Theo Walcott has no doubt had his fair share of criticism thrown at him this season. Sometimes a little too much in my view. He’s frustrating to watch at times it must be said, and he also has a tendency of drifting away in some games, becoming almost non-existent, not to mention his decision-making is still poor despite some improvement. But when he’s up and about and playing at his best you’ll know he’s there.
I have to say I’m a fan of Walcott, and after reading what Stewart Robson recently said about the young Englishman I just had to jump to his defence, though I have said a few bad things about him myself. But Robson took it to a whole new level.
Speaking on the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast show on talkSPORT earlier in the week, Robson said:
‘Theo Walcott is a ‘liability’ and should be sold by Arsenal this summer if he is asking for a wage increase.’
I disagree. Walcott isn’t a liability.
His contract expires this summer and I for one want him to stay.
But Robson insists it would be no great loss if Theo were to leave Arsenal.
The former Gunner went on to say:
‘It wouldn’t worry me if Theo Walcott were to leave tomorrow.
‘Theo Walcott, for me, is not a good footballer. He is an athlete who puts on a pair of football boots.
‘He is quick, he is fast, but when he was younger he should have been taught how to be better technically, how to find space, how to find awareness.
‘He has never done that and he is a liability when he is defending.
‘For Theo Walcott to want more money, I would let him go.’
I have to admit there is some truth to Robson’s claims. He may not have learned all he needed to when he was younger but he’s learning now. To be honest, he is improving and we can see it after every passing season.
I don’t know if I’m the only one who sees it but I think Walcott does track back well to cover when the opposition counters – on his good day of course.
I’m not sure how much more he wants for him to continue playing for us. I’m sure it’s not a ludicrous amount that isn’t reasonable for a player of his stature.
He has bags of potential in my opinion, and I’m sure we can all agree that if he wasn’t so inconsistent he could ask for whatever salary he wanted.
He may be ‘an athlete wearing football boots’, but if I’m not mistaken, isn’t the pace of a striker or winger the one thing opposition defenders hate the most? No one likes to come up against something they can’t catch.
I say give the lad a bit more time. He will be simply unstoppable once he gets his act together. He already has great pace, and with a bit more composure in front of goal, better decision-making and if he focuses more on his attacking side of his game, rather than the defensive, I bet Robson will be eating a large slice of humble pie in the future.
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aged 23, 11 goals, 13 assists. messi said of him: ”one of the most dangerous players I have ever played against” and he’s still improving. if the crowd were more patient with him, he’d have more confidence and improve faster. everyone was excited about him 5 years ago. now we’re tired of him – we need to be more patient. same goes for ramsey. let’s start worrying that he’ll not renew his contract and stop criticizing him.
I think walcott will prove a lot of people wrong this coming season. Check this link: pcstorage.org, you’ll like what it has to say.
Theo walcott stats 2010/11 season 13 goals 11 assists,samir nasri 15 goals five assists,theo walcott had injuries,in d beginin of the season he was out for three months and after during d stoke game wen he again got injured he went for 6 weeks thats like half the season,nasri played almost all the matches,they both played as wingers that season,theo on d right and nasri on the left,2011/12 season theo 11 goals 13 assists nasri 1 goal 9 assists,yet some guy wil say nasri is beta than theo,the only thing he is beta than theo is show boating,can someone tel rob stewart to shut up,jst becos he had d priviledge of playin 4 the Arsenal does nt gv him d right to start talkin rubbish of our current stars,
I take your point, but some of your stats are a bit misleading. Nasri took a long time to get going and made a lot of his appearances from the bench, particularly in the first half of the season.
I also think these are two very different players. Walcott is unquestionably a forward, while nasri is a midfielder, so it’s not necessarily up to nasri to score a lot of goals.
That said, theo’s stats alone speak for themselves. It’s a great return for the season, one he can be proud of.
The thing with theo is not his ability, it’s his consistency. When he’s good, he’s very good, but when he’s having a bad day he’s pretty useless. However, a couple of years ago, when he had an off-day he was worse than useless, he really was a liability, but now he puts in a shift and doesn’t give the ball away dangerously. What’s more his off-days are FAR less frequent than they used to be, so he’s a very worthy member of the squad and I expect him to keep on improving. My only issue really is that I think we rely on him a bit too much, and he’s not really good enough that we can be yet. That’s not his fault, and doesn’t detract from the fact he’s a very good player who should be kept around (as long as he doesn’t demand ridiculous wages, of course).
