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It was no surprise to see Theo Walcott hauled off at half-time after a timorous first 45 minutes against AC Milan.
The England winger displayed all of the usual ineptitude that causes frustration for Arsenal fans and surely his teammates.
He was happy to hide. Full of fear, Walcott was weak in possession, never a convincing outlet and focused on keeping his head down. If Arsenal were to lose, he would be one of 11, part of the incompetent whole.
Normally a performance of this nature would lead to the ire of supporters but little noticeable irritation from Arsene Wenger. On this occasion, however, the 22-year-old was a significant spur for his manager's out-of-character exasperation. Wenger is renowned for trusting his players; on Wednesday night in the San Siro he gave Walcott a vote of no-confidence.
After supporters singled him out for criticism over his recent form, Walcott said, "I am the best judge of my performance, not anyone else." You would expect then that he's embarrassed after Wednesday's anti-contribution. Thierry Henry, the winger's half-time replacement, left Arsenal for Barcelona four-and-a-half years ago - how much has Walcott improved in that time?
The answer is, of course, not very much. His pace remains his biggest asset, although on occasion he can shoot (see Zagreb, September 2008) and, contrary to popular belief, deliver a final ball. Following the winger's three assists in Arsenal's rout of Blackburn, Robin van Persie said, "I love him, I honestly love him, I don't understand the criticism." Effusive praise indeed, but in all probability a captain's ruse to get more out of his teammate, because the Walcott we all know is criminally inconsistent and rarely a deciding factor.
It's support such as Van Persie's that would make Walcott a millionaire carrot farmer if he hadn't already amassed his fortune from football. When the winger is the conclusive difference in a tight affair, of course it's right to lavish the love. But after a 7-1 win over a terrible ten-man team it should be denied.
So how do you solve a problem like young Theo? Shout in his face a bit? Wenger isn't the hairdryer type, but simply discarding Walcott shouldn't be an option either. It's evident he has potential and every effort should be made to eke it out on a more frequent basis.
Perhaps the most logical solution is that the winger should 'do a Stuart Attwell'. Promoted to the top level above his rate of development, a drop back into the Championship could be the perfect remedy. Away from the spotlight and the Arsenal bubble, Walcott can learn a few much-needed lessons. A temporary move abroad could work similarly; anything to break the predictable cycle of poor performance. There's comes a time when the stick is needed.
If it doesn't work, Walcott can still benefit from the experience by working it into one of his children's books. And therein lies the problem - he's living in a fictional world, where losers are winners.
Despite Arsenal's current seven-year slog without a trophy, Walcott has already gained huge success on a personal level. He never has to work again and can mess about writing kid literature, getting dragon tattoos and signing sponsorship deals until he's long in the tooth. The boy even has an autobiography: 'Theo: Growing Up Fast'. Does he need to impress Arsenal fans to have a sense of achievement?
Wenger can't help the off-field distractions and luxuries that might hamper a successful playing career (and Walcott is obviously not the only one who suffers from this). He can, however, stop mollycoddling a player who is never going to make the required step up at the current rate.
If the Arsenal manager wants to get the best out of Walcott, he should take him to one side and whisper in his ear, "Theo, I've read your kid's books, they're sh*t. Now pack your bags, you're going to Watford for the next six months."
That should sort things once and for all.
Matthew Stanger - he's on the Twitter.
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