Former Arsenal midfielder and current Luton Town manager Jack Wilshere said he is "proud" of his playing career despite the injuries and setbacks that kept him out for long periods.
Wilshere, 34, began playing for Luton aged seven before joining Arsenal at the age of nine, where he became the club's then-youngest ever Premier League debutant at 16.
That record has since been broken by Ethan Nwaneri, who made an appearance for the Gunners in their 3-0 away win over Brentford in 2022 aged 15 years and 181 days old.
A two-time FA Cup winner, Wilshere represented England at two major tournaments and had brief spells with other English clubs before retiring at 30 while at Danish side Aarhus.
"I loved it [my career], I'm really proud," Wilshere said in an interview with BBC Sport.
"I got to play for my country and represent them at two major tournaments. OK, they didn't go the way we wanted them to, but I got to do it.
Wilshere moved into managing when he took charge of Arsenal under-18s between 2022 and 2024, before he was made assistant manager at Norwich.
While at Arsenal's academy, Wilshere coached Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri who both won the Premier League with the Gunners last season.
Having been appointed as manager of Luton in October last year, Wilshere reflected on his love for management as he looks to guide the club to promotion to the Championship.
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"I'm 34 now and probably could still be playing," Wilshere said. "Don't get me wrong, I loved every minute of playing, but I also really, really love this and I'm fortunate to start my [management] journey early.
"I was influenced by Mikel [Arteta], but then I had to learn how to teach. I had to learn how to get that across, how to plan a session and how to get the outcomes that you wanted.
"I played under some good coaches and was quite good at understanding what a coach wants, but I never dived into 'why is he asking me to do that?'
"Mikel really made that clear and I was lucky enough to have a relationship where I could say, 'well, why do you want that?' And he was open enough to share it with me."
Wilshere has already won silverware with Luton. Last season, the Hatters lifted the EFL trophy after beating Stockport 3-1 at Wembley.
During his playing days for the Gunners, Wilshere was pictured drinking and smoking and was disciplined by then-Arsenal head coach Arsene Wenger -- something which he said he learnt valuable lessons from and which has influenced his own attitude towards coaching players.
"Yes, I made mistakes, but I also reflect on that. I had a manager that had high standards and he let me know that he was disappointed, but he also gave me another chance," he said.
"You educate them, you let them know there's a line and there's things they can't do. But also give them another chance. I believe in that."