Wilshere rounded off his two-game audition with a 4-2 Championship win over 10-player Cardiff City, but admits the ball is now in sporting director Ben Knapper’s court.

City’s staff and players will return to Colney on Monday for a two-day debrief, before departing for the summer

“I’ve been speaking to Ben a lot, of course, about the team, about how we think we should do it, and over the last couple of weeks about the two games we’ve had,” he said. “But I’ve not had a conversation about how they’re doing the process, what the process looks like. I’m sure over the next couple of days, I’ll find out.

“I’ve loved it. I need a few days now to take a breath. It’s been intense. Of course, chucking a marathon in the middle of that probably didn’t help things. Honestly, I’ve loved it. I’ve loved the intensity. I’ve loved the feeling of a little bit of pressure, because when you are the head coach or interim head coach, everyone’s looking at you.”

Wilshere hinted he would add experience to his backroom team if got the job, and is equally clear on what needs to be fixed.

“You have to, of course, work with the club on that as well, because those are important positions,” he said. “But I think especially with someone like me people would say I am inexperienced, and you need some good people around you with that experience who can help you.

I’ve been thinking about that the last couple of years, and really thinking about the last couple of weeks.

“It’s clear where we have to improve and what we have to work on. I think it’s clear the way the focus has to be in pre-season, and then hopefully everyone can see a more solid team that has a lot of variation in attack, but defends like dogs and they want to win the ball back.”

Wilshere believes he fulfilled his brief after taking over from the dismissed Thorup.

“Not just me, the staff I’ve had around me, and that was a challenge for us when on that Tuesday morning I got the call,” he said. “Where do we focus? What do we do? I see the game in a certain way, similar to Johannes, and I don’t think we’re that far away from it. So could we affect the team?

“How could we affect the environment and get everyone enjoying football and having fun, putting a smile on their face? And then, finally, how can we lift morale in the staff? On those three things we did that.

“The games are the most important. We looked at Middlesbrough and tried to create a game that we wanted, and I think we did that as well. And then Cardiff was a different type of game. I thought you saw moments where we were outstanding and then moments where probably we’ve fallen short a little bit too often this season.”