Theo Walcott has backed Ryo Miyaichi to challenge for a first team place at the Emirates next season.

The Japanese wing wizard is currently enjoying a very fruitful spell on loan at Bolton, with Reebok locals claiming he has singlehandedly dragged Owen Coyle’s Trotters from the relegation zone with a dashing mix of raw pace and cheeky smiles.

Set to return to N5 at the end of the season, the 19-year-old speedster will be hoping to catch Arsene Wenger’s eye during pre-season as he fights with the likes of Gervinho, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Andrei Arshavin (maybe), Lukas Podolski (maybe) and Walcott (probably) for a starting berth.

Reflecting on what’s he’s seen of his young teammate, Walcott told Arsenal.com:

“Ryo has done very well at Bolton. 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.

“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’.”

Miyaichi certainly looks to be more than a marketing tool used to tease a few memberships out of Eastern Gooners. A fan favourite with the Feyernoord fans during his first loan spell last year, his progress in the north-West has been mouth-watering since January.

Obviously it’s still early, but let’s hope he provides Arsene Wenger with a selection headache next term…