Everton manager Sam Allardyce has joked that he will hand over team talk duties to Theo Walcott on his return to former club Arsenal this weekend.

The 28-year-old makes a quick return to the Emirates Stadium, just over a fortnight after leaving for the Toffees in a £20m permanent transfer.

Walcott, who spent 12 years in North London prior to calling it quits last month, has already made a big impression at his new club after scoring a brace in the 2-1 win over Leicester City in midweek.

Ahead of Saturday evening's trip to Arsenal, Allardyce backed the England international hopeful's decision to swap clubs.

"He'll be doing the team talk tomorrow," he told reporters at his pre-match press conference. "I think he is looking forward to it. I am sure he will get a good reception when he goes back to The Emirates considering the time he spent there.

"Everyone can understand why he has left because now he has the opportunity to be one of the key players for Everton now. I think he saw that was going to be the case [for Arsenal] last season when he played 30-plus games and scored 19 goals.

"Then all of a sudden this season that hasn't been the case, but he can be a pivotal figure for us in the future. Hopefully he can go and perform as well as he did on Wednesday night."

Walcott made just six substitute appearances for Arsenal in the Premier League this season prior to joining Everton.