Published: 10 September, 2015
by STEVE BARNETT

THEO Walcott has vowed that he will always “do his best” for Arsenal no matter where manager Arsene Wenger chooses to play him. 

The 26-year-old has made little secret of the fact that he wants to play as a central striker, but when he was given that role in the Gunners last Premier League outing away at Newcastle he failed to impress. 

Walcott did, however, find his scoring boots for England during the international break as he came off the bench to grab two goals in the Euro qualifier away at San Marino on Saturday. 

Whether or not that will be enough to earn him a place in Wenger’s starting XI against Stoke on Saturday, and just where on the pitch that might be, remains an open question. 

“I think you’ll see a mixture of me playing on the left, right and in the centre, depending on how the game is going and who the opposition is,” Walcott told the Arsenal Weekly podcast. “That’s why the manager is the best man to pick his team. I’ve shown the manager what I can do in all three positions. 

“It’s obviously well-documented that I want to play up front but there’s a lot of competition for places here. I will do my best in any position when I am given the opportunity to play for this club.

“I will always be judged on goals and assists but I feel like I would score a lot of goals up front.” 

Walcott also revealed the differences between playing up front and on the flank – a position he knows well having prominently played on the right-hand side for the Gunners since arriving from Southampton in 2006. 

“On the right you have to do a bit more defending,” he said. “Obviously up front you need to do your part because it always starts from the front, but on the right you need to track your runner, you need to tuck in for your fellow midfielders and your full backs. There’s all these other jobs that you need to do. 

“Up front some people may think, ‘Oh he hasn’t touched the ball for 15 minutes’, but you’re moving all the time, taking players out of the game and creating space for team-mates. 

“That’s what strikers need to do at times, not just to always come for the ball and lay it off. 

“You need to stretch teams, which will give our midfielders more space, more opportunities and more goals. That’s what you want in the team.”