Theo Walcott last week went public with his desire to stay at Arsenal, despite doubts lingering over whether he will sign a new deal or leave in the summer when his current contract expires. However, Walcott has claimed that the sticking point in negotiations is not money-orientated but instead his aspiration to play as a central striker as opposed to on the flank where he is currently plying his trade. But is the notoriously inconsistent 23-year-old ready to make the step up?
I’ve written about the enigma that is Theo Walcott before, and the player’s desire, that perhaps could be construed as an ultimatum, to play through the middle poses more questions and, if anything, heaps more pressure on the player. Walcott is perhaps one of the most hotly debated players in Europe. Nobody can seem to decide if he is indeed the real deal, a waste of space, or still a promising youngster with the potential to improve further in the future.
Arsène Wenger evidently doesn’t believe that the former Southampton trainee is complete enough to play as a striker. Walcott’s inability with his back to goal is inevitably the main reason behind his reluctance to deploy the player centrally. He obviously doesn’t have the build or physique to be a target man and hold the ball up, but needs to develop his skills in terms of linking with his teammates, particularly runners from midfield who, in a team as free-flowing as Arsenal, will more often than not be looking to support the frontmen.
Wenger claims that Walcott’s finishing has improved significantly and that in front of goal he is now “absolutely amazing.” His brace against Coventry City in the Capital One Cup last Wednesday is perhaps evidence of this, although it is of course worth noting that Walcott’s goals came whilst he was deployed in his usual wide role. This position undoubtedly suits a player of Walcott’s attributes more than a central role. He’s most effective coming off the flank and exploiting the space between full-back and centre-half, a task he can perform better than others because of his explosive pace, and his aforementioned finishing ability means he can make a tangible contribution in the final third. His crossing can still be wayward but his multitude of assists for Robin van Persie last season suggests that his delivery has indeed improved.
The rise of Gervinho this season has also thrown a cat amongst the pigeons somewhat. The Ivorian was employed solely as a winger last campaign but has been given the chance to play centrally this time around, often switching with Lukas Podolski who starts on the left but tends to drift inside, more often than not to link up with Santi Cazorla with whom the German has already struck up an effective partnership. And there lies the difference between the players. Gervinho can also frustrate but his movement is more intelligent, or at least it causes the opposition more problems than Walcott who can be accused of being too predictable. With four goals already this season, Gervinho is obviously doing something right, and his strike against Chelsea was a perfect demonstration of what he can do; both in his ability to create space for himself and actually putting the ball in the net. One has to wonder whether Walcott possesses the savvy to have eked that half a yard the Ivorian did to create an opportunity. Despite Gervinho being a better fit for the role, Walcott will certainly be irked somewhat that his teammate has been converted into a central player before him.
But the fact is that Gervinho, Podolski and Walcott playing as a front three, constantly swapping positions in a flexible system, can potentially be devastating. Sophisticated movement can leave opposition defenders confused as to who they should pick up, thus giving Arsenal’s forwards perhaps a split-second head-start and, as we all well know, such margins, no matter how fine, can so often be what differentiates the winners from the losers.
Walcott still has a tendency to go missing. His last two appearances in the league, admittedly both from the bench, have epitomised this, with his contributions against Manchester City and Chelsea ranging from minimal to non-existent. Despite occasionally delivering in the big games, he, unsurprisingly, needs to do it more consistently, and impose himself with a greater authority. He simply isn’t cut out to be a top-level forward. Yet. But Walcott has certainly improved as a player, and if he continues to do so, he’ll eventually get his wish of playing as a centre-forward. His manager claims he simply has to be patient, and he could do a lot worse than listen to the advice of Arsène Wenger.
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Easily answered, let him play as the central striker in the Capital One Cup. he if can prove it there then you have your answer without causing the team issues in the more important cup and league competitions!
Walcott is not good enough for a centre foward position. He might be fast and a good finisher but the position is all about good movement and link- up play. Gervinho obviously is way better than Walcott as a centre foward. Both have deficiencies in decision making but that is masked by the position. As a neutral i think Giroud will come good as his confidence grows. His movement off the ball is excellent but his finishing: Awful.
Rightly said JSP2303. Play him in the Capital One Cup. And why not? We can also hand him a starting berth in the striker’s role with the U-21. Secondly, Arshavin has done more than enough to justify a chance in the middle.
If you don’t let him play as a cs for a minimum of five to eight games,Wenger will never know.It’s a gamble.
The knocks on Walcott as a central striker are the same as the knocks on Defoe: Too small, too unreliable as a passer, can’t hold the ball up, poor decision making, etc. Interesting thing is that so far this season Defoe has improved considerably in all these areas. And when he is making intelligent runs, holding up play just enough, distributing effectively… well, he’s actually somewhat more effective b/c he’s a better-than-average finisher, is stronger than you’d expect from looking at him, and he has wonderful pace.
Put shortly, if players like Walcott and Defoe can become serviceable in their weak points, they actually can be really effective lone strikers b/c their strengths are not typical lone striker strengths, which creates difficulties for the defense.
Good piece, I agree with gunner4ever, we’re not really going to know about Walcott as a striker until he’s had a decent run at it. I actually think he could be better in the center than out wide and he could get his fair share of goals. Out wide he is often frustrating when he cannot beat his man with pace alone. I don’t think this will be such an issue as a striker and I reckon he can learn to tailor his movement to get onto lots of through balls playing with the likes of Cazorla…agree it would be a gamble giving him the time.
I think he could play as a pseudo-striker, like Fabregas does at Barcelona. http://www.cashcrate.com/4082210