"I just feel that the grass isn’t always greener" - Theo Walcott urges Eberechi Eze to snub Arsenal transfer for one key reason

Former Arsenal forward Theo Walcott has advised Eberechi Eze against a move to the Emirates this summer. The English forward remains heavily linked with the Gunners, who are in the market for further attacking reinforcements.

Eze was quite impressive for Crystal Palace last season, registering 14 goals and 11 assists from 43 games across competitions. The 27-year-old is under contract until 2027, but his time at Selhurst Park could be coming to an end this summer.

However, speaking to It's Called Soccer, Walcott insisted that staying with the Eagles could help Eze break into the 2026 FIFA World Cup squad.

"If he has a good season at Palace, he will go to the World Cup, I’m pretty sure of that… then what other teams will have a look at him after that? If I was Eze, I would probably stay put just because it’s World Cup year. If it wasn’t World Cup year then I would probably move on. These opportunities might not come again, though, so that’s the risk these players have got to take," said Walcott.

He continued:

"But for me, World Cup year is a big year and I just feel that the grass isn’t always greener. I love the way Eze plays at Palace at this moment in time and it would look very different at Arsenal. He would improve Arsenal, 100 per cent, but I just feel that World Cup year is a big factor for a lot of players this year."

Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish recently suggested that the club could be open to Eze's exit this summer.

Is Oleksandr Zinchenko planning to leave Arsenal next summer?

Oleksandr Zinchenko is planning to leave Arsenal once his contract expires in the summer of 2026, according to The Athletic. The Ukrainian defender dropped down the pecking order last season, and his situation has worsened over the summer.

The Gunners roped in Cristhian Mosquera from Valencia to further bolster their backline. Zinchenko, as such, is surplus to requirements and is likely to struggle for minutes if he stays at the Emirates.

However, the 28-year-old has no plans to leave at the moment, and wants to see out the remainder of his contract with the north London side. Arsenal, however, would prefer to move him on this year to avoid losing him for free. Interestingly, Zinchenko could agree a pre-contract with interested suitors in January.

About the author

Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over seven years at Sportskeeda. He has written more than 9500 articles for the website, and has garnered close to 21 million reads.

Deepungsu holds a PG degree in Microbiology and an MBA degree in Total Quality Management. He has an extensive two-decade long writing experience, which includes a decade of sports blogging. His writing prowess has even led his work getting cited on the legendary Franz Beckenbauer's Wikipedia page.

Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.

Deepungsu has been a Manchester United supporter since the year 2000. Unsurprisingly, his favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson and the Scotsman helped him get through some of the toughest days of his life. Like the fiery Scot, Deepungsu also leaves no stone unturned when it comes to accuracy in articles and only relies on credible sources.

Despite believing in Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland to create an iconic rivalry, Deepungsu reckons no one can match the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo. He spends his leisure time writing about life on his blog, reading books, and playing the guitar.

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Edited by Deepungsu Pandit