by Nia Griffiths

With Theo Walcott reportedly on the brink of signing a new four-year-contract with the club, Arsene Wenger has spoken about how the forward can fit into the team long term.

Wenger is relaxed about the 26-year-old’s contract situation and, to be fair, he always has been.

After Walcott scored during both of Arsenal’s matches against Lyon and Wolfsburg in the Emirates Cup, the boss spoke about the player’s preferred position and it seems, somewhat strangely, as if no one really knows.

The forward, who is often played on the wing, has spoken about playing down the middle on more than one occasion. However, according to the boss, even Walcott himself doesn’t necessarily prefer this position all the time.

When asked about where he prefers to play, Wenger said, “It’s a complicated answer. If you ask him where he loves to play, even he is not certain.”

He continued, “When I played him sometimes on the left, he likes it as well, because when he makes a good run he can score.”

Walcott scored a fantastic goal while playing centrally against Wolfsburg with an assist from Jeff Reine-Adelaide.

“In the middle, I think in his idea he would like to play off a physically strong player,” Wenger said. “But we have so many offensive players that it’s hard to combine all these players together.”

He added, “But I’ve always said that he’s a goalscorer, because he has the movement and the timing and speed of finishing.

“He has an eye for taking his chances at the right moment and when he gets in positions, he can finish well.

“He lives by the quality of his movement. He turns up in the right space in the box. You cannot give that to a player.”

During the Emirates Cup, Walcott demonstrated what he’s best at, making runs into acres of space and driving the team forward. His pace makes him almost unplayable on his day and now his finishing is improving, everything seems to be falling neatly into place.