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It was an hour into Southampton’s game with Leicester and Theo Walcott slid to his haunches next to the corner flag.
The substitute watched on from his lowest vantage point, transfixed on the action.
Walcott remained unmoved but inside, an overarching sense of tension was beginning to transpire. His team had been awarded a penalty, having spent much of the game with their backs pinned to the wall. As for Walcott, he had experienced much of the evening leaning forward on the bench, providing continual encouragement and instructions for team-mates.
When he did venture out from the stands and onto the sidelines, Walcott’s legs would warm-up, but his head refused to deviate away from the happenings on the pitch. His eyes were intent and focused on the play, shrilling every time the ball threatened either goal.
Referee Robert Jones moved the Leicester players out of the box and went through the rigmarole of warning about encroachment. Eventually, Jones put his whistle to his mouth and James Ward-Prowse slotted in the penalty. Only then did Walcott get back to his feet.
In a footballing sphere powered by reams of data and glutinous in its use of analytics, Southampton’s decision to re-sign Theo Walcott’s could be seen as a deal made on a whim.
After all, analytic experts and lovers of facts and stats would swiftly reach the conclusion that Walcott’s south coast homecoming has been lukewarm at best. They work in tangibilities and hard-cold data. Their metrics do not measure hypothesises or unfounded opinions. When they evaluate Walcott’s impact this season, nothing is likely to jump out at them.
In 21 Premier League appearances this term, Walcott has scored three and assisted three, with just one further big chance created.
Tuesday’s news that Walcott would be settling on the south coast for the next two seasons generated an assortment of responses, from the good to the bad, to the vaguely indifferent. For some, perhaps footballing romanticists who revel in nostalgia, the thought of Walcott finally being able to play in front of a sold-out St Mary’s crowd tinkle the wistful senses.
Others, quite understandably, will point to the lack of contribution in the assist and goal departments, characterising Walcott as one of the many the players who failed to arrest the team’s winter and spring decline.
But since arriving at Southampton, those inside the club have pleasantly surprised by the affect Theo Walcott has had on the team, not only in performance level but in mentality. Martin Semmens, the club’s chief executive recently described Walcott’s influence as “coming in and leading the team forward.”
Arriving on Deadline Day last October, none of the associated parties expected Walcott to acclimatise to Hasenhuttl’s bespoke methods as quickly. Hasenhuttl was immediately taken aback by Walcott’s ability and hunger to succeed at Southampton, displaying a childish-like excitement upon returning to Staplewood. Naturally, this led to Walcott soon becoming an integral component within the starting XI. The original plan was for Walcott to augment the side’s forward positions and provide much-needed experience, mostly from work on the training ground and substitute appearances.
The deal to bring Walcott back was presented to Semmens and Hasenhuttl in the final days of the window. While the tangibles of the signing went against the club’s recruitment remit, both believed it was a deal that promised plenty of upside. Walcott would be able to bolster the two number 10 positions – widely regarded as the most physically challenging positions – and become an on-field presence the likes of Nathan Tella and Moussa Djenepio could benefit greatly from. During the first week, it was noted by a number of players and staff in how impressive Walcott was in setting standards and conducting himself around the club.
It is understood Walcott would go out of his way to speak to younger players, not only about their game but life in general and the trappings being a professional footballer can bring. It is believed Walcott’s words of wisdom are still being heeded now.
It was a testament to Walcott’s malleability that a player of his experience and age could be so receptive to new ideas. Those inside the club did not expect Walcott to win a slot in Hasenhuttl’s starting XI so soon. Walcott’s signing coincided with the first international break of the season and despite Staplewood briefly out of action due to Stuart Armstrong’s positive COVID test, the gap in fixture schedule facilitated in giving the 32-year-old a period of time in which to become attuned in Hasenhuttl’s fervent, if taxing, methods. Over the break, the pair worked closely on the pitch and partook in a number meetings together, enabling Walcott to learn the nuances of the 4-2-2-2 system.
