Paying a player northwards of £100,000 a week to be an occasional impact sub off the bench is an expensive business , even for a side who have Premier League title aspirations . And , judging by Arsene Wenger ’ s decision to leave him sat in his tracksuit throughout the entirety of the 2-1 victory over Newcastle United , Theo Walcott seems to have become just that at Arsenal . Indeed there was , for portions of this match , a sense that Olivier Giroud , Alexis Sanchez and Danny Welbeck could form a clinical strike force in the Premier League for years to come – while Walcott warmed up on the touchline . Yet , even in the second half when things were not going right for Arsenal and they needed a spark to reignite them , Wenger instead turned to Tomas Rosicky ahead of Walcott to give some added impetus . And , as much as Walcott will have enjoyed seeing his side keep the pressure up on second-placed Manchester City , you can ’ t help but feel the England forward must be contemplating lowering his reported wage demands if he wants to stay at the Emirates . Theo Walcott has stalled on talks over a new deal with the winger wanting wages of over £100,000 a week . The England international was left on the bench for the game against Newcastle and did n't feature . Wojciech Szczesny and Walcott have both found their chances limited this for Arsenal this season . Because , put simply , where do you fit him into this Gunners side ? Giroud is on fire and is leading the line superbly – he has scored 11 goals in 12 Premier League starts this season after his two at St James ’ – Welbeck caused problems all afternoon , contributing an assist for the first and he also should have netted at least twice , while Sanchez , although visibly tired , was still able to produce that little bit of magic to keep the Gunners on the front foot . Walcott is not an automatic selection anymore , and therefore he can not be too ambitious with his wage demands . Arsenal ’ s form is superb – they have won 14 of 16 games since New Year ’ s Day – and they have achieved that largely without Walcott ’ s presence . The 26-year-old – yes , he is really still that young – has started just three top-flight games all season after returning from injury , and the Gunners haven ’ t exactly missed him . 2014/15 - All competitions . 11 appearances ( 5 starts ) , 3 goals . Overall - All competitions . 294 appearances ( 190 starts ) , 72 goals . Right now the Gunners are playing with pace and panache – displayed perfectly when Welbeck , Sanchez and Aaron Ramsey combined to take Arsenal from one side of the field to the other , only for Mike Williamson to make a timely interception . This was just one example of when Arsenal ’ s front men wreaked havoc in an awesome first-half display . Yet , despite that , their goals at St James ’ Park came from a direct source . Giroud loves scoring against Newcastle anyway , and now has eight in seven against them , but the way he calmly kneed in his first after Welbeck ’ s flick-on highlights a player with confidence . His second was also a decent header , although he didn ’ t even have to jump off the ground so feeble was the challenge offered up by Williamson . Unfortunately for Walcott , height and an aerial presence will make Giroud first-choice centre forward every time . Alexis Sanchez ( left ) has been a revelation since signing for the club from Barcelona in the summer . Oliver Giroud ( 12 ) scored an impressive double at St James ' Park to continue his excellent form . Despite returning from a serious injury , Walcott has struggled to earn a place in Wenger 's starting 11 . Welbeck offers an abundance of pace and energy and can play anywhere across the front three , while Sanchez on his day is simply world class . They may not have been at their absolute best against Newcastle , but they got the job done . But on saying all of that , if Wenger does not offer Walcott a new deal then he risks losing a player with more than 200 games ’ worth of Premier League experience and 47 strikes in England ’ s top flight to one of his rivals . Is he really willing to risk that ? Perhaps though , given Walcott ’ s shocking injury record , Wenger thinks he has replaced one ‘ W ’ for another – with the £16million acquisition of Welbeck increasingly looking like a piece of shrewd business by the Frenchman . Will Walcott or Wenger blink first in this latest of many contract disputes the England winger seems to have had with the club ? On the basis of Saturday ’ s match , you get the impression the England striker may be knocking on the manager ’ s door with his tail between his legs sometime soon . Danny Welbeck ( right ) terrorised the Newcastle defence with his pace and looks to be settling in well .
Theo Walcott wants his new contract to pay 100,000 a week . Oliver Giroud , Danny Welbeck and Alexis Sanchez are beginning to form an exciting partnership and were impressive against Newcastle . Arsene Wenger wants to keep Walcott but has bulked at his demands . Click here for all the latest Arsenal news .