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Jack Wilshere named to Arsenal bench for Sunderland match

Reuters

Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere was named to the bench for Sunday's Premier League trip to the Stadium of Light to face Sunderland.

The 24-year-old Gunners academy product has yet to appear in a senior team competitive match this season, after breaking his fibula during pre-season training in August. Initially expected to return in the first half of the season, Wilshere required surgery on the injury, sidelining him for an additional three months.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger named the tough-tackling midfielder to the team after a run of three successive appearances for the Under-21 side, including a 90-minute run-out against West Brom that saw the England international bag a goal in a 2-1 defeat Monday.

While Wilshere's return can be considered as too little too late for an Arsenal side that long ago spoiled its chance to win a first top-flight title since 2003-04, it will increase the Stevenage-born star's chances of making Roy Hodgson's England squad for this summer's Euro 2016 in France.

Despite the long-term injury and subsequent setback, Wilshere played a vital role in England's spotless qualifying for the tournament, earning Man of the Match distinction in six of the seven matches he featured in, highlighted by two long-range strikes against Slovenia in a come-from-behind 3-2 win.

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