Sam Allardyce is hopeful of beating off interest from Walcott's former club Southampton due to their ability to come close to matching his £110,000-per-week wages.

If Walcott prefers not to move north, though, Saints could become the front-runners, with Arsene Wenger likely to give the green light to a sale providing a replacement is lined up. A Sanchez sale could complicate Walcott's future though, with Wenger unlikely to sanction both moves without reinforcements already locked up.