On October 6, Beijing time, the Premier League Southampton officially announced an agreement with Everton, and Theo Walcott joined the Saints on loan for one year, of which the Toffee bears half of the salary.
After 14 years, Walcott, the former genius of England, has finally returned to the place where he became famous, where his 15-year professional football career began.
Speaking of Southampton, I believe that fans familiar with the English Football League have heard of it, excellent youth training level, endless young stars, and strong player processing ability.
"God" Leticer, Premier League all-time top scorer Alain Shearer, and Gareth Bale, who is now back in the Premier League, are all from Southampton. Walcott is no exception, having spent time at Swindon Juniors and coming to Southampton Juniors, starting with a football club known for developing young players.
In August 2005, at just 16 years and 143 days old, Theo Walcott made his debut for southampton first team. In the Championship 05-06 season, the young England striker turned from a substitute to a main player in the debut season of his career, playing 21 league games as a starting point and successfully scoring 4 goals.
Walcott's name has been famous in England since this season, and the major Premier League giants have their eyes on the local genius.
In January 2006, Arsenal managed to take down the young rising star, officially announcing the introduction of Southampton youngster Walcott for a transfer fee of £5 million, which could cost £12 million depending on the number of appearances.
After coming to the team, Walcott was immediately regarded as an important member of the Gunners, and was included in the team's Champions League squad in February, with the team to the Bernabeu Stadium and other places to accumulate experience.
In just half a year, Walcott went from being a substitute for a Championship team to an incredible supernova in English football.
In the next few moments, Walcott played for Arsenal for 12 years, from a young boy to a "little tiger", leaving the peak of his career to the Gunners.
In the 08-09 season, Walcott played in 35 games in all competitions and scored 6 goals and 5 assists, and in the 09-10 season, he made 15 starts in 30 games, 4 goals and 4 assists.
In the 10-11 season, the 21-year-old Walcott scored 13 goals and nine assists, and began to show his extremely talented attacking prowess, the sharp threat of the penalty area and the speed to win the Premier League. "Little Tiger" can pass to himself after 3 seconds to force overtaking on the side, and can also score goals after passing several people with the ball, wearing the number 14, which makes people see Henry's shadow.
In the 11-12 season, Walcott played 46 games in all competitions, scoring 11 goals and 12 assists, still maintaining good personal form.
In January 2012, the "king of guns" Thierry Henry briefly returned to Arsenal, when the 34-year-old saw the young man in the number 14 shirt and saw himself at the age of 23.
In the 12-13 season, Walcott reached the peak of his career, starting 31 times in 43 games in all competitions, and successfully playing a staggering 21 goals and 11 assists.
In the 16-17 season, it was the second most goals scored by the "Little Tigers" in his career, starting 29 times in 37 games in all competitions, and receiving excellent 19 goals and 2 assists.
In January 2018, Everton signed Walcott for a transfer fee of 22.5 million euros, and the "Little Tigers" finally bid farewell to Arsenal after 12 years of joining. What remains is 108 goals and 78 assists in 397 games, 3 FA Cup titles, 3 Community Shield titles, 5 Emirates Cup titles and 1 Premier League Asian Cup.
In his 12-year Arsenal career, injuries became a label for Walcott, and from the initial small injuries to the nine-month absence from the anterior cruciate ligament injury in the knee in 2014, injuries repeatedly interrupted the "Little Tigers" club career.
In addition to injuries, Walcott has not been able to represent the England national team in the World Cup, which is a major regret of his football career.
At the 2006 World Cup in Germany, england coach Eriksen selected the 17-year-old Walcott into the squad, but ultimately missed the game. At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, because of the large number of people in the team, head coach Capello finally made a surprising decision, and the 21-year-old "Little Tiger" was discharged from the big list. At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, the 25-year-old Walcott had been absent for at least 9 months due to a knee injury, and announced that he had not been on the World Cup stage early.
After years of injuries, the 31-year-old Walcott is less sharp and wild as a tiger, and Everton has difficulty in having enough opportunities to play when many stars such as J Ronaldo join the team.
At this point, Walcott, who had come out of Southampton, decided to return, after a gap of 14 years, to the beginning of a 15-year professional football career.
Returning to where the football dream began is undoubtedly a right decision for Walcott, who is over thirty years old.
"I thought I should have cried in the first game, it meant too much to me. When I think of Southampton, a lot of memories come to mind, too many words to say, and I think it was a very simple decision for me to return to this team. ”
For the past 15 years, Walcott has been a player in English football who cannot be ignored. He is not only an experiencer of football history, but also a part of it.
This return to Southampton, the land of fame, the original 31-year-old "little tiger" Walcott, can still recreate the outstanding performance of the past?
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