In the aftermath of Eduardo’s injury, a big piece of news that has been easy to lose sight of is the momentous moment in Theo Walcott’s fledgeling career - his first Premiership goals for the club.
And the young Englishman has been speaking about his feelings on Eduardo and whether he thinks he can step up and make the second striker place his own. But before his own opportunity, comes the welfare of his team mate, and in the interview with Arsenal.com, Walcott expressed his thoughts on his Croatian team mate:
“Of course Eduardo has been on our minds,” Walcott told Arsenal.com. “It was a quiet coach ride home and felt just like a loss in truth. We had a couple of days off and then actually went bowling to keep our team-spirit up. A couple of lads went to see him yesterday and reported back to the rest of us. But we have tried to forget about it in a way and concentrate on Saturday. We don’t all want to rush there and then gradually stop. It will be more difficult for him in later months so we want to be there for him the whole time he is out.”
One man’s loss is another man’s gain in any case, and Theo is hoping that this time he will be able to get a run in the side which will see him progress towards the player he has the potential to be.
“I feel upbeat, I feel confident,” Theo said in the interview. “The goals helped and they gave me a boost so hopefully I can take that into Saturday. It was nice to get a poacher’s goal. My agents have told me I need more of those. Then the second was more about the kind of player I am. Left-foot too, which is something people have questioned me about. Now I just have to improve with every game and time will tell [if I can fill the striker’s role]. After all, the boss picks the team so when I do play I will just do my best.”
I strongly believe that Walcott can now prove his worth once and for all. A lot has been made of his career thus far, and a lot of it has been harsh criticism of him, from the moment Arsenal signed him in a deal of £5m, rising to around £12m based on clauses. The publicity surrounding him then doubled when Sven made the bizarre decision to take him to the World Cup but then didn’t even play him, and ever since every bad performance has been highlighted, whether by Arsenal fans or the media themselves.
Despite this I do believe he has improved as a player since he came to Arsenal, and idiots such as Stan Collymore who believe he should leave Arsenal and get regular football are wrong to say this is the only way he’ll improve. He has matured very well, and for any other 18 year old his position at the club is very good. He may not play every game, but he is an important member of the first team squad. Players like Febian Brandy at Man Utd and Ben Sahar at Chelsea are similar ages and are not untalented, but don’t get close to where Theo’s at in development.
He is the only option we have until van Persie is back, and who knows when that will be? Bendtner is too similar to Adebayor to be effective as anything other than a gamble as a substitute if we’re chasing a match. The little and large combination of Walcott and Adebayor may well prove vital come the end of the season, so everyone get behind him.
