Wilshere this afternoon demonstrated the burgeoning talent that has seen him mentioned as one of the young players Capello could turn to following England's dismal World Cup displays.

The 18-year-old was named man of the match as hosts Arsenal beat Celtic 3-2 to win the Emirates Cup for the third time in its four-year history.

Wenger was delighted with Wilshere's performance and also made a strong case for the Football Association to snap up fellow midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong, who is eligible for both England and Ghana.

The Gunners boss warned against over-hyping the youngsters but would not complain if under-21 international Wilshere was called up to the senior squad.

He said: "At the end of the day, when you're a good football player, you have to deal with that.

"Theo Walcott was at the World Cup at 17 years of age; he had not played one game in the Premier League, and it didn't kill him.

"To play at the top level, you have to deal with these kinds of situations."

Wenger believes Wilshere has the ability to become a senior international in time for the 2012 European Championships and promised him a chance to stake his claim for first-team action this season.

Indeed, the Gunners boss revealed the pre-season performances of Wilshere and Frimpong had convinced him not to buy another midfielder this summer.

He said of the former, who spent the second half of last term on loan at Bolton: "I believe he is stronger than last year, physically, and the few months he played at Bolton has given him something.

"He will be used at the club, of course."

But he added: "The problems at that age is to be patient; you don't have patience.

"If you look at the number of good players we have in midfield, nobody can guarantee a position to anybody."

Of fellow 18-year-old Frimpong, Wenger said: "He's a bit less of a dribbler but he's a fighter and a winner.

"Here you have a boy who can choose between England and Ghana.

"So if I was in your place, I would have no hesitation, and invite him to play very quickly for England."

One player who looks certain to earn an England recall is Theo Walcott, who must have run Wilshere close for the man-of-the-match prize today.

Wenger revealed the 21-year-old was "highly determined" following the disappointment of being snubbed for this summer's tournament in South Africa.

Winger Walcott laid on Arsenal's opener for Carlos Vela after just three minutes today before goals by Bacary Sagna and Samir Nasri put the hosts on cruise control.

They were almost made to pay when Daryl Murphy and Ki Sung-Yeung netted for Celtic - after Georgios Samaras had earlier missed a penalty.

Comparing his side's display to yesterday's 1-1 draw with AC Milan, Wenger said: "For 70 minutes we played very well.

"In the last 20, we collapsed a bit physically and you could see we do not have completely everybody 90 minutes in the legs.

"But I am pleased with the two days, because we had good opponents, teams who didn't give up.

"I've seen what I wanted to see, that two new players can fit in well.

"And I'm pleased with the fact that the young players who have played in the two games have done really well.

"You will be pleased with the fact that they are English - so we are all happy!"

Wenger is still looking to recruit a centre-half but claimed he was "not close to signing anybody".

Asked if Germany defender Per Mertesacker would fit the bill, he said: "I wouldn't like to comment on names because it raises the price straightaway 50%.