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Arsenal attacker Theo Walcott has heaped praise on young gun Ryo Miyaichi, claiming that the Japanese winger will terrorise defenders when he returns to the club at the end of the season.
The 19 year-old winger is currently on loan at Bolton Wanderers, where he has established himself as a starting player under Owen Coyle, and Walcott believes that the player nicknamed 'Ryodiniho' will be able to perform to the same level at Arsenal next year.
Speaking on the official Arsenal website, Walcott said: “Ryo has done very well at Bolton. The way he is playing, there are full backs out there now who are thinking, ‘I don’t want to play against him this week'.”
Since joining Bolton on a six-month loan deal in January, Miyaichi has made eight appearances, scoring once. However it is his trickery and nimble feet which have gained him so many plaudits.
The Japanese international, who earned his first senior call-up for the national side in a World Cup qualifier against Uzbekistan in February, joined Arsenal initially as a trialist in the summer of 2010, before being handed a full contract six months later.
After a short loan spell to Dutch giants Feyenoord, Miyaichi was granted a full work permit and joined up with Arsenal.
Walcott concluded by praising Miyaichi for his mature handling of Fabrice Muamba's cardiac arrest, saying that he will be stronger for it.
“It is hard for such a young kid to go there and do what he is doing, showing no fear with everything that happened at Tottenham [with Muamba]. It is hard and it has probably hit him definitely.
“He will be a better person for it, a better player and I can see him coming back here next year and playing a lot more regularly,” he said.
