How a change in position helped these great players excel – could Theo follow suit?

Theo Walcott has broken rank and publicly declared that he's looking for the right position, not the right money, if he's going to sign a new deal at Arsenal. Though it's certainly Arsene Wenger's job to decide who plays where, could Walcott have a point? talkSPORT look at some of football's greats that excelled with a change of duties...

Name: Francesco Totti
Club: Roma
Converted from: Winger to trequartista/false number nine

Roma legend Francesco Totti was playing as a false number nine long before Lionel Messi, but during the early stages of his career he was often deployed as a winger. During his first spell as Roma coach in 1997, Zdenek Zeman used Totti as the left wide forward in a 4-3-3 formation and he went on to score a respectable 30 goals over two seasons in that position. When Fabio Capello succeeded Zeman he had different ideas, moving Totti inside to play behind the striker and there were clear benefits to his new role as Roma won the last of their three Serie A titles with Totti in a central position in 2000/01. Playing through the middle, he used his eye for a pass to pull the strings in Roma's side and as he grew more comfortable in the position his goals tally increased, too, with 20 in both the 2002/03 and 2003/04 seasons. As his influence in the team increased and an injury crisis left them without an obvious striker, Totti was trusted with the task of leading the attack in a modified 4-2-3-1 formation and his goalscoring form hit its peak in the 2006/07 campaign, landing him the European Golden Boot and Serie A top scorer award with 26 goals. Had Totti remained as a wide forward he would no doubt have excelled, but it's unlikely he would have hit the heady heights he managed for Roma playing in the middle.

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Name: Thierry Henry
Club: Arsenal
Converted from: Winger to striker

The player Walcott wants to emulate, though in truth few possess Thierry Henry's ability to finish or his blistering pace. Contrary to popular belief, the Frenchman was used as a striker in his Monaco youth days, long before his move to Arsenal, but it was ironic that then Monaco coach Arsene Wenger decided he would be best suited to the flanks when he was promoted to the first team. It was in this position that Henry would spend the initial years of his professional career with the French club and Juventus in the mid-nineties, but when he was reunited with Wenger at Arsenal in 1999, the French coach went with his initial instincts and played him through the middle. Though it took time for Henry to adapt to his new role, claiming he had to be 're-taught the art of striking', he would eventually go on to score 26 goals in all competitions in his first season at Highbury. Two Premier League titles and three FA Cups later, it was clear the decisive moment in Henry's career was the switch in position initiated by Wenger.

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Name: Roberto Baggio
Club: Brescia
Converted from: Supporting striker to attacking midfielder

Roberto Baggio's position has always been a subject of debate, but what is clear is that he had spent nearly 20 years in an advanced role akin to a second striker by the time he made the move to humble Brescia in 2000. Age and injury were catching up, so the decision was made to move him deeper into midfield as a clear out-and-out trequartista to pull the strings and it proved an inspired choice. Ten goals and 10 assists in his first season meant Brescia comfortably avoided relegation from Serie A, finishing seventh in the league, with Ballon d'Or nomination to boot, despite being in his 30s and the twilight of his career. His second year in 2001 started in a similar manner, scoring eight in his first nine games, and though a major injury would rule him out for most of the season, his return three games before the end of the Serie A campaign saw him score three more goals, including one against Bologna on the final day of the season to save Brescia from the drop. Baggio's goals again saved Brescia from relegation the following season and his loss was apparent when the eventually sunk to the second tier after his retirement in 2004.

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Name: Lionel Messi
Club: FC Barcelona
Converted from: Wide forward to false number nine

Lionel Messi had already completed an historic treble and won a Ballon d'Or as a wide forward by the time Pep Guardiola decided to move him into the middle permanently in 2009, but it was in his new role that the Argentine would truly establish himself as the best player on the planet. Guardiola's decision to move Messi may have been influenced after Totti's successful transition, with the former Barcelona coach a known admirer of Italian football as a result of his time spent playing in the country. Opposition defenders were baffled by Messi's new position and were unsure how to mark him and with the Argentine given free reign to drift around the pitch as he saw fit, his eye for a pass, incredible dribbling and deadly finishing combined to brilliant effect. His current role also means that on the rare occasions that he isn't scoring he can be just as effective as a playmaker, drawing players from their position and opening up space in the box for equally deadly forwards like David Villa and Pedro. Messi was brilliant as a wide player, but it was only when he moved into the middle that the debate over whether he is the greatest of all time began. 

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Will a change of poisition be the difference for Theo Walcott, or is it about his abillity, not his role? Comment below and have your say...