Everton: The Toffees signed the player for £20m, then left for £0
Everton have signed a bargain deal for the England international defender for £20m. Unfortunately, the player failed to live up to expectations at Goodison Park and ultimately left for nothing. His career before Everton was truly fascinating and deserves praise. When Arsenal signed the electric teenage winger in 2006, the paper mill went into overtime. He was only 16, but Arsene Wenger saw enough of the player at Southampton to splash a record fee on the teenager: a £5m fee that looked set to rise to £12m. That player was, of course, Theo Walcott.
Walcott later earned his first England call-up under Sven Goran Eriksson and even went to the 2006 World Cup, Walcott began a productive 12-year stay at the Emirates. Despite a number of injuries, the speedy wide man was synonymous with some great moments in the red side of North London before things slowly went downhill.
The player admitted in 2018 that “it’s time to move on” and was looking at new pastures. 2014-01-04T205342Z_1_MT1ACI11711316_RTRMADP_3_SOCCER-ENGLAND-ARS-TOT
How much did Everton spend on Theo Walcott? Everton proved to be a target for 28-year-old Walcott in the January transfer window. Sam Allardyce was a big fan and clearly sold the club to Walcott brilliantly – capitalizing on the player’s desire for a new challenge.
Wenger, however, had to reluctantly let go of his resistance – because he simply could not guarantee him playing time. It was a World Cup year when a place in England’s World Cup squad could be at stake. Walcott joined the Toffees for £20 million on a three-and-a-half-year deal that was supposed to rejuvenate his somewhat stagnant career. He said of the move:
“It was sad but exciting at the same time and I want to revive my career and push Everton to win things like they have done in the past. The manager is very hungry and that’s exactly what I need. I had a few chats with him and I immediately felt the hunger and desire he wanted from me.”
After a honeymoon in which Walcott received a pass on Oumar Niasse on his debut and then suffered concussion in the next match against Leicester, things unfortunately started to turn.
Allardyce left Goodison Park at the end of his 18-month contract and an unfortunate run of injuries sidelined Walcott. Both aspects greatly influenced his development at the club.
How much was Theo Walcott at the end? Walcott made 85 appearances for Everton and scored just 11 goals. It wasn’t exactly the numbers that inspired the rebuilding of his career or the international engagement he had hoped for. But, as mentioned, his injuries have reduced his Merseyside appeal. 2018-12-02T172948Z_1138133733_RC1238B8BFB0_RTRMADP_3_FOOT-ENGLAND-LIV-EVE
Between 2018 and 2021, he missed 11 games due to injuries — which doesn’t sound bad in itself. However, the Premier League is the highest level in the world. Losing games, especially when fighting for a starting place for club and country, can be damaging.
To make matters worse, Walcott’s bruising injuries resulted in 112 days of inactivity, a slightly more worrying figure. Where he could be trained, he was gone. This led to less playing time and then a loan move to Southampton in 2020.
After his first loan with his boyhood club, Walcott left Everton for St. Mary is free. When he finally retired in 2023, he left behind a glittering career but had little to say about his time on Merseyside. Perhaps it could be argued that bringing him in was a mistake. After all, a player his age never had much return value. Indeed, as for his transfer value – it dropped from that £20m Everton fee to a paltry £1m when the 34-year-old was snapped up by relegated Southampton.
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