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Former England international Jack Wilshere has emerged as an outsider contender for the vacant head coaching role at Colorado Rapids after holding talks with the MLS club. Wilshere's current employers Arsenal have given him the green light to explore what would be his first senior management role at a time when the Rapids are believed to be assessing the options available to them.

Colorado, who share owners with Arsenal in Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, have been without a manager since Robin Fraser departed early last month. They were last place in MLS at the time and although they have won two games under interim boss Chris Little, they have fallen well short of playoff qualification, their mathematical elimination confirmed on Sept 23.

The 31-year-old Wilshere is understood to have undergone an interview with the Rapids organization in a recruitment process that remains active. Team president Padraig Smith had previously described MLS experience as preferable but not a prerequisite for the role. 

For Wilshere, even being considered for this role is a mark of the impressive work he has done with Arsenal's under-18 side since being appointed in July 2022. In his first season in charge, Wilshere led his side to the final of the FA Youth Cup and has won fulsome praise from the likes of Mikel Arteta. He has undertaken the English FA's International Player to Coach Programme and has secured his UEFA A Licence.

Wilshere retired from football last summer, injuries having long since derailed a top level career that began at the age of just 16 years and 256 days when he became Arsenal's youngest ever league debutant, a record that would subsequently be broken by his own under-18 player in Ethan Nwaneri. Wilshere made 197 appearances for the Gunners before leaving in 2018, spending time at West Ham, Bournemouth and Danish side AGF before retiring at 30.