Arsenal Transfer News: Shock Theo Walcott Fiorentina Loan Rumours Emerge

Theo Walcott is involved in one of the more fanciful transfer rumours in recent memory. The Arsenal forward is reportedly a January loan target for Serie A side Fiorentina.

That's according to Daily Express reporter Anthony Chapman:

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According to reports in Italy, Fiorentina are ready to offer Walcott the chance of regular first-team football in a team featuring the likes of Juan Cuadrado and Mario Gomez.

[...] Arsenal have a number of options in midfield and attack, including the likes of Alexis Sanchez, Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil, and Walcott could be keen on testing himself abroad as he looks to nail down a regular place in Roy Hodgson's Three Lions squad.

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It's difficult to attach any credence to this particular rumour. Walcott, who's barely played while recovering from a knee injury suffered in January, still remains a key part of Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger's plans.

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His pace and improved off-the-ball running are vital assets in a team that loves to attack between the lines via clever and intricate passing. In the last three seasons, Walcott has emerged as a consistent source of goals.

Even though his last campaign was wrecked by injuries, Walcott still managed to net six goals, per ESPN FC. They followed the 22 he hit during the 2012-13 campaign.

That season was significant because it included Walcott inking a lucrative new contract, something reported by David Hytner of The Guardian:

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Theo Walcott has finally signed a new contract at Arsenal, which has made him the club's highest-paid player on £100,000 a week. The England forward has committed for three and a half years and he has received a £3m bonus for remaining loyal.

The saga ended on Friday morning, bringing a tonic to player and club. Walcott, whose previous deal – worth £55,000 a week – was set to expire in the summer, had sought fresh terms to reflect his value on the pitch and in marketing terms. He is hugely popular in east Asia, where Arsenal are seeking to make commercial inroads, and his new salary contains image rights clauses.

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Hytner's point regarding Walcott's market appeal remains significant. It's unlikely Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis would sanction parting with a player who wows the crowds in Asia.

The club has made significant inroads in the region during the last few years. Those efforts were highlighted by the highly successful pre-season tour conducted prior to the 2013-14 campaign.

The issue of Walcott needing regular football to maintain his international credentials also rates as more than slightly dubious. Fully fit or not, Walcott never seems to be far from England gaffer Roy Hodgson's plans.

That point was made crystal clear recently, when Walcott was named in the squad for England's upcoming international fixtures, per ESPN FC. This is despite the player making just one brief substitute appearance since being stretchered off during Arsenal's 2-0 FA Cup win over Tottenham Hotspur on Jan. 4.

Walcott hardly needs a move to stay in Hodgson's thinking. Nor does he need to worry about playing regularly for the Gunners, even after the rapid start to life at Arsenal made by marquee summer signing Alexis Sanchez.

The former Barcelona ace has already netted 11 goals, per Arsenal.com. That form rightly made the Chilean star the PFA Player of the Month for October, per the London Evening Standard.

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But rather than being usurped by Sanchez, Walcott is more likely to join him to form a deadly double act of pace and scoring efficiency. Wenger has already suggested that he's relishing the prospect of playing the two together, according to Arsenal.com reporter Max Jones:

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His runs off the ball are fantastic and it always gives you hope that you can score goals. The pace we have in the side when he’s back is very impressive because Welbeck, Alexis and Oxlade-Chamberlain are also very quick.

Could the attacking pace frighten defences? Let’s see. My imagination works like yours but I have to prove that they can work together on the pitch and that’s what I’ll try to do when everybody’s back.

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Making this potentially potent combination work would help Wenger emulate the formula that earned the Gunners so much success during his first decade in charge.

ALASTAIR GRANT/Associated Press

Wenger's best Arsenal teams were always built on pace in attack. The 1997-98 double winners had Marc Overmars and Nicolas Anelka. The team that dominated from 2001-04 turned Thierry Henry loose on bewildered defenders.

Reviving that dynamic remains the key to settling a maddeningly inconsistent current squad.

That's why Walcott will be a major feature of this season's Arsenal team. Expect to see him still wearing Gunners colours after the January transfer window slams shut.