Arsene Wenger has explained why he’s given Theo Walcott another chance this season.

The forward has been pretty inconsistent during his decade in north London, no thanks to injuries, which have led to a lack of playing time and dips in form. However, this season he appears to have turned over a new leaf and has already scored three Premier League goals in six appearances. Last season he only managed five in total.

Speaking ahead of Arsenal’s Champions League clash with Basel, Wenger revealed that Theo has changed and that, with intelligent players, there’s always a chance they can turn things round.

“Why did I always stick with him? Because I think he is ambitious but he is intelligent and with intelligent people there is always a chance,” Wenger explained.

“He has what the big players have. They have a fair assessment of their performances and their weaknesses. Because he had two shocks last year… what happened to him [in the defeat] at Manchester United and what happened at the Euros [when he missed out on the England squad].

“I think he thought about the problem, I had a chat with him at the start of the season and he was clear. He is a strong character and when you look at his career he has gone [up and down] more than anybody. At 16 he had the World Cup, since then he has not been at the World Cup.

“Big injuries, big setbacks, questions about his quality and his commitment… he has assessed it all and came to a conclusion that looked to me looked very positive, and that’s why I thought he deserves a big chance.”

Could this be one of the examples where Wenger’s unwavering faith in a player pays off? I really hope so. After 10 years at Arsenal, it would be brilliant to see Theo flourish and finally amount to what he was always supposed to.

He’s 27 now so time’s running out. Hopefully, this is his year.