Theo Walcott was named as the best player in Europe over the last weekend after his hattrick against West Brom.

In the their team of the week, Italian newspaper Gazetta dello Sport gave him a 9 out of 10, a rating almost impossible to achieve in the Italian media, well, certainly more impossible than they are to get in England.

He was the only player across Europe to be awarded that high a score, coming in 0.5 points above the next highest-rated player, Aleix Vidal who plays for Sevilla, making Theo the outstanding player from the action across the continent.

100% pass completion with one key pass, three crosses, a Who Scored rating of 9.96, eight shots, six on target and three goals from just 33 touches goes some way to showing how immense he was against the Baggies.

Since his return from first knee and then groin injury Theo has been used sparingly and has looked shorn of confidence until this week. A cameo against Sunderland saw him look like Arsenal’s most dangerous player after being introduced from the bench, a performance he built on in style against West Brom at the weekend.

In focus: Theo Walcott v West Brom