As we all know a number of Arsenal stars are entering the last year of their current contracts in the summer, arguably Robin van Persie’s remains the most significant out of the lot. And while every Arsenal will be praying for the Dutch striker to commit his long-term future to the north London club, many may feel differently about Theo Walcott renewing his Arsenal stay.
The 22-year-old winger has been at Arsenal for almost six years and is very much apart of Arsene Wenger’s plans.
However, Walcott only has 15 months left to run on his existing contract, and while reports suggest the England international is closing in on a new four-year deal to remain at the club – where he would reportedly pocket £80,000-a-week – nothing is yet set in stone.
As a result, many European clubs, including Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and newly Tottenham, are keeping a close eye on the situation.
Now all my Twitter followers will know how I feel about Theo, I don’t rate much and that is putting it politely. Most of his performances over the past few seasons, in my opinion, have been below par and he has failed to deliver on a number of occasions. I know he has netted a few goals here and there and has assisted in several of RVP’s goals, but he remains a frustrated figure to watch.
Personally, with his contract set to expire at the end of next season, I would look to sell him on, as he is not a consistent performer and has not improved his so called ‘talent’ enough to warrant the proposed deal on the table. Sell him, rake in about £15-18 million and look to bring in either Eden Hazard or Mario Gotze as a replacement.
Of course this is just my view on the matter, but I wanted to see what other Gooners out there thought, so we here at Gunnersphere.com conducted a poll which asked the question – should Arsenal look to extend Theo Walcott’s contract beyond 2013?
Well many Arsenal fans cast their votes on the topic and I have to say that I am slightly surprised with the outcome, considering a lot of the faithful that I talk to rate Theo.
Results show that 43% (the majority) of votes cast (833 in total) believe the club should look to offer him a new deal, while 38% would rather the club sell him on. 19% remain on the fence.
Guess the only thing for us to do now is to sit back, enjoy the rest of the season and see if Theo is rewarded with a new deal, this particular Gooner hopes not.
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I just hope to see Theo improve. Believe me, should this young man leave Arsenal, he will be a torment to Arsenal and other teams from my point of view. Should a club like juve or barca snap him up, then the whole world is in trouble. Theo used to be daring player (ask Maldini) before his back injury which he picked up while training with the English national team. Since then he never regained the confidence he once had. he was so good Fabio Capello felt he was the best player in the national team. Arsene wenger has not done a good job in bring out the confidence Theo once had and should he leave and find a coach who will then “i rest my case” . Arsenal and other clubs beware of the new reinvented Mr theo Walcott. A coach like mourhino would light up Theo’s fire again.