Alan Shearer surprised by David Luiz return, thinks Jack Wilshere has a lot to prove
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Coral football ambassador Alan Shearer had plenty to say to our own Simon Clare about the end of the transfer window in his latest sit-down interview…
Shearer on the Bony and Luiz transfers
With summer spending in excess of £1.2bn from British clubs, transfer deadline day was full of surprises; no more so than the return of David Luiz to Chelsea and Stoke City’s loan signing of Wilfried Bony.
Of Ivory Coast striker Bony’s temporary switch to the Potteries, Shearer said: “He had to get out and play. He was going stale at Man City. They spent a lot of money bringing him in from Swansea and it didn’t go the way he wanted it to.
“They have got one or two options now at Stoke. I think Mark Hughes knows a centre forward or two having been one himself. Bony is big, strong and powerful, and will bring people into the game.”
Regarding Brazil’s ball-playing centre back Luiz, Shearer added: “I was very surprised. Like most people I didn’t see that one coming. I think it’s a sign of how the new manager [Antonio Conte] might want to play.
“We know Luiz is not a great defender, but he’s good with the ball. He’ll fit into a system that if Conte does play three at the back that I’m sure he’ll be the one on the ball and spraying those passes out to start moves off.”
Shearer on Wilshere’s move to Bournemouth and Leicester City
Jack Wilshere left Arsenal on loan to Bournemouth where he shall spend the season, having lost his place in the England squad, so Shearer had lots to say about the injury-prone playmaker.
“It must’ve been a huge kick in the teeth for him when one Arsenal announced that he was available to go on loan to other clubs, and two he wasn’t in the England squad,” Shearer said of Wilshere.
“If, and it’s a big if, Bournemouth can get him playing on a regular basis, then it will be his chance to say Arsenal got it wrong or Sam Allardyce has got it wrong. He has to go and prove himself all over again, because he hasn’t had enough minutes on the pitch.”
“It was a mistake from Roy Hodgson to have him in his England squad for the Euros, because he hadn’t started a game for almost over a year. Sam hasn’t made that mistake.”
When asked if he thinks there is a way back at Arsenal for Wilshere, Shearer feels only regular Premier League football and consistent performances down on the south coast will secure a future at the Emirates for the midfielder.
Moving to talk about defending Premier League champions Leicester City’s transfer activities, Shearer continued: “I think the best transfer business they did was keeping hold of [Riyad] Mahrez and [Jamie] Vardy.”
Shearer also feels the Foxes breaking their transfer record three times this summer, most notably for Algeria striker Islam Slimani was “a statement of intent” from the East Midlands outfit’s wealthy Asian investors.
He doesn’t think Claudio Ranieri can repeat the shock title win, however, adding: “I would expect Leicester to finish seventh or eighth.”
Shearer on the pressure of a big price tag and craziness of the transfer window
Having broken both the British and world record transfer fees during his own playing career, Shearer is well=placed to talk about the pressures that come with a hefty price tag.
“I sort of enjoyed it,” he said. “I thought to myself ‘Look, no one is worth that money. If someone is mad enough to pay that type of money, then the pressure is on them not on me’.”
Shearer also feels the record spending in British football is madness, but he isn’t surprised by it. “We’ll probably be sat here in five or ten years’ time saying that it’s gone over the £2bn mark,” he added.
“So long as the TV companies keep putting money in all around the world, it’s only going to get bigger and better. Some of the fees for players are outrageous. It’s not the players’ fault, you can’t blame them.”
Of now former Newcastle United midfielder Moussa Sissoko, who made a £30m move to Tottenham late on deadline day, Shearer said: “I hope Spurs get the player that has played for France rather than the one that played for Newcastle!”
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