Arsenal legend one of two new pundits to replace Ian Wright on Match of the Day

The BBC have announced Theo Walcott and Joe Hart will be stepping into the shoes of Ian Wright as the new pundits on Match of the Day.

Arsenal icon Wright announced back in December 2023 that he would be stepping down from the hit BBC show after 27 years.

4

The Radio Times revealed in an interview with former Match of the Day presenter Des Lynam that the duo would be taking over the role.

And Wright’s role will pass from one Arsenal legend to another as Walcott, who made almost 400 appearances for the Gunners, takes over.

The 35-year-old also played for Everton and Southampton in the Premier League during his career, but it was with Arsenal that he won his silverware, collecting two FA Cups and two Community Shields.

Walcott also became the youngest ever player to feature for England in 2006 when he made his debut aged just 17 years and 75 days.

He retired from football in 2023 – but will now enter the world of punditry as he takes his place on the sofa alongside the show regulars.

Gary Lineker will continue to host the programme alongside regulars Alan Shearer and Micah Richards.

They will also be joined by Walcott’s former England teammate Hart who made over 300 appearances for Manchester City.

Hart also played for Tottenham, Burnley, West Ham and Birmingham City in the top tier – but it was with Celtic that he won the lion’s share of his trophies.

He won seven titles during his three years at the Scottish club, before calling time on his career in May 2024.

Viewers may already have caught a glimpse of the former goalkeeper during Euro 2024 as Hart made a number of pitch-side appearances throughout the tournaments.

4

4

The pair will certainly have much to live up to after Wright spent almost three decades featuring on the programme.

He made his debut on Match of the Day back in 1997 and was handed a role as a regular pundit on the show just five years later.

Having become a beloved name in punditry over the years, he has since opened up on his decision to leave on Sky Bet’s Stick to Football podcast as he explained how the scheduling of the show had put a strain on him.

‘It’s time,” he said. “I had a dear friend who said that sometimes you’ve got to know when to step back, change, rest, have a break, and say no, it’s just time.

“The way I am now, because I have to get back to London (after filming) it’s like 3:30am in the morning – it’s a long day. I leave at 8am in the morning and get back at midnight.

“I don’t want to stay over in Manchester. I used to but there are personal reasons why I always want to get back home.

“Especially, when you’re on Match of the Day, you’re live and I’ve had a massive problem before with people knowing where you are, so I always want to get back home to the missus and the girls.

“It just takes me two to three days after that to get ready and there are other things I’m doing which I just haven’t got the energy for sometimes.

4

“I’m getting older, I just want to make sure I use the time well and efficiently for myself and at the moment, Match of the Day is the one that if something had to go, it had to be that.”

And while Walcott and Hart will be the newest faces on the show, Lynam admitted he believed Richards would be the most natural successor to Wright when it came to becoming a regular.

He said: “I think it’s Richards isn’t it? He’s got a sense of humour and he knows football.

He added: “I think he needs to calm down a little but his opinions are quite solid, though I don’t think anybody can quite match Wrighty.”

Viewers will first be able to see Walcott and Hart in action on Match of the Day when it returns after the first round of Premier League fixtures on Saturday 17 August.

They will have a number of highly-anticipated Premier League fixtures to dissect including Arsenal’s opening game which sees them host Wolves from 3pm that day.