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With only a single Arsenal player making the English national team for the 2018 World Cup, in Danny Welbeck, who has only spent 11 minutes on the pitch for the Three Lions, it is time to look back on what has happened to the homegrown youth players the Arsenal fans and football club were once so excited about.
In December 2012, then manager Arsene Wenger revealed his excitement in announcing they had secured 4-5 year deals for a group of promising young British stars in the hope of bringing stability and loyalty to the club after losing key players like Robin Van Persie and Cesc Fabregas who left the club in the previous months.
Now, years on, we look back to see what has come of the 'British Core' that encouraged a successful future for Arsenal FC:
#5 Carl Jenkinson
Carl Jenkinson was touted to be the right back for the next decade at Arsenal FC, and while he is still with the club, since signing in the 2011/12 season, Jenkinson has only managed 38 Premier League appearances for Arsenal in this time.
Jenkinson's demise at Arsenal began with an injury, causing him to miss over 20 games for the club during the 2011/12 season. In the next two seasons, Jenkinson failed to push his way into the starting team, kept out by Frenchman Bacary Sagna, and then sought a two-year loan deal to fellow Premier League squad West Ham.
During his first year at West Ham, Jenkinson managed to somewhat resurrect his career, being involved in 32 Premier League games. But just as things started to look as if they were getting better, he was hit with a knee injury that kept him out for over 250 days during 2016.
His return to Arsenal the year after was a poor one, only managing one appearance for the club in the premier league before being loaned out once more to Championship side Birmingham where Jenkinson has continued to struggle.
#4 Kieran Gibbs
Brought up through the Arsenal youth ranks, Kieran Gibbs spent a total of 13 years at the club. The English left-back was one of the oldest of the British core at the age of 22 when signing on for another five years at the club before leaving at the start of the 2017/18 season to join West Bromwich Albion.
Gibbs too was hit with injury after injury during his career, sustaining eight separate injuries since signing his last Arsenal contract. Although he was highly injury prone through his time at Arsenal, Gibbs did manage to earn and maintain a starting berth at left back for the club after the departure of Gael Clichy in 2011, even earning himself 10 appearances for the national team in the process.
Earning over 100 caps for Arsenal, Gibbs began to fall out of favour with the management as his consistency was called into question as he became increasingly error-prone. This saw the rise of Nacho Monreal for the club who took over the starting position during the 2013/14 season.
Kieran Gibbs was let go by the club to join West Brom for £7m at the start of the 2017/18 season, and while playing in 33 premier league games for them, they could not avoid relegation and are now down in the Championship.
#3 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
The youngest and potentially the most promising player of the group, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain sealed his move to Arsenal from then League One side Southampton for a reported fee of around £12 million.
After years of being a promising young star for the future Arsenal supporters begun to turn on 'The Ox' as the team struggled and they believed he should step up and start to show why it was believed he would be a star of the club for years.
With over 100 caps and many injuries along the way, Chamberlain's lack of ability to find the net saw him leave Arsenal, being bought by Premier League rivals Liverpool for £35m.
When fully fit Chamberlain seemed to flourish in Klopp's fast-paced system at Liverpool, but primed for a squad position in the 2018 World Cup, he saw his hopes dashed rupturing his cruciate ligament in April 2018, making him unavailable to add to the 32 caps he has for the Three Lions.
#2 Jack Wilshere
Perhaps the saddest story of them all, Jack Wilshere was the most promising player of them all. After an incredible display in a Champions League match against FC Barcelona in February 2011, Wilshere was dubbed by the media 'the midfielder we've been waiting for.'
Not only did people believe Wilshere was one day going to be one of the top midfielders in the world, many had high hopes for him to one day step into a captaincy role for both club and country.
Undoubtedly talented, Wilshere's injury history is as bad as any, only managing above 20 Premier League appearances on two occasions in seven seasons after signing this contract. Whenever there seemed to be a revival in his career for Arsenal, just as hopes would reach a new high that he would one day become the midfielder all fans once dreamed about, he would be hit with yet another injury keeping him out for months time and time again.
After the 2017/18 seasons, with the departure of long-serving manager and mentor Arsene Wenger, new manager Unai Emery decided to release Wilshere from his services with the club after 17 years of faithfulness.
#1 Aaron Ramsey
The last shining light of the British core, singing for Arsenal in 2008 has led to a huge rollercoaster ride for player, club and fans.
After a horrific leg break in 2010, many questioned whether Ramsey would ever be able to fulfil the great potential he showed early in his career. Ramsey silenced his critics in the 2013/14 season, his early season form saw him voted Arsenal's player of the month four times in a row as he was showing to be one of the best midfielders in the premier league.
Aaron Ramsey showed why Arsene Wenger had given so much faith into the young talent, as he scored the winner in the 109th minute of the FA cup final to lead Arsenal to victory and end a nine-year trophy drought for the club in the 2013/14 season where he was also named Arsenal's player of the season.
Winning another FA Cup in 2014/15, Ramsey saw his 2015/16 season his season cut short through a thigh injury ruling him out for multiple weeks in the latter stages of the season. But the winning did not stop there, in the 2016/17 season scoring the winning goal in the FA cup final yet again leading his team to a 2-1 victory over London rivals Chelsea.
While Ramsey is still a walk up start on the Arsenal team sheet, for now, his injury history may continue to holt his career stopping him from becoming a truly top world class midfielder.
