Theo Walcott ‘hopes’ Arsenal midfielder Max Dowman isn’t called up by Thomas Tuchel for England’s World Cup campaign this summer.
Dowman is widely thought to be among the best young prospects in English football and back in March, the 16-year-old became the Premier League’s youngest-ever goalscorer with a superb solo effort in Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Everton.
Former Chelsea and England captain John Terry has likened Downman to Lionel Messi, while Tuchel has refused to rule out the prospect of including the uncapped midfielder in his World Cup squad.
England will announce their preliminary squad for the tournament on Monday, with the ultimate 26-man squad to be confirmed by May 30.
‘I feel he’s in the mean time competing and clearly a implausible talent and an excellent talent and at his age there can’t be a doubt about it,’ Tuchel said of Dowman in March.
‘Everyone who tells me about Max praises him and is filled with compliments about him. The truth in the mean time can be that he competes for minutes, he isn’t a daily starter for Arsenal.
‘He’s in a implausible environment, the perfect possible environment. In a competitive and stable club. In a club where teamwork is the primary rule. He’s learning from the best possible, within the best possible environment.
‘With these young guys, after all we all know all these players. We see them as you do as well. In the mean time I feel he’s in a great place to fight for his minutes at Arsenal. We at all times have the prospect to call him, perhaps, up for the World Cup.’
Walcott was in an identical position in 2006 when he was called up by Sven-Goran Eriksson for England’s World Cup campaign on the age of 17 and with no playing time within the Premier League.
Former Arsenal forward Walcott insists he would advise Dowman to not rush his senior debut for England and believes Arsenal are doing the precise thing by ‘protecting’ the 16-year-old.
‘I hope he doesn’t go,’ Walcott said in an interview with The Mirror.
‘I don’t mean it in a horrible way because if I could return in time, I might change things. I might say to myself, ‘no, no, don’t do it’, but then try telling that to a 17-year-old.
‘I do still see him and me in a different way as he’s playing within the Premier League but he must grow at his own pace, especially on the emotional side because he’s a young adult.
Should England take Dowman to the World Cup?
Yes – he’s adequate already
No – it’s too soon for him
‘I needed to grow up very fast but this team remains to be young and never as experienced. He’s being protected, which is very important, whereas I needed to get thrown in to consult with you lot [the media].
‘In time he’ll go, yes, but I don’t think that is the time and I feel there are higher players who arguably should be there ahead of him.
‘He’ll eventually get there but England have wide players doing very well, there’s Bukayo [Saka], [Noni] Madueke, Jarrod Bowen and Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes on the opposite side.’
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