Everton’s £100,000 a week flop’s emotional return to former club would make sense
Everton flop Theo Walcott has been linked with a return to Southampton.
Everton winger Theo Walcott certainly finds himself at a crossroad in his football career as he could be staring at an Everton exit. The Englishman has fallen down the pecking order after the arrival of James Rodriguez and there’s no chance that Ancelotti will prefer Walcott over the Colombian. There is interest from the Southampton and the Saints could push for a move.
Theo Walcott rose through the ranks at Southampton, playing 22 games before securing a move to Arsenal in 2006. We all know that he made a name for himself at Arsenal but his journey from Southampton youth to the first team is one of the most relishing memories.
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Everton signed Theo Walcott in 2018 for £20 million from Arsenal with a hope that he can uplift the quality at the wings. Everton made him one of the highest paid players of the squad, paying him £100,000 in weekly wages. 85 appearances and 11 goals later, it is safe to say that Walcott’s Toffees career trajectory hasn’t panned out how one would have imagined.
The 31 year old is in his final year of his contract and Goodison and so far there are no signs that he could stay beyond 2021. Sadly, there appears to be no place for Theo Walcott in the new look Everton with him featuring in only two games clocking a total of 102 minutes. The former Arsenal man has in fact failed to make it to the matchday squad on 3 of 7 occasions.
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He is just being seen as a squad rotational player and with such a large squad, Walcott’s chances of breaking into the starting eleven look dim. TEAMTalk reported that a host of clubs are eyeing Theo Walcott on loan and have made contact with intermediaries. West Ham United, Crystal Palace and Fulham are keen. But, Southampton too are plotting an emotional return for Theo Walcott.
In my opinion, a move to Southampton does make a lot of sense. In terms of the Saints squad, they lack an outright winger on the right flank and even though Stuart Armstrong does a satisfactory job out wide in a 4-4-2, having Walcott in the ranks wouldn’t hurt Southampton. Theo Walcott is obviously the faster player and can add a lot of pace to the side.
Tactically, Walcott did well in Ancelotti’s 4-4-2 last season, whenever he was given a chance and a very similar formation used by Ralph Hasenhuttl will work in the Englishman’s favour. Walcott should leave and salvage his remaining career at the Saints.
As for the Royal Blues, finding a permanent buyer will be tricky due to the 31 year old being in the final year of his contract. If the Toffees can offload him to Southampton and make them pay the wages, Everton can save around £5 million in the yearly wage bill.
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The return to Southampton would make a lot of sense for Theo Walcott.