Theo Walcott: An unclear future

With his contract expiring at the end of the 2012/2013 season, Theo Walcott’s Arsenal future is clearly in jeopardy. Rumours say the pacey England international wants £100,000 pounds per week which is £25,000 more than his current contract with Arsenal Football Club.

The news of his possible availability has put a host of clubs including Chelsea, Manchester United and more recently, Paris St Germain on high alert to obtain his services.

MY OPINION

Personally, I think Theo is a class act and has an enormous amount of potential, I also think with him recently scoring a brilliant hattrick in their remarkable 7-3 victory against Newcastle, his future lies at the Emirates.

On the other hand, Theo has clearly asked a lot from Arsenal who unlike Man City, cannot afford to splash hundreds of thousands of pounds per week on their players. I think one of the main reasons why Theo is yet to sign the contract is because he wants to play in his preferred role as a centre forward in oppose to out wide. Arsene though, has spoken publicly, saying he likes Theo out wide, so could a clash of opinions with him and his boss come between him and his contract?

Only time will tell, but a clear piece of evidence that Wenger knows what he is doing is that at the same age as Walcott is now (23), club legend Thierry Henry was converted from a winger to a striker, and he has gone on to score hundreds of goals for the club.

So surely, if Theo uses his brain. he will make the decision which is best for his future and not get side-tracked by the money involved or persuaded by the ‘better’ clubs like Man U or Chelsea.

To conclude my opinion; I think, for the benefit of his career, Theo should remain with the gunners.

RUMOURS

Rumours on the Walcott topic have recently spammed newspapers and transfer sites, with many confused football fans wondering whether Wenger may not want to run the risk of letting a £15 Million pounds player leave on a free, so will he be told a deadline to sign the dotted line?

Well, rumours suggest the 16th of January 2013 is his final deadline to make his decision. According to BBC Sport Football Gossip, Theo has until the 16th to sign the offered 90k per week or he is placed on the club’s growing transfer list which includes Tomas Rosicky, Sebastien Squillaci, Andrey Arshavin, Marouane Chamakh and Swiss international Johan Djourou.

What will he do? Will he go looking and find his desired £100k per week contract elsewhere or will he stay for maybe a cheaper deal?

CONCLUSION

To conclude my article, I feel the best for such a talented young player like Theo should be to stay put and sign the dotted line on the contract. This means he gets world-class training and management (as Wenger is known to give), and a good future in the game with a lot of game time with his status as one of Arsenal’s key players.

I also prefer him as a centre forward rather than a winger. I personally believe he will first demand that £100k per week contract, but may be willing to negotiate as I can’t see him leaving the Gooners.

Written by Travis Comery

Follow him on Twitter @TraaavComery

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