I said long ago that Theo Walcott has the potential to be better than Wayne Rooney. I know, some will say I’m getting carried away by one good game. Nevertheless, I stand by my statement.

Rooney’s an unique player, mainly from his physical strength. At 16, he was as strong as many 26 year olds, if not stronger. That allowed him to make a impact straight away.

Difference is, Theo’s got the touch. His touch, balance and close control is not something you see often in a typical English player. Shawn Wright Phillips, Ashley Young, Jermaine Pennant, Aaron Lennon et al have all got pace, but they are more direct type of players – hugging the line, charging down the byline and crossing into the box.

Walcott, on the other hand, has more dimensions in his game, and surely a far bigger upside.

Though he broke into the Southampton first team at 16, from what I have heard, he’s relatively a late comer to football. He didn’t play football as a kid, which explains some of his poor decision making when he first began playing for us.

Luckily, Theo is surely a quick learner. The important thing is, fundamentally he looks very solid. When you’ve got a good touch like he does, the combination of the two will allow him to go very far.

How far a footballer (particularly an attacking player) can expect to go is very much down to his touch. No matter how hard you work, if you don’t have a good first touch, you aren’t going to go very far. When you’ve got a good first touch, to develop the rest of your technical attributes will become far more easier.

Perhaps some will think I am talking nonsense, but time will tell.