Injury could help Walcott in long run

On a positive note, it’s been a big relief to have made such a quick recovery from my shoulder injury. There was a concern, when I dislocated it, that I would need an operation. The specialist told me that if it remained weak after a spell resting up, then I’d need to go under the surgeon’s knife, but seven weeks later I was back playing again.

I’d had the same shoulder pinned after suffering a similar injury earlier in my career and I think that helped me avoid another op this time. Dislocations are an occupational hazard in this job, as you can fall awkwardly from time to time, and I could only empathise with Theo Walcott when I heard he’d suffered a similar injury in training with England before the Germany game.

By all accounts, he’d dislocated his other shoulder earlier in his career – which needed pinning – and I can only assume the same will happen with this injury. Going under the knife will set him back in terms of a first-team return, which I’m sure Arsene Wenger is unhappy about that, but looking at the bigger picture, pinning the injury now could well end up helping Theo in the long term, just like it has helped me.