ARSENAL boss Arsene Wenger has urged referees not to allow his wonder-kid Theo Walcott get kicked out of football by the games bully-boys.

The normal mild-mannered Frenchman reacted angrily after the 19-year-old was kicked constantly during the Gunners opening Champions League Group G fixture on Wednesday byDynamo Kiev's left-back and captain Andriy Nesmachniy.

And Wenger believes Southampton man risks being the target of hatch-men both in the Premier League and abroad following his sensational hat-trick for England in Croatia.

Wenger said: “Unfortunately for a player who gets a name for being dangerous, the first answer he gets is harsh treatment.

“We do not expect presents from anybody but we want protection from referees.

“You do not want any special pressure on the referees but it is all in the rule book.

“If, for example, you allow the first bad tackle then the second becomes difficult for a referee to deal with.

“I thought Wednesday night, for example, the target was not the ball.

“If a guy plays hard it is down to Theo to deal with it. But if the guy targets Theo, he has to be punished.”