Theo Walcott had been the undisputed fastest player within the Arsenal team for the last few years, but he has now received a major threat from right back Hector Bellerin. The youngster dominated the speed ratings in pre-season.

A number of injuries and suspensions are set to give him opportunities during the crucial Christmas period. This time will also see Arsenal recalling Walcott back from a long-term injury. Since the anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered against Tottenham last season, Walcott has not played much football. He might have lost some pace due to several injuries in the last few years.

Bellerin, though, does not want to get caught up in the debate surrounding the fastest player in the Arsenal team. He says that the presence of Walcott and himself on the right side of Arsenal’s team will certainly help the club exploit any weaknesses in the opposition in terms of pace. Both are extremely fast, butBellerin is not concerned whether he is faster than Walcott as some of the pre-season results show. Undoubtedly, the 19-year-old’s best performance came last week in the 4-1 win over Newcastle United. He created an assist and contributed in several attacking situations as well.

“Hopefully we get to start a game together and hopefully then we can show people that pace on the right-hand side and obviously just help the team.Theo is a really important player for the squad. He showed it last season before he got injured and he’s been showing it for a few years now. The whole squad is waiting for him to come and help the team with his pace and we’re really happy that he’s going to be back really soon. There’s a lot of banter about it but I’m just happy that we can play together,” saidBellerin.