Jack Wilshere showed his affection for former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger when asked for his one-word opinion of him.
Wilshere was handed his professional debut by Wenger when he broke through to the Gunners first team in 2008, building a special relationship with the legendary French manager as he went on to make 197 appearances for the club across all competitions.
The pair both departed north London in 2018 after a decade of working together, with Wilshere maturing into an England international on the pitch and a fully-fledged man off of it under Wenger's guidance.
He therefore holds a special part in his life, which was reflected during his appearance on Sky Sports' Saturday Social. Wilshere was asked a variety of questions, having to respond with a single word to sum his answer up.
When Wenger's name was brought up, he wrote on the whiteboard provided "boss" with a heart emoji. He went on to explain: "I could have put 'dad' but my dad will probably be at home watching this, but he was like that, he was a father figure.
"He was very calm, but he was like that as a coach, he wasn't very different [away from football]. You could see he was very authentic. He protected his players and at times, probably at the wrong moment as well."
Wenger became a source of frustration for fans in his final years in charge, despite all he'd done and won during his 22-year reign. He was often reluctant to put blame on his squad, which didn't help his cause - but he's deservedly heralded for his time in charge.
Wilshere, meanwhile, saw his playing career peter out due to repeated injury issues which hampered his time at the Emirates. He swiftly returned to the club, however, as coach of their under-18s side after hanging up his boots in 2022.
His allegiance remains as strong as ever, evidenced by his one-word response to Tottenham - "enemy". He elaborated: "You know all of my family are Spurs? I grew up with a lot of Tottenham fans in the family and I remember coming home from holiday and there would be cardboard cut outs of David Ginola.
"Then I grew up playing against Tottenham with that rivalry. Whatever you think about that game or playing against them, they are the enemy. You have to have that in your DNA if you want to play for Arsenal."
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