Arsene Wenger wants Theo Walcott stay

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed his intention to keep Theo Walcott at the Emirates with the promise of Premier League football as the season progresses.

The England international has struggled to break into the first-team setup this campaign with just 47 minutes of Premier League action.

As a result, Walcott has mostly settled for gametime in the League Cup and Europa League games, and this has led to suggestions that he could leave the Gunners in the near future.

Gunners legend Ian Wright recently stressed that Walcott should consider a fresh challenge away from the north London club, but Wenger has other plans in mind for the 28-year-old.

Speaking ahead of the Swansea City game, Wenger admitted that Walcott is still an influential player in the club's ranks, and he will get his Premier League chance in the coming months.

Wenger told reporters, via ESPN: "I do not want Theo to move on. When you look at the number of minutes these guys have played it's quite a big number.

"His time in the Premier League will come. I've gone into a rotation policy because we play Thursday, Sunday most of the time so at the moment he has got less minutes in the Premier League than other competitions."

Walcott wore the captain's armband in the midweek League Cup game against Norwich City which Arsenal won by a 2-1 scoreline.