Theo Walcott was one of only two English players in the San Siro last night. Following his recent roasting by Nani, it was unlikely that Justin Hoyte would make an impact on the thrilling Champions League tie. Walcott, however, did - and was excellent in the final 20 minutes.

There has been an immense amount of pressure on the 18-year-old ever since he joined Arsenal from Southampton for a fee which could rise to £12m. This price is already starting to look reasonable and if Walcott can continue his recent impressive form, football pundits will look back and think this was a snip.

His progress was not helped by his inclusion in the England squad for the 2006 World Cup and whilst he has excelled on occasion for the Under-21s, his career at Arsenal has stuttered.

'With Tomas Rosicky injured, Walcott is pressing for a starting place on the right for Arsenal in the remaining games of the season'


The turning point for the youngster could well be the 2-2 draw with Birmingham, in a game that will be remembered for all the wrong reasons due to Martin Taylor’s assault on Eduardo.

Walcott stabbed home the equaliser to illustrate his predatory powers - but his second was a goal of real class. He picked up the ball on the right side and attacked the Brum defence at pace before burying his shot past Maik Taylor. This goal showed what a danger he can be cutting in from the right.

This morning Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Adebayor have received the praise after Arsenal became the first English team to beat AC Milan in the San Siro. Other players, including Aleksandr Hleb, William Gallas and Phillipe Senderos have also been lauded but the cameo from Walcott has not gone unnoticed.

Tony Cascarino commented in The Times: “Talk about pace and power in all areas. I have been banging on about Theo Walcott for a long time and he destroyed Kakha Kaladze for the second goal, showing toughness and balance to stay on his feet. I don’t think anyone could say that when he gets in those positions he doesn’t show a cool head. Every player that goes to Arsenal and plays under Arsène Wenger seems to improve.” 

And the “Arseblogger” also made special mention of Walcott: “Has Theo done enough to convince the boss he’s a better option than the ineffectual Emmanuel Eboue on the right-hand side? He came on and offered pace, directness and he didn’t forget he had defensive duties, too. Setting up the goal will have done him good.”

There was a marked difference between Eboue and Walcott last night. The Ivorian was particularly woeful, wasting one opportunity late in the first half by straying offside and missing a gilt-edged chance early in the second period. Whilst Tomas Rosicky is injured, Walcott is pressing for a starting place on the right for Arsenal in the remaining games of the season.

Arsenal and Arsene Wenger have already had their fingers burnt by English youngsters such as Francis Jeffers and Richard Wright. But, the last month could be a real turning point in the career of  Walcott. In the first-leg against Milan at the Emirates he also came off the bench and set up Adebayor in injury-time, except on that occasion the striker from Togo headed against the bar.

Walcott has plenty of time to build on his recent good form and this can only be good news for Arsenal and Fabio Capello.