Walcott up front is a better fit for England than Arsenal

6Feb 2013

Betfair

Michael Lintorn thinks Theo Walcott is more likely to establish himself in the middle for country than club...

The Theo-Walcott-as-centre-forward experiment pleaded for by the Arsenal star has faded recently, with Arsene Wenger returning his highest-paid player to the right-wing berth with which he is more commonly associated for their last four games.

It was a logical move as summer recruit Olivier Giroud deserves the chance to consistently lead the line having already delivered 14 goals. The majority of Walcott's 18 strikes came while positioned out wide, so it's not like they need to play him centrally to exploit his evident flair for finishing.

Playing on the wing for England isn't quite as viable an option for the 23-year-old though, with Roy Hodgson appearing to favour the defensive support, tireless running and crossing prowess of the underappreciated James Milner to the pace and unpredictability of his other options.

Walcott has started just one of the manager's 12 matches in charge - October's Wembley World Cup qualifier against accommodating San Marino - and only featured for a combined 80 minutes of England's four Euro 2012 fixtures, always as a substitute.

Hodgson's fondness for fielding two front men, usually one behind the other, whether he is adopting a 4-4-2, 4-4-1-1 or a more modern 4-2-3-1 means that Walcott might find it easier to break into the team as a foil for Wayne Rooney.

There is certainly cause to consider such a pairing for Wednesday's friendly with Brazil, with Jermain Defoe and Daniel Sturridge withdrawing injured and Euro 2012 attendee Andy Carroll not involved.

His sole rival for the role in that sort of system, assuming Steven Gerrard's deeper deployment is maintained, is Danny Welbeck, who polled second behind the captain in the 2012 England player of the year voting after impressing in Poland and Ukraine.

However, the forward has started a mere five of Manchester United's last 17 league games and that situation is unlikely to change with Robin van Persie, Rooney and Javier Hernandez as competition.

Regardless of where Walcott is utilised, he is a threat at present though and the Premier League's joint-most prolific Englishman is 4.6 to prove that against Brazil.