Frank Lee
It was a day I, and many Gooners I know have longed for. Theo Walcott has left Arsenal. Now under normal circumstances this would be hailed as a time of progress for the club, as let’s face it, Walcott has never been “top, top, quality” in the words of the manager. But the inability of Arsenal to persuade Alexis Sanchez to extend his stay, and his departure in the same transfer window does not bode well for the future. As for Theo, we were excited at the prospect of great things when he arrived, but it never really worked out. Here are ten memories of Walcott’s time at Arsenal.
1. Signed in January 2006 but not played until the following season
Strange to think it, but Walcott was actually an Arsenal player during the club’s final season at Highbury. Yes, he’s been around that long. And yet, I have a memory of Walcott being on the bench for one game – maybe Birmingham away – but there was never any chance of him getting on. His non-appearances can only have been to ensure some bonus payment on his transfer fee for appearances that season was not paid to Southampton. So, one for the future.
2. The 2006 World Cup
We still wonder about this one to this day. Theo, now 17 years old, and having never made a first team appearance for Arsenal, was picked by Sven Goran-Eriksson to go to Germany with England for the World Cup Finals. On what basis? Arsene Wenger’s recommendation? Maybe the Arsenal manager was trying to handicap the national team so that his native France would have a better chance? It seemed like madness at the time and the fact that, in spite of Michael Owen getting crocked in the second group game, Theo never appeared in that or any of the three remaining matches Eriksson’s side played just backs up the notion that the Swede had lost his marbles.
3. The 2007 League Cup Final
Arsene Wenger fielded a young team against a far more experienced Chelsea side at Cardiff for this final. And in fairness, for the first half hour, the young guns had Jose Mourinho’s side on the ropes. Theo has made plenty of appearances by this time, but was still to score. He put that right by opening his account in this final to put his team one up. But it was the only one of several good chances Arsenal managed to convert during their period of dominance. In the second half Didier Drogba scored two goals leaving Theo with a runners’ up medal. It was a case of men against boys, and Walcott then was a strip of a lad, in contrast to a few years later, when he bulked up as if he had been taking boldenon (which of course he did not!)
4. 2007-08
Probably Arsenal’s best team since the stadium move, one that came closest to winning a title. Theo made plenty of appearances, but most as a substitute. He came on in the second leg of the Champions League quarter final against Liverpool at Anfield to provide one great Theo moment. 2-1 down in the game with the clock ticking down, Theo made a fantastic run down the wing before teeing up Adebayor to level the scores, meaning Arsenal would go through on away goals. Of course, within a minute, defensive naivety cost Wenger’s team and the Scousers equalised. It’s something we’d get very used to over the next ten years…
5. Inheriting Thierry Henry’s shirt number
In the summer of 2008, with Thierry Henry’s number 14 shirt number unclaimed since his departure 12 months earlier, Theo switched from number 32 to 14. Henry had given the youngster plenty of advice during his full debut season, the club’s first at the Emirates. However, in spite of scoring 100 goals for the club, it’s fair to say that although he might have shared the Frenchman’s incredible burst of pace, his finishing ability was nowhere near as clinical.
6. England hat-trick v Croatia
There were already a lot of doubts that Theo could become the finished article after two seasons of seeing the teenager actually play, but then he’d pop up with something like this in September 2008 – a hat-trick in a World Cup qualifier away to Croatia. However, his goals tally for his national team outside of this game says it all. Five goals in 46 appearances. It’s not exactly lethal, especially given the number of bang average nations England play during the qualifying stages for major tournaments. It’s not wonder he’s never been selected in a finals squad since.
7. Holding the club to ransom in contract negotiations
In January 2013, Walcott’s contract was running down, with a free transfer possible at the end of that season. The previous summer, the club had sold Robin Van Persie to Manchester United as the Dutchman entered the final year of his own deal at Arsenal. With marketable star names thin on the ground, poster-boy Theo had the club over a barrel and to add insult was actually in a good run of scoring goals. The club eventually relented to Walcott’s wage demands and handed over a reported £100,000 a week to secure him until the end of the 2015-16 campaign.
8. Sticking two fingers up to Spurs
In January 2014, Theo was badly injured in an FA Cup 3rd Round tie at home to Spurs. Stretchered off in front of the away section with his team 2-0 up, Walcott received some verbal abuse, so in response put two fingers up to remind the Tottenham fans of the score. A hail of coins was returned, many hitting the stretcher bearers, who turned out to be Spurs fans themselves. Theo was out of action for several months, but his final appearance of that season finished on a note that delighted Gooners.
9. The 2015 FA Cup Final
It was a walk in the park against a poor Tim Sherwood managed Aston Villa side. In his time on the sidelines recovering from his cruciate ligament injury the previous year, Theo had turned into a musclebound, pumped up tattoo boy. He had scored a hat-trick in the final Premier League game of the season at home to West Brom, to earn his a starting spot ahead of Olivier Giroud as the fulcrum of The Gunners’ attack at Wembley. He responded by opening the scoring shortly before half-time (having missed the 2014 final through injury) and Arsenal never looked back.
10. Out in the Cold
Having been given innumerable chances by Arsene Wenger, the one area of his game Theo never mastered was consistency. He could, on occasion, look like a world beater. But the other 90% of the time he looked like a League One quality marksman, missing chances and mis-placing passes. The manager’s patience finally ran out this season, as Theo was demoted to the Europa League / League Cup / FA Cup team, not making a single Premier League start. There is a theory that he was punished this way not because of a repeated failure to deliver regularly but because of comments made after the defeat at Crystal Palace last season that the opposition players simply wanted it more. I admire the player’s honesty, but suspect the manager didn’t. Desperate to revive his career and have some hope of making the cut for the World Cup Final squad that travels to Russia, Walcott decided to move to Everton to see if he could get more first team football under Sam Allardyce.
In conclusion, the post-Highbury Arsene Wenger managed era has been labelled elsewhere as ‘The Walcott Years’. Full of promise, but ultimately, delivery was all too rare. With Theo’s move, Arsenal fans will have to find a new target for their frustration, and going on recent performances, there seem plenty of candidates. Farewell Theo, you provided plenty of drama, good and bad, alongside a good number of complete no-shows. Don’t forget to take the espresso machine with you now.
