Arsenal were struggling against Barcelona last night and looked like they'd be coming away with nothing until young Theo Walcott came on as a sub. He quickly scored one goal and then later crossed the ball into the area resulting in Arsenal getting a penalty. His speed and vision are a major asset to the England side. He's the style of player more suited to the international stage than certain others who the media prefer to focus on.

Capello was at the game. He must have been relieved when Walcott came on because up until then there were no English players taking part.

The other young player I really liked the look of was Spurs Aaron Lennon - what happened to him?

Last year Aaron Lennon was voted Spurs supporters player of the season, but he's only made 18 league appearances so far this season. I remember him coming on to replace the aged and struggling Beckham on the right during an England game and giving the team new life. Suddenly our weak right side became strong and fast. I think he and Walcott should both go to the World Cup because England does lack speed. They both play similar positions, but Walcott is also capable of playing more central.

They were saying on 5 live the other day how dissapointing Theo Walcott has been since he was picked for England at the last world cup and was hailed as the next big thing. He rarely produces an above average performance and games like last nights and the hat-trick for England are sandwiched between dozens of mediocre games.

He is fast, but defenders know that they must drop back a couple of yards and then they can catch him. I don't see him as a big star of the future as he doesn't have enough attributes in his game.

robbiex wrote:
He rarely produces an above average performance and games like last nights

He is fast, but defenders know that they must drop back a couple of yards and then they can catch him. I don't see him as a big star of the future as he doesn't have enough attributes in his game.

Totally agree - as, it would appear, does Mr Wenger who doesn't always pick him.

And Chris Waddle, that former world class winger, agrees with robbiex's last point.

He's still only 21!

One thing to bear in mind about Walcott is that he didn't start playing the game seriously until he was eleven years old (and by that I mean coaching by professsionals).

Arsene Wenger has talked about this on a couple of occasions, and the great man feels Theo should be given a little more time as he is maybe 2-3 years behind some of his peers.

When I played for my prep team my hero was Darren Huckerby. He played the same style of football as Brazil and would have been a major asset for England but he was never picked because he didn't play for a big enough league team. Theo Walcott plays a similar game and even though he plays for a big league team he doesn't play the kind of hit and run football that is favoured in this country. He dribbles and weaves and he knows where to place the ball. I think he'll be bought by a European club like Barcelona or Inter Milan where they can give him better coaching more suited to his talents. English football doesn't appreciate the likes of Huckerby and Walcott. They only appreciate that kind of play if it comes with a foreign name like Ronaldo.

I'll always remember Walcott's hat trick for England against a decent Croatia side.

Totally agree - as, it would appear, does Mr Wenger who doesn't always pick him.

And Chris Waddle, that former world class winger, agrees with robbiex's last point.




I don't know whether or not you're are been sarcastic about Chris Waddle as been world class. He was a very good winger, although he appeared sluggish. He was part of England's most successfull world cup campaign in the last 40 years (Italia 90). Sadly he missed the vital penalty that could have helped them to get into the final.

As much as I believe Wenger is a great manager I also find him to be quite exasperating and a very sore loser. For some bizarre reason he hates other teams getting 'physical' with his boys, which is odd as football is a physical contact sport isn't it? Wenger does tend to get very petulant when his side aren't winning which I feel has made him most unpopular with other managers and fans alike.

A typical Frenchman. (sorry couldn't resist that)