Charlie Nicholas thinks Theo Walcott should’ve left Arsenal years ago when it became clear he was never going to reach the level we all expected.
Nicholas told Sky Sports show The Debate (via Daily Star): “I’ve got nothing bad to say about Theo. People can pick holes in his record, but they got a lot from Theo.
“They never got the true potential that we were all waiting on. But I think three or four years ago we realised that was never going to materialise.
“I think for that last two or three seasons, he should have moved by then and realised. As soon as people like Sanchez, Ozil and all the other strikers started coming into the football club, his time was coming to an end.”
In recent weeks, there have been a number of developments in the transfer speculation surrounding Walcott. Southampton seemed like his most likely destination, but then Everton stepped up their interest.
David Ornstein said the Toffees were more likely to fund the winger’s £110,000-a-week wages. He also said both clubs held talks with the Gunners, and Arsenal are holding out for a £20m transfer fee.
Sam Allardyce confirmed this news on Friday. Although he admitted nothing was over the line yet, he said negotiations are ongoing. He also told the media it would be a permanent deal, not a loan, as Arsenal want to sell or keep.
I can’t say I completely agree with Nicholas’ assessment of the situation though. Maybe Walcott should’ve moved on for his own sake, but Arsenal got some good performances out of him in the last couple of years.
2016/17 was arguably one of the winger’s best campaigns until that fateful day at Crystal Palace. This season, despite his limited game time, Walcott has four goals and five assists in nine starts.
As a fringe player, he’s done a decent job. Of course, he wants to be first-choice, and for that he’ll probably need to go elsewhere.