“This has been my best day as an Arsenal player by far. It is not over yet,” – the words of Jack Wilshire to reporters in the aftermath of Arsenal’s 2-1 victory over Barcelona on Wednesday, a result which made everyone in Europe sit up and take notice. But the result was all the more noticeable in the development of Arsenal’s youngsters especially on the back of the 3-1 slaying handed out to Chelsea two days after Christmas, a result which did much to suggest the kids were indeed alright.

No-one has embodied the growth and increased maturity more than 19-year-old Wilshire who had one of his best games in an Arsenal shirt against the Catalan giants. Ironically he was probably up against two of the greatest midfielders in world football in Xabi and Iniesta but while they delivered their usual metronomic efficiency, Wilshire stood tall and rose to the challenge. And while most 18/19-year-olds would be overawed by the situation, Arsenal’s own young lion went about his work with a strut and confidence which belied his tender years.

He himself has acknowledged the crazy fortnight which has seen him make a debut for the England national side before lining up against the team to which Arsenal and Arsene Wenger aspire to emulate. But the young pup has taken to the task well and just approached every game, whether it’s Wolves in the Premier League or Barcelona in the Champions League.

In fact a look at the stats from Wednesday’s game highlights just how much of an influence Wilshire had on proceedings. The 19 year-old completed 93.5 per cent of his passes overall with a staggering 91 per cent of his passes in the final third of the pitch. Only Xavi and Iniesta boasted superior passing rates while the man they were all talking about before the game, namely Cesc Fabregas, almost faded from view. That was until the Emirates proclaimed ‘We’ve got Cesc Fabregas’ in a non-too subtle dig at Barca’s failure to bring the boy who left Catalonia at 15 home during the summer.

And while I have argued before that Cesc leads by allowing his team-mates to express themselves on the field, perhaps Wilshire is also fast becoming a leader in his own right as well. Not captaincy wise because he needs to flourish and find his own game before grabbing the armband, but a leader of the Wenger’s boys, the young pups who have found themselves handed the shirt and challenge of playing for the Arsenal.

The air of confidence Wilshire exudes is contagious and has rubbed off the likes of Wojciech Szczesny who has taken on the challenge of being Arsenal’s number one and made it look like he has been there for many years. Yes, Wilshire has areas in his game to improve, namely his tackling but there is no finer finishing school than the one he is currently excelling at under headmaster Wenger.

And another performance like Wednesday night on March 8 in the Nou Camp will ensure that the star pupil continues to be noticed. Wilshire grabbed shirts from Messi and Xavi after the game, might he not Fabregas be wearing the same shirt as the Catalan stars in the future? That would indeed be stunning conclusion to the meteoric rise of Jack the lad.