Former Arsenal attacker Theo Walcott hopes that 16-year-old Gunners midfielder Max Dowman isn't called up by England boss Thomas Tuchel for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Dowman, widely regarded as one of the finest young English talents in recent memory, has played eight times for the Three Lions' Under-19 team, scoring once and assisting thrice.
The teenager has impressed in his debut season in senior football with the Gunners, registering a goal and an assist in seven games across competitions. The goal made Dowman the youngest ever Premier League scorer, at 16 years and 73 days, lowering the previous record by nearly 200 days.
Dowman's rousing form has sparked talks of a potential call-up to Tuchel's squad for the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico this summer. The German boss said about Dowman last week (as per Metro):
"I think he is at the moment competing and obviously a fantastic talent and an outstanding talent and at his age there cannot be a doubt about it."
However, Walcott - who had made his World Cup debut as a 17-year-old in the 2006 World Cup in Germany - doesn't want his compatriot to be rushed into the senior team on the grandest of global stages, telling The Mirror:
"I hope he (Dowman) doesn't go. I don't mean it in a horrible way because if I could go back in time, I would change things. "I would say to myself: 'No, no, don't do it,' but then try telling that to a 17-year-old!
"In time he will go, yes, but I don't think this is the time, and I think there are better players who arguably deserve to be there ahead of him. He will eventually get there, but England have wide players doing really well. There's Bukayo (Saka), (Noni) Madueke, Jarrod Bowen and Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes on the other side."
England open their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign against Croatia in Group L on June 17 before taking on Ghana six days later and Panama on June 27.
Has any current Arsenal player won the FIFA World Cup?
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta - Source: Getty
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta - Source: Getty
Arsenal have had six players win the FIFA World Cup, but none from the current squad has done so, and none did so in the latest edition of the event in Qatar in 2022.
The most recent instance of a Gunners player winning the World Cup came 12 years ago in Brazil when Mesut Ozil, Per Mertesacker and Lucas Podolski won with Germany. The others to do so are Patrick Vieira and Emmanuel Petit with France in 1998, and Cesc Fabregas with Spain 12 years later in South Africa.
Coming to the current Arsenal squad, centre-back William Saliba came the closest to winning four years ago in Qatar, but defending champions France lost to Argentina in the final on penalties after a pulsating 3-3 draw after extra time.