MX23RW : Saturday, December 14 11:36:35| >> :60:260:260:

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:
Written by
P A
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
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool14112129111835
2Chelsea1594235181731
3Arsenal1585229151429
4Manchester CityMan City158342721627
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest157441918125
6Aston Villa157442323025
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton156632522324
8Bournemouth157352320324
9Brentford157263128323
10Fulham156542220223
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1562731191220
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle155551921-220
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd155461918119
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham155372028-818
15Everton143561421-714
16Leicester CityLeicester153572130-914
17Crystal Palace152761420-613
18Ipswich TownIpswich151681427-139
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1523102338-159
20Southampton1512121131-205


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!