Jack Wilshere should have rejected Bournemouth and told Wenger to sell him, says Arsenal legend Tony Adams

Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere should have asked Arsene Wenger to sell him during the summer transfer window and should not have agreed to join Bournemouth on loan last season, according to Gunners legend Tony Adams.

Wilshere is currently closing in on a return to full fitness after suffering a fractured leg while playing for the Cherries and looks set to be consigned to the fringes of the first team at The Emirates Stadium, with the likes of Granit Xhaka and Aaron Ramsey ahead of him in the Gunners pecking order.

The former Bolton Wanderers loanee played regularly under Eddie Howe last season, but Adams still seems bemused by Wenger's decision to farm Wilshere out to the south coast and believes the 25-year-old should have asked the Arsenal boss to sell him if he doesn't think he is of the required standard to play for the Gunners.

"Jack should have said: 'No. I'm not going to Bournemouth," Adams told the Islington Gazette. "I want to play for The Arsenal. I'm not going to Bournemouth. What do I want to go to Bournemouth for? I'm an Arsenal player.'

"He should have told Wenger: 'If you don't think I'm an Arsenal player then get rid of me. Sell me and I'll go and play for someone who wants me. You want me to go to Bournemouth? What's the matter with you?'"

Wilshere, perhaps unsurprisingly, has missed the start of the new season through injury. His career has been plagued by knocks and niggles, but Adams believes there is a whole host of reasons why he has not progressed into the player many hoped he would become.

"I think he's a super player but Jack's been unlucky with injuries," Adams added.

"It's a shame but there's a been a mix of things holding him back. He's been affected by injuries and there has been a little bit of him not stepping up to realise the great potential that he has. But there's also been a little bit of the club putting him down."