Recognised as this season’s team to beat in the Premier League with Liverpool and Manchester City struggling to keep pace, Mikel Arteta boasts an Arsenal side stacked to the brim with talent and, more importantly, depth. That said, ex-Gunners winger Theo Walcott has named an ‘incredible’ Manchester United ace that Arteta and his entourage should’ve signed ‘many years ago’.
Over the years, even pre-dating Ruben Amorim’s hodgepodge era, the Red Devils have been criticised for their willingness to cough up cash for players not able to adapt to life in England’s top division. Think the club’s £86 million-worth addition of Antony – who has now been sold to La Liga outfit Real Betis – as a prime example of the club’s substandard recruitment.
Things have looked much sweeter in recent transfer windows with the likes of Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro and Matheus Cunha all performing under the Old Trafford glare. Alongside that, United’s recruitment over the summer just gone – when they rejuvenated their front line and added Senne Lammens to their goalkeeping department – has, at the moment, paid dividends.
Theo Walcott: Arsenal Should’ve Signed ‘Incredible’ Man Utd Star ‘Many Years Ago’
Before United’s victory over rivals Liverpool in mid-October, Amorim – widely regarded as one of the best young managers in world football – hadn’t won back-to-back Premier League matches but their recent win over Brighton & Hove Albion saw them extend their streak to three. The front three are beginning to click, the two-man midfield of Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro are looking relatively solid and, from a defensive standpoint, they are far less porous in comparison to recent seasons.
Waxing lyrical about the 20-time champions of the English top flight and their recent change in fortunes, Walcott said: “The team are understanding the way to play in his system now. When you have three at the back, you always have to have one of the centre-backs coming out into the midfield to be a third midfielder. Luke Shaw is that man doing that because he’s the one out of all the players that you trust to be able to cover as well.”
The Englishman continued, “They need that if Bruno [Fernandes] and Cunha are going to work in the same team because I wasn’t so sure if they could really operate in the same team. It felt like two players that wanted to be in the same positions. However, once you get players who can step out, be confident and have that trust behind them, that’s no problem and this system works.”
Then, he sang the praises of two summer additions: the aforementioned Cunha and his counterpart on the right-hand side, Bryan Mbeumo. On the 26-cap Cameroon international, who moved from Brentford in a high-profile summer move, Walcott is of the belief that Arsenal – a side on north London he played 397 times for – should have signed him ‘many years ago’.
“You have Cunha coming back and defending as well, and Mbeumo, who I think is outstanding,’ the ex-Arsenal and England winger added on The Overlap’s It’s Called Soccer show. “You look at players away from the Premier League who come into the Premier League, they take time. These guys [like Mbeumo] were built for Premier League football.
“I think Mbeumo has been incredible and he’s a player Arsenal should have bought many years ago.”
Mbeumo, widely regarded as one of the best players in England’s top tier right now, was nothing short of crucial to Brentford retaining their status as a Premier League side and, in 242 outings for the west Londoners, he plundered 121 goal contributions – 70 strikes and 51 assists. Arteta’s Arsenal, interestingly, were reportedly among those interested in the fleet-footed forward’s signature in the summer of 2025, but he chose to move to Old Trafford.
Speaking to his sister, who was confused at the prospect of him joining United, Mbeumo – who has scored five goals in a terrific start to life under Amorim – claimed the once-dominant club’s project was ‘interesting’ and they could return to former glory. “It’s a club that can bounce back,” he said before adding, “Their game plan is interesting, I’m committed. I’m a man of my word, for now I’m going there.”
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