Ralph Hasenhuttl has confirmed that Southampton are currently holding talks with Theo Walcott over turning his loan spell permanent next season.
The Everton forward re-joined the south coast club after almost 15 years away last summer, joining on a season-long loan after being ruled out of Carlo Ancelotti’s plans.
Walcott had struggled for regular game time at Goodison Park last season, and following the signing of James Rodriguez the 32-year old was allowed to leave Merseyside.
The former England international has impressed at St Mary’s this season, scoring twice and assisting three times in 17 Premier League appearances for the Saints.
Walcott’s current contract with the Toffees is set to expire in the summer, leaving Southampton free to negotiate with the player without requiring Everton’s permission.
Talking in his pre-match press conference on Thursday (via Hampshire Live), Hasenhuttl responded to questions about Walcott’s long-term future by saying: “It is no secret that I am very happy with him for as long as he is here now.
“We missed him when he was injured. I like a lot of things about him. His work, his mentality and professionalism. Every team need to have this player.
“Every manager likes him because he is always positive, always open-minded and has never stopped getting better.
“We are in negotiation with him.”
Good luck Theo
When Walcott first joined Everton in January 2018, Sam Allardyce looked to have actually pulled off a decent signing.
Though he was no longer the player he once was, Walcott still possessed the ability to flourish in a new environment. Having begun to tread water at the Emirates the hope was that he could find renewed energy as an Everton player.
After starting well however, Theo would quickly lose his impact for the Blues, with the former England man becoming resigned to the bench at Goodison Park.
Despite his mixed fortunes on Merseyside however, Walcott never once complained about a lack of game time or for losing the trust of the manager, be that Allardyce, Marco Silva or Carlo Ancelotti.
Everton fans tend to cherish two things above all else: that a player works his hardest every time he’s on the pitch in Everton colours, and that a player maintains a professional attitude while playing for the club. Credit to Walcott, he always succeeded on both fronts.
Walcott isn’t part of Ancelotti’s long-term plans so whether he signs for Southampton or not he will leave Everton at the end of the season when his contract expires. Though his spell on Merseyside wasn’t as successful as we hoped it would be, we hope that he finds success elsewhere.
In other Everton news, £27m Everton loan star appears destined to return to Goodison in the summer.
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