When Theo Walcott went down with a ruptured ACL in the early days of the year, it signaled an end to his league season and his World Cup aspirations. Arsenal finished fourth in the table, seven points out of first and England’s only point of the World Cup came from a draw with Costa Rica. Both sides could have used Walcott, and at least one is getting him back in short order.
Earlier this month Walcott returned to the pitch in an Arsenal kit for the first time in 10 months when he played 45 minutes for the club’s under-21 side without incident. The player and his club are still exercising caution with the striker, as both sides agreed at the time he wasn’t ready for Premier League action.
This past weekend it seems the sides felt he was at least close enough to be a consideration for the first time in nearly a year. Against Sunderland he was on the bench, marking his hypothetical availability. He wasn’t needed in a solid victory for the Gunners and remained seated throughout, but his mere presence in that kind of a situation is tantalizing for Arsenal fans and their manager, who has to be dreaming of pairing the speedy Walcott with the impressive Alexis Sanchez.
Sanchez and his eight goals are part of the reason Arsenal has been able to weather a bit of a sluggish start to the season and remain in fifth, within striking distance of everyone ahead of them save maybe Chelsea, who are the runaway favorites already at 2/5 odds to win the league according to odds found through Gambling.com bookmakers. Manchester City is second at 7/2 with Arsenal (20/1) and Manchester United (22/1) the only other sides being given odds under 50/1 to unseat the Blues.
If the Gunners hope to make the kind of run that will improve those odds, the return of a healthy Walcott will be crucial. The speedy youngster has proven his ability to succeed on this level, and should provide a major spark if he proves to be back on form after his lengthy time away. Whether that is the case should be found out any day now, just as soon as the forward and his club both agree that he and his ACL are fully operational.
