Walcott's Insights on Eze and Arsenal's Win Over Coventry
Theo Walcott believes one moment from Eberechi Eze late on in Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Coventry City will have stuck in Mikel Arteta’s mind – and not in a good way.
The Premier League champions opened their title defence with a controlled, at times ruthless display at the Emirates Stadium on Friday night. Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard supplied the goals, the points and the early statement.
For most of the evening, it was exactly how Arteta would have scripted it.
Walcott’s warning over Eze’s ‘little details’
Eze began on the bench and only entered the game with 14 minutes left, replacing Christos Tzolis. With Arsenal three goals up and cruising, it looked like a free hit for the playmaker to enjoy some minutes and stake a claim.
Instead, Walcott homed in on one decision that he suspects will irritate Arteta: a speculative long-range free-kick in the closing stages that sailed high over the bar.
“Eze having that shot at the end… I’m not sure he [Arteta] will be happy with that,” Walcott told Premier League Productions. “I know it’s such a small thing but these are little details that he will look into each individual player if he’s going to be with them throughout the season, that’s just a sign to see.”
In Walcott’s eyes, that moment cut against the standards Arteta is drilling into a deep and fiercely competitive squad.
“Even when the substitutions came on, that’s when their chances are to show Mikel, ‘don’t forget about me’,” he said. “I felt some could have done a little bit more coming on maybe, but it’s the first game of the season and you’ve got to give them the benefit of the doubt.
“It’s just a reminder to the guys who aren’t starting that it’s a big, deep squad. If you want to be in that starting line-up, there are standards that Mikel will be looking into.”
The message was clear: even at 3-0 up, even on opening night, there is no room for loose thinking.
‘Handbrake off’ Arsenal still have more gears
Walcott, watching his former club dismantle newly promoted Coventry, liked much of what he saw. He also felt there is more to come.
“Creating that winning mentality is so important for this team because as soon as you start those habits it’s hard for these teams,” he said. “You saw Coventry, they didn’t know what to do at times, there were too big gaps, too big spaces.”
Arsenal dictated the tempo and the territory. When they accelerated, Coventry simply couldn’t live with them.
“Arsenal, when they play with the handbrake off, I wanted to see a little bit more, I felt Arsenal have so more gears to go into and that’s great,” Walcott added.
For the rest of the league, that is the ominous part. A 3-0 win, largely in second gear, with Arteta still demanding sharper decision-making from his fringe players.
Tzolis draws Alexis Sanchez comparison
If Eze’s late free-kick raised an eyebrow, Tzolis’ full Premier League debut did the opposite.
The £34 million summer signing from Club Brugge started and caught Walcott’s eye immediately. The former Arsenal winger went as far as to compare him to a fan favourite.
“I like him a lot, he reminds me of Alexi [Sanchez],” Walcott said. “The reason why I say that, when he gets the ball his first touch is positive, his first thought is forward, attack the full-back.”
That relentless, direct streak stirred memories of Sanchez at his best in north London.
“Alexi would always give the full-back a headache and even wearing the number 17 reminds me of him, I know he moved to the number seven when Tomas Rosicky moved on,” Walcott continued.
There was more. It wasn’t just the shirt number or the intent; it was the way Tzolis moved, the way teammates immediately trusted him with the ball.
“There’s something about the way he moves with the ball, he glides on the field, they want to keep on giving it to him as well, I think you can see the confidence is growing and growing,” Walcott said. “He has got a bit more pace about him than Trossard does, so he’s a bit of a hybrid between Trossard and Alexis.
“But very impressed, when he gets fitter and players get to know his game a lot more, but I like what I see so far, really impressed.”
On a night when Arsenal’s established stars did the damage, Tzolis hinted at another dangerous dimension in Arteta’s attack. Eze, meanwhile, was handed a reminder that at this Arsenal, even one wayward free-kick can echo into the manager’s next team sheet.