Hasenhuttl was enthused by Walcott’s propensity to take large amounts of information on board and subsequently put into action on the training ground. Following a string of successive starts, the Saints boss swiftly decided that Walcott’s ability to assimilate various technical and tactical points, allowed him to trust Walcott to play anywhere across the front four positions.
This premonition was put into action a few weeks later, when Danny Ings got injured in the team’s 4-3 victory at Villa Park. Rather than utilise third-in-line Shane Long or Michael Obafemi, Hasenhuttl plumped for Walcott to dovetail with Che Adams up top. The following game brought instant gratification amongst the coaching staff. Seven minutes into the following match with Newcastle, where Southampton enjoyed a fleeting stop at the Premier League apex, Walcott would set up Adams with a low, driven cross.
The goal itself had underpinned a theme since Walcott’s arrival. Whatever was asked of him, in whatever scenario, the former academy graduate was more than willing to endure the hard yards for the good of the team. And during those periods of apparent adaptation, Walcott would continue to surprise by transforming his own game to what was required.
Up until the new year, when Southampton’s form patch had hit its deepest shade of purple, Theo Walcott was the only new arrival to play more than half the available minutes, and continued a trend of Southampton continuing to only give a large chunk of minutes to only one or two new signings in a season. In fact, the last time Southampton had more than two new signings feature in more than 50 percent of minutes available was 2014-15 (Ryan Bertrand and Graziano Pelle).
Two months after reaching the summit, all preceding optimism had dissipated and been exchanged for ominous glances to the medical team. The team had been in the midst of an injury decimation when Walcott suffered a hamstring injury in January. Walcott would be consigned to the sidelines until nearly April.
However, during the various stages of recovery, Walcott would still turn up to Staplewood on his days off, spending extra time in the gym and continuing to prove a sounding board for team-mates. Detailed in The Athletic, despite injury, Walcott joined James Ward-Prowse and Oriol Romeu in a meeting with Hasenhuttl. The season had approached the month of March and the trio wanted to seek a solution in halting the team’s freefall. Walcott, it is believed, is one of the players within the club’s leadership group.
Now recovered from injury, Walcott’s appetite to put in the extra work hasn’t waned. He is still one of the first to arrive for training and one of the last to leave.
During Southampton’s FA Cup semi-final defeat to Leicester, Walcott could be seen leaning intently forward on his seat for the duration he was on the bench. He was a constant source of shouts and rallying, speaking to others on the sidelines in his own personal attempts to provoke an improvement in performance.
With Ryan Bertrand leaving, Walcott’s experience is set to become even more illuminating. Walcott is the only player in the squad to win major domestic silverware. Walcott has been known to talk about his career at length to team-mates, and the processes involved in achieving winners’ medals. In a recent fans forum, Kyle Walker-Peters alluded to speaking to Walcott about his experiences in semi-finals and finals during the team’s coach trip to Wembley.
It is understood many of the younger players see Walcott much like an older brother. The high esteem Walcott is held in was best demonstrated in Southampton’s 3-1 victory over Fulham this month. Immediately after Nathan Tella scored his first ever goal in senior football, he headed straight for Walcott, who had his arms aloft celebrating the 21-year-old’s strike. The pair embraced with Walcott bearing the look of a proud sibling. Shortly afterwards, the pair would combine on the pitch, with Tella’s perfectly weighted pass being laid straight into the path of Walcott.
Matt Crocker spoke glowingly of Walcott’s impact at the club. “Knowing how he understood the club, what he would bring to the dressing room in his professional standings, the impact it would have off the pitch, as well as his impact on the pitch, including buying into our outstanding medical stuff we’ve got going on here, it all made sense.”
Walcott perhaps hasn’t hit the heights of what supporters hoped for on the basis of performances and overall productivity when on the pitch. But the success of Walcott’s homecoming won’t necessarily be dependent on goals or assists. The club hopes the legacy he will leave will be seen in the likes of Tella, Djenepo and Walker-Peters. Theo Walcott stays a Saint.
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