Jack Wilshere says walking out at Kenilworth Road on Saturday for his first game in charge of the Hatters will be the proudest moment of his career.
That’s quite a statement considering he played at the top level and represented England 34 times, including at the World Cup.
But the newly appointed Town boss cannot wait to be introduced to the Hatters' faithful as he aims for a winning start to management against Mansfield.
“This week has been amazing,” said Wilshere at his first pre-match press conference on Friday.
“There was a moment this week when I saw my office overlooked the first pitch I first trained on when I joined the Academy. It was one of those pinch-me moments. I said to my wife ‘this is amazing’.
“I love seeing the fans giving me support on social media and, of course, I know they want to win games and so do I, and that’s what we’re going to try and do. It starts tomorrow, walking across the pitch, I am really looking forward to it.
“I said the other day, I always felt I was good at football. It came naturally to me, there were so many amazing moments on the journey – but this is something different, this is something I’ve really had to work for.
“But this is genuinely the proudest moment of my career.
“When you’re playing football, you never think you’re forced to think about what happens after you’re career but once it was done I was clear where I wanted to get to.
“But I’m genuinely really, really proud, and my family is so proud, and that’s why I want to repay the faith Gary and the club have shown in me but also the love the fans have shown.
“Kenilworth Road is a stadium full of tradition; it’s not like these modern stadiums, so we’ve got to capture the fans’ energy and keep it going forward.”
Wilshere’s first game in charge comes against a Mansfield side managed by Nigel Clough – a man who has overseen over 1,500 games from the dugout.
The Stags lie a place below the Town in the League One table but the new boss is wary of the visitors will be bring.
“I think if any club comes here and sits back we have to use that as a sign of respect, not just Mansfield,” said Wilshere.
“I’ve seen Mansfield and we’ll be ready for what we expect from them. However, we’ve got to be ready in our attacking moments, be switched on and, if we lose the ball, win it back. We’re expecting a tough game.
“From what I’ve learned over the last couple of weeks and after speaking to coaches and players, this is a league where we’ve got to be ready for random moments. It’s the kind of division where you could be dominating a game and go 1-0 down.
“We’ve got to be ready for that and respond in the right way, be calm and don’t panic. We’ll be aiming to get our players in their best positions and get them doing the things they’re good at.”
