Friday 12 December 2008

Arsenal forward Theo Walcott wins a prize.


Young gunner Theo Walcott was named a Young Player of the Year award presented by BBC.

It is sometimes hard to believe that Theo Walcott is still only 19. The Arsenal forward was picked by Sven Goran-Eriksson for England's World Cup 2006 squad at only 17 after playing only a handful of games for Southampton, and has made rapid progress since he signed for Arsenal in January 2006.

Walcott has spoken today of the pressure he has faced as a very young man trying to make his way at a high-profile club such as Arsenal.

"A lot of young players develop without the cameras on them but Arsenal are on television literally every week," said Walcott.

"And considering I went to the World Cup, a lot of eyes were on me at an early age. Obviously there is a lot of pressure. It's up and down really.

"There are good periods and bad periods as young players always have and the best thing is to just bounce back from it."

The player also remembered the sacrifice he had to make to become a top professional, and the sacrifices made by those close to him such as his father.

"At a young age it's just a fantastic achievement for myself," he said. "I've worked hard.

"Me and my dad were talking the other day. Just the mileage, all the cars blowing up, all the hard work, all the sacrifices and everything we had to make and it's all paid off in the end. All the decisions have been the right ones."

Walcott was also clearly delighted and proud to represent England, and he showed this year that he had really come of age internationally by bagging a hat-trick in England's 4-1 demolition of Croatia in Zagreb.

"It's brilliant to be part of the England squad at a young age, to play regularly," he added.

"I didn't expect to play in any of the qualifiers or to start against top international teams in the world."

Despite not expecting to start, Walcott has excelled. His experiences haven't jaded him though, and one can still sense his almost child-like enthusiasm when he speaks about the excitement of scoring that hat-trick in Zagreb.

"I've had a lot of experience at a young age going to all sorts of stadiums and hostile places," admits the youngster

"But that first 15 minutes I was so nervous, I couldn't believe it.

"You could probably tell I lost the ball a couple of times but then got a good cross in and got a goal and from there it was just sky high really.

"I pinched myself afterwards. The whole team were fantastic that night. That's what we needed for England to get the right result and I don't think anyone expected that.

"I got the match ball signed by all the players on the way back. I got my shirt signed and I've got it in my house now. It's nice to look back at that and show people, it's fantastic to look at."

Walcott is currently sidelined due to the shoulder injury he picked up in November whilst on international duty. His expected return in February is eagerly anticipated by Gunners fans.

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