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.
19 Responses to “Theo Walcott”
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October 24th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
I’m thrilled for Theo and hope his development continues in an upward trajectory, though after watching him get bullied off the ball so much last season, I’m hesitant to make any bold pronouncements. But last night was a HUGE monkey off his back and I can’t wait to see what’s next!
October 24th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
Wow, Liverpool is in some trouble. This is going to be a game with two teams moving in opposite directions. I hope we can land a knock out blow to their psyche.
October 24th, 2007 at 4:36 pm
Did I forget to mention how much of a badass that Hleb is? It doesn’t matter how many are around him, he almost never loses the ball. How many people can do that?
October 24th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
i do hope liverpool will be able to win their rest of the matches and qualify though. the further they r into the CL, the better. otherwise they may concentrate on the league, that can only help them. if they can’t qualify for CL, at least an UEFA Cup spot to keep them occupied.
October 24th, 2007 at 4:52 pm
I hope Walcott is left out of the English national squad for as long as possible. Heaven forbid McClaren, or some other English coach, start to overuse and grind the kid down like they did with Rooney. I do not trust national teams to take care of players. There is too much pressure on managers - particularly England’s. As a result, most of them have a win today at all costs mentality.
October 24th, 2007 at 5:09 pm
@ josh: yeah he was definitely man of that match….now let him dominate a major match … eg this next weekend. then i would come around.
October 24th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
Nice piece on Theo in the Daily Mail:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/sport/football.html?in_artiacle_id=489540&in_page_id=1779
Also an interview with Van Persie:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/sport/football.html?in_article_id=489541&in_page_id=1779
“The present team is by far the best I’ve ever played in. Everything is about pure football.”
October 24th, 2007 at 6:43 pm
thks macmac for the link. Two excellent pieces of inside story.
“VAN PERSIE: At the start, the criticism was based on the fact that we lost too many points against the supposedly smaller clubs.
Now people are saying they want to see how we fare against the big clubs. I can’t wait for that because I know that we can beat everyone. That applies to the Champions League, too. “
October 24th, 2007 at 6:53 pm
USGunner, you are absolutely right. One great game against a weak team and suddenly the British press are lionizing the next great striker hope. The English National team are an overrated bunch who are not worthy enough to have Walcott called up. Message to McClaren or his replacement: Back the F**k up and keep your hands off this boy for at least two years. He should not become the savior of pampered bunch of Bentley driving losers. To Gerrard: You wish you had Walcott’s goals now after taking a beating from Besitkas.
October 24th, 2007 at 6:59 pm
The RVP interview is brilliant. He may swagger on the pitch but the boy has a brain that is filled with common sense. I love that he turn down more money at Seville to go with Arsenal because he wanted to develop his talent. I too turned down a job that would’ve paid me $3000 more so that I could increase my knowledge and ability. I’ve never regretted that decision because as Wenger told RVP, the money will come and it does.
October 24th, 2007 at 7:16 pm
Gerrard was not being very smart when he made that Theo remark. ‘Cos in few years’ time Gerrard will be over 30s and inevitably will be heading downhill. By then Walcott has every chance to become one of the key players of England national team. Guess what will happen then?
I remember reading a story a while ago - a land lady gave her young tenant a piece of advice when he’s about to walk up the stairs of a two story house:
“Be nice to people when you are walking up (the stairs), ‘cos you sure hell will bump into them again when you are going down”.
October 24th, 2007 at 8:09 pm
Calm down why don’t you? Theo had a good game against undoubtedly the worst team Arsenal have played this season, and one of his goals was given to him on a plate. Last season people were moaning about him and saying he was too lightweight and a waste of money, now they are going completely overboard and saying he is going to be better than Rooney.
Walcott is going to be a good player, maybe one day a great player, who knows - it’s a bit early to make such definitive predictions.
As for Gerrard, as I said in another thread, when you pull a quote out of thin air it can be made to look worse than it is - and even so I agree that Walcott had no right to be at the World Cup. That doesn’t mean Gerrard “hates” Walcott, it’s so bloody childish and pathetic to think that.
How about trying to understand why Gerrard said what he did, or give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he deserves it. After all, when Gerrard said he loved Liverpool he stuck by it, when Henry and Vieira said it they left Arsenal and now Henry can be seen kissing the Barcelona shirt every time he scores.
October 24th, 2007 at 8:26 pm
DannyT, Do u know the meaning of PREDICTION? When he already become a top class player, then u PREDICT he’s a great player, what’s the point?
October 24th, 2007 at 8:51 pm
There is too much hype placed on Walcott as a result of one game. The English press is going ga-ga over him - its like he is the next great hope for the English game. I want him to be very successful with Arsenal but he needs a good run in the first team and be able to nail down his most effective position - be it central striker or winger. The top attacking players for Arsenal against Slavia Prague were Helb and Cesc - they created all the chances bar 2 and they should be the ones to be feted. Lets not forget there are Eduardo and Bentdler who can offer alternative striking options for Arsenal. While he will improve, Walcott is still far from the finished article and the jury is still out on him.
October 24th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
I am happy for Walcott. He is doing well and still has a long way to go. But time is on his side and the signs are pretty good at the moment.
I feel for Bendtner. He is equally talented but not getting playing time. I hope that changes.
Liverpool lost in the CL and it seems the right time to put them out of contention for the league title.
October 25th, 2007 at 12:38 am
Gerrard’s job was to not bottle penalty kicks. Sven’s job was to pick the team. I don’t care what context it was said in, Gerrard should shut the eff up. (Trying to build up the hatred for Sunday, why can’t the Gerrard defenders, with their rational comments, see that?)
About Theo…I have to say I haven’t been a fan, thought he was another in a long line of highly overrated and disappointing English players. He’s still very young, though, and unlike Pennant and Upson and Hughes and others doesn’t seem to suffer from big-head syndrome and that ridiculous lad drinking culture and the insufferable WAGs and all the other bullsh*t that the ridiculous “Golden Generation” are prone to. Seems like a bright, decent kid, and he’s learning from the best, so I’m cautiously optimistic for his future. I still don’t think he’ll play a major part this year, but it’s good to see what he can do for Arsenal instead of watching highlights of his few Southhamptom goals and the occasional good performance for the England U-21s.
October 25th, 2007 at 8:49 am
It will be very interesting to see who starts alongside Ade at Anfield. In the 10 seasons I have supported Arsenal, we have beaten Liverpool at Anfield in the league only twice. On both occasions it was 2-1 and we went on to win the league title. Can we repeat that on Sunday?
October 25th, 2007 at 11:40 am
lol. i predict a 2-1 victory for arsenal!
October 25th, 2007 at 1:32 pm
THEO has got a long way to go bendtner is going to have to get a game soon i thought jan was his time when ade would have gone but he isnt i see a long in jan to a premier league club for him