Has this pacey Englishman been a success at Arsenal?

Add as preferred source on Google

As Theo Walcott captained Arsenal in the 0-1 loss to Chelsea at the weekend, you have to wonder if he has lived up to his full potential since joining the club. It was the week of his tenth year in an Arsenal shirt, earning a total of 81 goals in 325 appearances for the Gunners. For a fee of £9.1 million, this might seem like a solid investment, but is it as simple as that?

Embed from Getty Images

Was Walcott Too Young for England?

For one reason or another, there will always be question marks on whether or not Walcott has delivered enough. After signing from Southampton, Walcott initially struggled at Arsenal, failing to make a single senior appearance in his first season. But despite not even managing to kick a ball, this did not stop Sven from dropping a bomb shell, picking Walcott for the 2006 England World Cup squad.

It was a huge shock. Sven Goran Eriksson had included an untested 17-year-old and put him under enormous pressure so early on in his career. Walcott himself admits it was far too early to be part of the Three Lions’ set up: ‘’I was thrown into the limelight straight away having not even played a Premier League game,’’ said the forward,“suddenly you’re surrounded by these top quality players and thinking. Do I deserve to be here?’’ There was a media frenzy surrounding the young gunner. Yet despite the intense pressure, Walcott wouldn’t go on to make his England debut for another two years.

At 16, having made only a handful of Championship appearances, it was undoubtedly too much too soon for Walcott. It was only after that challenging year that Walcott made his debut in the Premier League on the 19^th August 2006, setting up Gilberto Silva. The teenager fully announced himself to Arsenal fans when he scored his first goal for the club in the League Cup final against Chelsea and since then, has gone on to notch some genuinely important strikes for the Emirates outfit.