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Theo Walcott: the great hope who failed to kick on in Arsenal comfort zone | Amy Lawrence

His departure for Everton is a symbol of the later Wenger years, of always being same old Theo when new Theo was requiredIn the end the writing on the wall was spelled out boldly enough for Theo Walcott to recognise the comfort zone was not really that comfortable at all. Perhaps the most surprising thing about the departure of a forward who spent more than a decade at Arsenal, mostly in this strange space where he grew older and signed new contracts while being judged about how far he was – or ever could reach – on the potential fulfilment scale, is that he uprooted at all. Walcott has in some ways been a perfect symbol of the later Wenger...

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The dispiriting case of how ‘new’ Theo Walcott disappeared for England | Dominic Fifield

The forward has apparently turned a corner at Arsenal, but his contribution against Malta and Slovenia was minimal and not good enough for a player deemed a ‘leader’ by Gareth SouthgateIt was the sense of anticlimax which was so dispiriting. The buildup had been brightened by all that encouraging talk of a “new Theo Walcott”, the assessments delivered by club manager and player himself and backed up most persuasively by resurgent form at Arsenal. Those eye-catching goals against Chelsea and Basel were plundered by a forward who had acknowledged recent failings and was determined to prove he had changed. Rivals lining up across the back for Malta and Slovenia would surely be quaking in their boots.And then reality clicked in...

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