Southampton star Theo Walcott believes that Saints teammate James Ward-Prowse is the new set-piece king in the Premier League and that the English midfielder is better than renowned set-piece king David Beckham. Manchester United legend Beckham was a deadly set-piece taker during his hugely successful career which took him to clubs like AC Milan, Manchester United, PSG and Real Madrid. Theo Walcott is certain that James Ward-Prowse is a better set-piece taker than David Beckham. Walcott spoke about his Southampton teammate and his set-piece prowess in a chat with TalkSports.
Theo Walcott talked about how he admired David Beckham and his set-piece taking ability while he was still playing professional football and that he has watched James Ward-Prowse in the Saints training and he thinks the England international is better than ex-England national team skipper David Beckham. Theo Walcott was in the England national team setup while Beckham was still the skipper.
Southampton are the surprise package of the Premier League this season and James Ward-Prowse has been a big part of that success. He has scored three goals from direct free-kicks in the first 12 games of the season and he’s within touching distance of the season record of five set by the aforementioned Beckham. On the free-kick ability of James Ward-Prowse, Theo Walcott said that it’s like taking a penalty kick for him. His free-kicks have propelled Southampton to the top four on the league table which is why they are the surprise team in the league. They have the opportunity to press home the quest for a Champions League slot at the end of the season when they visit struggling Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday. Theo Walcott will be going back to the club that paid his weekly wages for twelve years. He left Arsenal for Everton in a £20m deal two years ago. Walcott is on loan at boyhood club Southampton for this season having joined from parent club Everton around three months ago.
