‘Should’ve been a gamechanger’: Rio Ferdinand says 34-year-old attacker seriously underachieved at Arsenal

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Theo Walcott called time on his playing career earlier this year, and the winger leaves behind something of a strange legacy.

The attacker burst onto the scene as a 16-year-old, earning an England call-up and a move to Arsenal before he had even gotten his GCSE results.

The world was at Walcott’s feet, but, he never truly developed into one of the world’s best players as many expected him to.

Speaking on Filthy Fellas, Rio Ferdinand has been discussing Walcott’s career as a whole, and he says that the 34-year-old underachieved at Arsenal compared to what was expected of him when he arrived as a teenager.

Walcott underachieved

Ferdinand spoke about his former England teammate and his time at Arsenal.

“I think he (Oxlade-Chamberlain) is a better player than Theo Walcott. I think Theo Walcott underachieved during his career. If I was Theo, he had a good career don’t get me wrong, but he should’ve been a gamechanger for Arsenal and gone levels I think,” Ferdinand said.

“He had the potential to be the guy who put Arsenal on his back and he never got to that, but he should have.”

Didn’t hit the heights

Walcott was a very good player for a time, but if you’re old enough to remember when he first emerged, you’ll know that his career trajectory was supposed to be very different.

This was meant to be the next big thing in English football. A future superstar who would win Golden Boot after Golden Boot, and while he carved out a very decent career for himself, he didn’t hit the heights expected of him.

Walcott should have no regrets. He had a career that many players can only dream of having, but, he was a victim of massive media hype and over-expectation.

It’s easy to see why Ferdinand thinks Walcott underachieved at Arsenal.