Why Arsene Wenger should vent his fury at England, not Theo Walcott
By Oliver Holt
Published 22:58 24/11/09
I wasn’t surprised Arsene Wenger lost his rag so spectacularly over Theo Walcott’s injury interrupted season on Monday.
But I was taken aback by the inference in some quarters that he was angry with the player himself.
Wenger has every right to be annoyed at the way Walcott’s situation was mishandled by England in the summer.
Walcott travelled with the England senior team to Kazakhstan and then went to Sweden with the England Under-21s for the European Championship.
That’s not Club vs Country any more. It’s Club vs Countries.
Walcott’s either a member of the senior set up or an Under-21 player. Not both.
The player who could be one of our most influential forwards in South Africa was stuck in the middle, powerless.
His treatment in the summer was a rare lapse of judgment by Fabio Capello and Under-21 boss Stuart Pearce, who should have looked at the bigger picture with Walcott.
Instead, Walcott came back from Sweden, got injured in pre-season with Arsenal and has barely kicked a ball since.
Wenger’s right to be mad but he should direct his fury at Capello and Pearce, not Walcott.
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