused to get downbeat about his squad’s chances despite the loss of two other experienced players in Manchester City’s Micah Richards and Liverpool’s Andy Carroll.

“The bulk of what we’ve done has probably been achieved with the likes of the squad as it stands at the moment,” he continued.

“It won’t be too much of a problem to us. We’ve got a fantastic spirit within the camp.”

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