MX23RW : Monday, September 30 03:36:26| >> :120:27106:27106:

On This Day: Theo Walcott becomes England's youngest international

On This Day: Theo Walcott becomes England's youngest international
© Reuters
The 17-year-old had yet to even make his league debut for Arsenal

Theo Walcott became England's youngest international in a 3-1 friendly victory over Hungary at Old Trafford on this day in 2006.

Introduced as a substitute, replacing Michael Owen in the 65th minute, the forward, aged 17 years and 75 days, beat Wayne Rooney's previous record of 17 years and 111 days.

Walcott had yet to even make his league debut for Arsenal, having joined the Gunners from Southampton.

In their penultimate warm-up game ahead of the 2006 World Cup, England saw a penalty from Frank Lampard saved just before half-time.

Steven Gerrard and John Terry headed in from David Beckham free-kicks as England scored twice in three minutes early in the second half.

Hungary skipper Pal Dardai pulled one back from long range, before Peter Crouch added a late third for Sven-Goran Eriksson's side.

Walcott was a shock selection by Eriksson for the 2006 World Cup squad, but did not play in Germany, where England were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Portugal.

Theo Walcott celebrates after scoring for England against Croatia
Theo Walcott went on to become the youngest England player to score a hat-trick in the win over Croatia (Owen Humphreys/PA)

In September 2008, Walcott became the youngest England player to score a hat-trick in the 4-1 win over Croatia in Zagreb – but was a surprise omission from Fabio Capello's squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

A serious knee injury saw Walcott ruled out of contention for the 2014 World Cup, and his last England appearance came in a friendly against Spain during November 2016.

Walcott left Arsenal to join Everton in January 2018, before returning to the Saints, initially on loan ahead of a permanent move ahead of next season.

ID:449517: cacheID:449517:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5219:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
A general shot of a Premier League football ahead of the Premier League clash between Everton and West Ham United at Goodison Park on October 30, 2016
Read Next:
Hege Riise explains absence of Northern Ireland players
>
Read more about Theo Walcott Football
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
1.20am
Bills
@
Ravens
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool65011221015
2Manchester CityMan City6420146814
3Arsenal6420125714
4Chelsea6411157813
5Aston Villa6411129313
6Fulham632185311
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle632187111
8Tottenham HotspurSpurs6312125710
9Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton623110829
10Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest62316519
11Brentford6213810-27
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd621358-37
13Bournemouth512258-35
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham6123610-45
15Ipswich TownIpswich6042510-54
16Everton6114715-84
17Leicester CityLeicester6033812-43
18Crystal Palace603359-43
19Southampton501429-71
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves6015616-101


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!