I'd use him sparingly, against sides that play a high line. Against counter-attacking teams, he's more useless than a chocolate teapot.
I agree, he should fight for his place with Oxo (who I think is better on the right than in the middle), he's definitely got a big role to play at Arsenal though. I know people say that he's had 6 years to prove himself and he hasn't, but I disagree. When we signed him he was only 17 and he broke into the first team pretty quickly. Then for the next 3 seasons he had shoulder injuries, which eventually needed surgery and back and hamstring problems, he was out of sorts and never got a run without injury. It's only really last year that he started to come good. Remember at the start of 2010/11 season he was the top scorer in the league. This season was definitely a mixed bag for him, and people rightly got frustrated with him, because at times he was poor. But he still had a pretty effective contribution when you look at his stats and the goals against the Chelsea and the Spuds are an example of what he can do. I maintain that it would be a massive mistake to let him go. If he went to one of our rivals it would end up kicking us in the teeth.
I agree that Walcott is a confidence player - unfortunately he is gutless and always will be. More often than not when faced with the easy option of passing backwards he will take it instead of committing a defender. For £20m, which we could get (even though he is not worth it) I would sell him.
That's going too far. Walcott has taken **** load of stick from everyone. He has had to deal with all of that and he still gets on with it and does produce in the final third. The Spurs game was a prime example of Walcott turning it around. He could have easily let his head drop after his first half performance but he came out in the second and finished off Spurs.
Play him as an out and out stiker FFS...he has pace and a good strike...a bit like Owen in his hey day.
I'm not convinced. he's too erratic in front of goal. Did you see his pathetic shot for England the other day? Dreadful.
Agree but if we don't sell him I'd rather his pace was being used as a goal threat rather than in the wings where he almost always wastes a cross. I think Theo is a bit like Clichy...he would look like a class player when surrounded with quality (confidence etc) but distinctly average when asked to be the main creative force in a team (eg England and at times us)
In order for him to play as a striker, he would need a partner upfront with him which would mean changing our formation just to accommodate in that role, he lacks the physical attributes to hold off defenders and he would be playing in an area that is arguably more congested than his current position. He already struggles to beat his man so how could he deal with big centre backs the likes of Company, Terry and Rio etc who would most likely bully him out of the game.
Let's all be realistic here, at the moment Walcott is the best player on our right wing. If we utilise him properly, he can be quite dangerous. However, on skill terms, he is below the likes of OXO, Campbell and Miyaichi. From the 3, OXO has already forced his way into our first team and it'll only be a matter of time when the other two make it. Another aspect that'll affect Walcott is Gervinho, can he come back from the dreadful second half season? As it stands i would keep Walcott until the others come through. The future for me is Campbell, OXO, Miyaichi and Podolski. Unless Walcott improves his dribbling/ball possession skills and strength, he will struggle to retain his place in the face of those players. But at the moment, his place in the side is safe....
I agree, he seriously lacks the physical strength to play up front on his own. We simply do not have the formation and playing style to support him playing CF. I've seen him on many occasions shoved off the ball easily, and we are talking about smaller left backs! Unless you play the ball into space and in front of him, he struggles to out muscle/trick his way past the defender.
It does tell you how much our squad has faded over the years that Walcott is nailed on. But this will change in time my friend, there are better players coming through...
I love how people criticise Theo then claim we should buy players who don't get anywhere near the number of goals or assists that he does. The truth is theo outperforms Lennon, Johnson, Malouda, Valencia, Nzogbia, Ben Arfa, Dyer etc.. yet receives more criticism than all of them combined. We should keep Theo he's a very useful player.
I want Theo to stay. His last two seasons have been very productive for both goals and assists. It suggests he is improving. One way he has improved is his shooting, another is his skills. His judgement is a little better, but still more to learn. He needs at least two more seasons to reach his full potential, so I wouldn't dream of letting him go.
