Wenger: Walcott could be quality striker

Cape Town - Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger appears to have ended the confusion over where Theo Walcott will play this season by insisting his best position is as a central striker.

The England international, who sees himself as a winger but has spoken of his desire to play a more central role, has been tried in both positions by Wenger.

Although Walcott has scored just 16 goals in 63 games up front for the Gunners in the past two seasons, his French manager feels he is best placed to lead the Gunners in attack.

"I believe he has all the ingredients to become a great striker," Wenger said. "He has the quality of the runs, he is a very intelligent player and he's a good finisher.

"He's not a great defender, so I believe to use his runs in the final third could be very efficient.

"Scoring goals and playing there will give confidence and slowly convince him, maybe, he can be absolutely fantastic there.

"On the flank, today, you need to do so much defensive work that you lose a lot of his qualities. I don't rule it out, but for me I will use him more up front."