The England winger scored a hat-trick in the 6-0 win at the Emirates Stadium and turned in an impressive all-round display.
Andrey Arshavin (penalty), Abou Diaby and Marouane Chamakh were also on target but it was Walcott’s devastating display on the right that grabbed the headlines.
The 21-year-old appears to have benefited from a full pre-season after being omitted from Fabio Capello’s England World Cup squad. The former Southampton youngster demonstrated the kind of touch, subtlety and decision making that has been lacking in previous seasons.
more mature
“He is more electric than he has been to date because he is sharp,” said Wenger. “I like the fact he mixed well the final ball and the finishing. That is always a sign that the player is always more mature.
“Let’s not forget that what he does is at a very high pace so it’s not always easy to make the right decision but in this game I think he got many decisions in the final third right.
“He had a good preparation for the first time for a long, long time without being interrupted by injury or without coming back late. You could see that. We have known for two or three weeks now that he is sharp because he had a very good preparation.”
Tomas Rosicky was another player who caught the eye on Saturday. The Czech star struggled at times last season after returning from a long-term injury, but pulled the strings behind Chamakh, making several defence-splitting passes.
“He is as well a player who had a proper preparation,” added Wenger. “He was 18 months out and it takes a long time to come back and once you have returned you have little problems. I believe when he came on at Liverpool he had a big impact on the game and he looks physically ready and sharp as well.”
sound crazy
Blackpool manager Ian Holloway felt Ian Evatt’s first-half red card for the foul on Chamakh had a major bearing on the match but accepted his side would probably have lost anyway.
“After that (penalty and the sending off) it was a mountain to climb and I am just relieved it was only six,” he said.
“That might sound crazy, but you never know, goal difference might come into it and now we are only minus two after last week (a 4-0 win at Wigan Athletic).”
He added: “Whatever happens to us this season, we are going to try to show our character.
“We are going to have to be better than this because otherwise against the top teams, it might be embarrassing – but if you saw us last week we certainly did not get outplayed and some of our football was not bad at all.”
“Walcott is more electric than he has been to date because he is sharp” – Arsene Wenger
Credits: PremierLeague.com
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