Wilshere needs to play

Arsenal starlet Jack Wilshere has played down his chances of making England's World Cup squad.

Theo Walcott was a surprise inclusion in Sven Goran Eriksson's 23-man party for the tournament in Germany four years ago and Wilshere has been tipped as an outside contender this time around. Fabio Capello is a known admirer of the 17-year-old midfielder and stated at the start of the season that he would be following his progress.

However, Wilshere insists he is not paying attention to the speculation about his England prospects as he has more immediate targets. Wilshere has yet to establish himself as a regular starter in the Gunners starting line-up and knows he must make an impact at club level before he can start thinking about an international breakthrough.

He told the Sunday Times: "I'd rather there wasn't the hype. (England talk) is nice to hear but it's difficult, too. I mean, I can look forward to things but I'm not stupid. You've got to play for your club first and I'm looking to play regularly for Arsenal before anything else."