ARSENAL winger Theo Walcott has admitted he was left “star-struck” when he first met the man, who's famous number 14 squad number he has inherited at the Emirates this season.

The former Southampton man, who now wears Gunners' legend Thierry Henry's old shirt number, revealed he found it hard to approach the clubs all-time record scorer when he joined the club from the Saints as a 16-year-old in January 2006. “Thierry Henry was one of my heroes as a kid - when I met him for the first time at Arsenal, I was star-struck,” Walcott told sport-magazine.co.uk

“For the first couple of weeks, I was just in awe. Now I'm wearing his old shirt, number 14, but I don't feel under more pressure. I just see it as another number. I knew what to expect when I first grabbed it, and it really doesn't bother me - I'll just play my football and work hard.

“I actually asked for number eight first, but Samir Nasri took that so the next available number was 14. I said yes straight away, though - it didn't faze me at all. It just shows how much I want it this year. “