THREE weeks into his twentieth year and Theo Walcott is
staging a valiant but losing battle to grow a decent covering of
stubble.
But he knows the moment he became a man ... when he took a deep
breath, marched towards Arsene Wenger and asked him for a quiet
word.
"Sometimes, it's been frustrating," admitted Walcott.
"There are times when I haven't deserved to play because I
wasn't playing well enough but there have been times when I have
been playing well and not been involved and that struck me a
bit.
"So I actually went up to him for the first time and asked him
what I had to do to start.
"I initiated the conversation and walked over to him on the
training ground. It was a difficult thing to do. I was nervous. But
I'm glad I did it.
"And he was fine. In fact, I think he thought it was really big
of me to go to a top manager when I was 18 and ask what I had to do
to improve."
Not quite a showdown, certainly not a practice-pitch bust-up,
but a definite watershed in Walcott's short but chequered Arsenal
career.
Since that heart-to-heart earlier in the season, Walcott has not
exactly established himself as an automatic pick.
But he has become what Americans would call a 'go-to' player.
The man the coach relies on to step in and make a difference, to
lift a performance, to send a current of expectation through the
crowd, to inject a burst of speed into a one-paced performance.
But now, that is not enough for Walcott. He said: "Not many
19-year-old players are doing what I'm doing.
"And it's an honour even to sit on the Arsenal substitutes
bench. And when I come on, I like to think it lifts the team and
lifts the supporters.
"But now I want to push on. I want to be starting and starting
regularly."
But Wenger - for the first time in his life - seems to be
playing the long-ball game.
"He has been bringing me on slowly," said Walcott. "But now I
want to be pushing on to the next level."
And that next level will mean a move to the central striking
role vacated by none other than a certain Thierry Henry.
Whie Emmanuel Adebayor has given Arsenal an added, muscular,
goalscoring dimension, they have missed the direct speed and
electric running of Henry.
But Walcott revealed that Wenger has plans for him to fill those
golden boots.
He said: "When I had the chat to him, he wanted me to be more
aggressive in my style. Not going around kicking people but
aggressive in an attacking sense. I think I have done that.
"I think I will be playing as a striker next season and the boss
seems to think that as well.
"I will play anywhere for the team but as a striker seems to be
the future.
"I would never compare myself to Thierry because he is just an
unbelievable player - in fact, when I first signed for Arsenal, one
of the first things I did was to have my picture taken with
Thierry.
"But I was star-struck then. Not any more. I feel comfortable
now. I feel established as a Premier League player and I want to
push ahead.
"The boss is taking a similar route with me as he took with
Thierry - playing me out wide, protecting me a bit and then going
upfront later in my career.
"The boss has told me that is the way he sees it. And I am
working on a lot of things. I am trying to dictate when I want the
ball, always trying to be on the front foot. And I am doing extra
finishing practice after training, working on things like my left
foot."
When Walcott signed for Arsenal from Southampton as the most
expensive 16-year-old in the history of British football,
expectations were high.
When Sven Goran Eriksson took him to World Cup 2006 - before
Wenger had even selected him for a Premier League game - those
expectations went into orbit.
And, according to Walcott, those people who perceive a
non-fulfilment are being harsh.
He explained: "Everyone seems to forget that I didn't play for
the first seven months I was here.
"And even though I didn't play in the World Cup, everyone was
expecting big things of me straight away.
"And then towards the end of last season, I had the shoulder
problem. When everyone realised it, they just kept battering me on
the shoulder, knowing it could pop out at any time. It was a
nightmare and I was in a lot of pain.
"We knew we had to get something done so we did and it's all
sorted now.
"So it has been an eventful two years but I think I am so much a
better player and a better person."
During that period, he has had the unstinting support of his
family with mum and dad, Lynn and Don, moving into his
five-bedroomed house in North London.
And repaying his father is one of the driving forces behind his
bid to make his name with club and country.
He recalled: "My dad lost his job for me. When I played for
Southampton, Harry Redknapp told me before the Leeds game I was
going to start so I rang my dad.
"He asked for a day off and his boss wouldn't allow him to have
a day off. His boss actually said it's either your son or his
job.
"It wasn't a choice and that sort of thing gives me an extra
incentive to do well for my father and the whole family."
Indeed, even though Walcott never tasted a second of action in
Germany two summers ago, no parent was prouder than Don.
And Theo - an unused substitute in the recent friendly in the
Stade de France - believes the appointment of Fabio Capello can
open the international door a fraction wider.
He said: "I was disappointed not to get a run against France but
it was still a great experience. And he is going to pick you if you
are playing well.
"He is picking on form rather than on names, which is good.
"In the past, some players have been playing really well but
because their name was not that big, they might not have got
in."
Arsenal's entire season could, of course, be reduced to rubble
in the next two games - defeat at Anfield on Thursday and at Old
Trafford next Sunday would officially end this season's competitive
interest.
But Walcott insists that a trophy-less campaign would not be a
disaster.
He said: "Yes, it would be disappointing. But this is a young,
developing team and we will improve and be better for the
experience.
"And we still play unbelievable football. The best I've ever
seen. And to be part of that is a privilege." Only now, Walcott
wants that part to be bigger. And as they say at The Emirates,
Arsene Knows.
Damn I feel for theo. Why the fucking hell AW likes to play
that Ebuseless.
