Theo Walcott became public property when Sven-Göran Eriksson took him to the World Cup finals in Germany 18 months ago and the spotlight is still on the 18-year-old Arsenal forward. On the rare occasions that he plays for Arsenal his performances are analysed like no other player. Did he play well enough? Has he fulfilled his potential? When is he going to start playing like an Arsenal player?

Three weeks ago, it seemed as if even Arsène Wenger was having doubts about the youngster he signed for an initial fee of £5 million rising to £12 million. In an interview, the Arsenal manager suggested that Walcott needed to step up a level if he was going to make an impact at the Emirates Stadium.

Wenger's words may have stung Walcott's ears, but the Frenchman is the best in the business when it comes to developing young players and it is hard to argue with his judgment when Walcott has still not scored a league goal for Arsenal. “People expect too much of me,” Walcott said. “When I get the ball they always expect me to do something, but sometimes you just have to keep things simple and do the right things in the right areas of the pitch, which is what I'm learning at the moment.”

When Walcott plays for the England Under-21 team, as he did in the 3-0 victory over Ireland at St Mary's Stadium in Southampton on Tuesday, he looks a different player. Gone are the doubts and fears that blunt his edge when he plays with better and older players such as Emmanuel Adebayor and Cesc Fàbregas. “You only get better by playing a consistent run of games,” Walcott said. “I've got to work hard in training, perform well and I'll get that run.”

Walcott's main problem at Arsenal is the quality of the players ahead of him in the pecking order - Adebayor, Eduardo da Silva, Robin van Persie, Tomas Rosicky and Alexander Hleb. Four league starts are all that Walcott has to show for his efforts this season, but who can argue with Wenger's team selection when Arsenal are top of the table?

“I work hard every game I play,” Walcott said. “It's out of my hands. I signed for Arsenal and didn't play for seven months, so I'm definitely patient. But I've got to perform to play.

“I like playing up front, that's the position everyone sees me in. He [Wenger] signed me as a centre forward and that's where I've played all of the time, really. I'll play anywhere for the team, though.”

Walcott is so determined to prove his critics wrong that he has been identifying areas of his game that need fine-tuning. “My left foot - that's the main one,” he said. “Heading as well, although I'm not someone who is going to win a lot of headers. When we train with the under-21s there is a lot of crossing and finishing, so I spend a lot of my time practising on my left foot. You only improve by practice and you're only as good as your last cross.”

Walcott scored on his return to St Mary's on Tuesday, but Stuart Pearce, the England Under-21 head coach, believes that he should not be judged on the number of goals he scores. Walcott's strike wrapped up a 3-0 win and virtually assured the under-21s a place in the play-offs to reach the European Championship finals in Sweden next year.

“People probably expect too much from him, but I think he's developing nicely,” Pearce said. “He's working for a fantastic club manager at a fantastic football club. At Arsenal he's getting more and more starts, so he has to keep learning as he ticks along. The price tag has catapulted him into the limelight and the World Cup has as well. He's still a very young man who is still learning his trade.”