Expert Opinion
Walcott’s not bad, everyone just expected more
When you constantly hear about how wonderful something is, and then you finally see it for yourself, it’s bound to be underwhelming.
Nowhere is this truer than in football, a pastime so enjoyable partly because of the surprise element, the unpredictability. Think back to your favourite ever goal, and it’s probably not the best goal you’ve ever seen, it’s about the context. You probably saw it live (at the game, or on television), and it was so great because you weren’t expecting it.
This isn’t my favourite goal, but here’s an example. I remember Federico Macheda’s debut goal for Manchester United, in a 3-2 win over Aston Villa in 2009. I was watching the game in a pub with a friend, and when Macheda came off the bench in a desperate attempt for United to get a goal, while 2-1 down in a crucial game in the Premier League run-in, we both agreed that we’d never heard of him before.
At 2-2, in the third minute of injury time, Macheda picked the ball up, turned his marker, and curled the ball into the net from the edge of the box. We certainly weren’t expecting that – indeed, considering we hadn’t heard of the player until 10 minutes beforehand, we couldn’t have remotely guessed it might happen. It was a brilliant goal, a brilliant moment, and when later meeting up with another friend – who, crucially, hadn’t seen the game – we described it in great detail.
When he finally saw the goal that night on Match Of The Day 2, he was a little disappointed. We’d gone on about the goal so much, that he was expecting the greatest goal he’d ever seen, when in reality it was a good, if not sensational, strike. His impression of the goal was entirely influenced by the hype he’d heard before he’d even seen it.
For that one goal, read the entire career of Theo Walcott. Unless you were one of the few who saw his early season appearances for Southampton in 2005/06, you probably hadn’t seen him play when he was, ludicrously, included in England’s 2006 World Cup squad by Sven-Goran Eriksson.
Remember hearing the news? Walcott? How good must he be to be in the World Cup squad despite never playing a Premier League game? Fairly sensational, you’d have thought. That night, a radio pundit reasoned that even if he didn’t play a single minute at the World Cup, it wouldn’t be a problem – he was going to be a superstar, and would be getting valuable experience of a major tournament by being in the squad. Like Ronaldo in 1994. Yes, Ronaldo. We’ve got the next Ronaldo on our hands – oh, assuming we don’t get to see him play. How can any player possibly live up to that?
Since 2006, many have been waiting for the next Ronaldo. We’re never going to get that from Walcott, but we do have a player that has proved rather useful for Arsenal over the past two seasons. In a team renowned for their tendency to pass without going anywhere, Walcott provides a direct option on the flank. He makes forward runs, stretches the play, and creates gaps for others to exploit. His relationship with Robin van Persie, Arsenal’s key player, is excellent – Walcott’s last seven assists have been for the Dutchman. Walcott has his faults – his decision-making is often poor, he remains inconsistent, and without his pace he’d be a fairly limited player… yet he fulfils a very useful role.
I wish I hadn’t told my friend so much about Macheda’s goal, and Walcott will wish he wasn’t thrust into the limelight so early. First impressions are important – and in football, an entire player’s career can be judged in relation to an unrealistic early expectation.
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