Arsenal forward Theo Walcott is gathering interest from a whole host of Premier League clubs and according to latest reports in the English press, Everton and Southampton are leading the chase to sign the 28-year-old speedster. The English international has played the role of a squad player for the past decade since his move from Southampton in the winter transfer window of 2006. He has been a great servant to the club under Arsene Wenger during his career in North London which has seen him score 108 goals and make 78 assists in 399 appearances for the Gunners so far.
However, he might finally decide to leave the club in January after 12 years, to boost his chances of playing regular first-team football. This could be his last opportunity to try and salvage a place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup which is set to kick off later this year.
Everton are in dire need of some attacking reinforcements with the club currently struggling to score goals regularly under new manager Sam Allardyce. The Merseyside club are floating in midtable and are sitting in 9th place in the Premier League standings. They have already secured the services of Turkish striker Cenk Tosun from Besiktas and are now looking for another option to bolster their front line.
However, there is no guarantee that Walcott will feature regularly under Big Sam with Wayne Rooney, Cenk Tosun, Gylfi Sigurðsson and Yannick Bolasie all vying for a place in the Everton first-team.
Southampton, on the other hand, are a team battling for their Premier League lives at the bottom half of the league table. The Saints are currently in 17th place in the league standings, just a point above the relegation zone. A return for their former youngster Theo Walcott will definitely boost their chances in the battle to save themselves from a potential relegation at the end of the season.
Mauricio Pellegrino’s men have just managed to score 23 goals in 23 league matches with all of their strikers struggling to find any kind of form in front of goal. A potential transfer of Walcott will add goals to their side which might be crucial in their attempts to avoid the drop this term.
The 28-year-old English international has scored 4 goals and made 5 assists in 16 appearances for the Gunners this season across all competitions. It remains to be seen what lies ahead in his future as both Everton and Southampton are worth destinations to potentially reignite his career.
