Arsenal Transfer News: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain Discussed by Arsene Wenger, More

Arsene Wenger has said he wants Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to remain at Arsenal after the English winger revealed he would consider his future at the end of the 2016-17 season.  

Now in his sixth season with the north London club—following his 2011 move to the Emirates Stadium from Southampton—Oxlade-Chamberlain, 23, still has yet to nail down a first-team spot.

Wenger, though, believes he has the quality to fight for a consistent starting place and is keen for him to remain at Arsenal given how much time the club have invested in him, per ESPN FC's Mattias Karen:

"

I can understand [his frustration], yes. On the other hand, when you buy a young player at 17 years of age and you spend a lot of money, you would like him to stay at the club.

I think his place is here. We like him, I personally rate him as a player and I hope that he will show that he can have a stable position in the team until the end of the season.

He is similar to [Theo] Walcott this season. He has not been rewarded yet, but he is in a similar position because he has worked really hard.

"

The comparison to Walcott is appropriate, as both were exceptional teenage talents who moved from Saints to Arsenal and have subsequently failed to quite live up to their potential.

Walcott has, however, started the new campaign in excellent fashion, netting five times in eight Premier League appearances, including two against Swansea City in Arsenal's 3-2 win on Saturday.

Oxlade-Chamberlain is four years younger than his compatriot and club team-mate and is surely eager to prove that he has the ability to make good on the potential that persuaded Arsenal to sign him.

Season	Appearances (as a sub)	Minutes	Goals	Assists
2016-17	3(3)	268	1	-
2015-16	9(13)	925	1	-
2014-15	17(6)	1,495	1	1
2013-14	6(8)	525	2	2
2012-13	11(14)	1,063	1	3
2011-12	6(10)	556	2	1

At the moment, though, he is not earning the opportunities. He has started only three Premier League matches so far in 2016-17—scoring one goal—and only played a full 90 minutes once all term, against Nottingham Forest in the EFL Cup.

In his entire Arsenal career, Oxlade-Chamberlain has only ever reached double figures for starts in a Premier League season twice, and he has never made more than 17 in a single campaign, per WhoScored.com.

The lack of game time is clearly becoming an issue for him, and he recently told Sky Sports' Goals on Sunday programme that, although he is currently "completely and utterly [focused] on playing for Arsenal and breaking into the team," he will re-evaluate his situation at the end of the season, per Sky Sports' Patrick Surlis.

Per Bleacher Report's Dean Jones, Arsenal chiefs have not rushed to offer Oxlade-Chamberlain a new contract despite the fact his current deal expires in 2018:

Although Wenger has insisted he wants him to remain at the club, should Oxlade-Chamberlain endure another season on the Arsenal fringes, it may be decided at the end of the campaign that it is mutually beneficial for him to leave the Emirates.