Some years ago a relatively unknown winger came to play for Arsenal. After a very ordinary start at the club he became the most prolific striker the EPL has ever witnessed and a true Arsenal legend. TH14 was unplayable when at his best and guess how old he was when he came to us….thats right…..23. It can take a player at least until that age to start showing his best form, now I’m not suggesting that TW14 will reach the heights of his number 14 predecessor, but give the guy a chance….he will become a very outstanding player
IDIOT! WHEN HENRY CAME TO ARSENAL HE COULD PASS, HE COULD CROSS, HE COULD BEAT A MAN ONE-ON-ONE AND HE GOOD TECHNIQUE. WALCOTT HAS NONE OF THESE AND I FIND IT VERY DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND THAT YOU GUYS WRITING THESE ARTICLES THINK THAT WALCOTT IS ANY GOOD. HE HAS BEEN AT ARSENAL FOR 6 YEARS NOW. IF YOU WANT TO DRAW A COMPARISON, COMPARE HIM TO AOC WHO IS 5 YEARS YOUNGER THAN HIM AND IS FAR BETTER THAN HIM. STUART ROBSON WAS ABSOLUTELY RIGHT – I WOULD SELL WALCOTT TOMORROW IF THERE IS ANY CLUB STUPID ENOUGH TO BUY HIM.
what you wrote will endear him to clubs 😛
you’re the stupid one!
I HOPE I DO ENDEAR HIM TO CLUBS – AS LONG AS ITS NOT ARSENAL!
His stats are also better than the likes of adam johnson arron lennon nani stewart downing and almost as good as juan mata and ashley young who played more.matches in better teams. Arsenal fans are too demanding from individuals especially the young players. look at ramsey better more goals and assists this season than rosicky diaby wilshire frimpong and coquelin put together yet still people slate him.
Wilshere didn’t even play this season and. Frimpong and diaby had barely any games btw them….moot point
This man should play every game like he did in the 2nd half against Spurs.
Not just when he feels like it. I’m done with part-timers, I want somebody who goves it their all every game.
Somebody compared him with Thierry … no, Thierry always gave 100% – even when younger.
Thierry is a born winner, he was always going to be a big player. Theo is different but he can be quality – just not Henry-level. He’s more like reyes. Not as technically gifted, but effective in his own way and can definitely contribute to a strong side, as he has done in providing chances for RVP this year.
I think TW missed his developmental years chucked into the WC lime light and English next world star. So he had to learn in the job so it takes longer. Let’s hope he reaches his full potential as an Arsenal player
At the age of 23 and playing as a winger Theo Walcott has scored 47 goals in all competitions and 42 assists!!!!!
amen!
I am a season holder and i have seen the total lack of his development since he arrived. His positional play when we dont have the ball is amateurish and he has a knack of keeping out of the way of the opposing team by hiding behind either our midfield or their full backs. He really is the most frustrating player i have watched at the Arsenal since Glen Helder! I agree wholeheartedly with Mr Robson. If we can get £25M for him then bite their hands off and invest it in something with more life and ambition like a potplant!
The difference is, Walcott scores goals.
And if you haven’t seen any development from him since he joined, I don’t know what to say. When he joined he should have gone into our youth team. He was nothing. He couldn’t even control the ball and pass it on. He’s not perfect now, and still somewhat inconsistent, but he’s our best winger currently ffs. The stats alone show that to be true.
THANK YOU STEVE. THANK GOD THERE IS SOMEONE OUT THERE WITH SOME SENSE AND FOOTBALL KNOWLEDGE – GREAT ARTICLE!
Theo’s pace is the only weapon we have some times. Even if he is less efficient, his pace can inject fear and give us the edge. RVP personally thanked Theo during his award speech for his many assists.
Can he play better? More intelligently? Of course. But then again, none of our other stars are perfect either. Just look at Gervinho.
The difference is Gervinho accepts that he has to improve, I remember a certain Robert Pires taking a season to get used to the PL and then leading us to the title. Theo the plank has been here 5 yrs now and has not developed (1 good game at Chelsea accepted) and now asks for a massive pay rise! He has ideas of Grandeur and talks the talk but delivers little