Southampton chairman Rupert Lowe has again insisted he is not looking to sell
teenage sensation Theo Walcott - but he admits the matter could be taken out of
his hands.
Walcott, the hottest property outside the Barclays Premiership, has been
linked with big-money moves to Chelsea, Tottenham, Arsenal, Liverpool and even
Real Madrid since he burst onto the scene this season.
The five-goal striker cannot sign a professional deal until he turns 17 in
March, and in theory could walk away from St Mary's for next to nothing with any
fee to be decided by a tribunal.
But Walcott, and his agent Colin Gordon, have pledged not to do so and Lowe
has stressed his determination to hold on to his prized asset for the time
being.
"We want him to stay as long as possible but I cannot give any
copper-bottomed answers and say he will be here for the next five years, or two
years, or whatever," Lowe told the club's radio station, The Saint.
"We hope he will be and while he is happy that we are the right club to give
him the right career path to progress I then I am sure he will stay.
"But if at any stage he wants to go then that will be a matter for him and
his advisors and those he talks to.
"In the same way that supporters have jobs and sometimes move on, if he feels
he is better served by a move then that is a matter for him.
"I don't think we will feel for a very long time that we would want him to go
and we never try to sell our best players at 16 or 17.
"We want to get the best from him and for him to progress and flourish here -
as he has done so far."
Lowe insists he remains confident Walcott will sign on the dotted line in two
months, thus guaranteeing Saints a massive fee - figures of between £5million
and £10million have been mentioned - when the time comes for him to move on.
He also believes Walcott's best interests will be served at St Mary's, where
he will get regular first-team football, rather than languishing in the reserves
at a bigger club.
"I'm not going into contractual details but the issue is he is still a
scholar and signs as a pro at 17," added Lowe.
"All things being equal, that should happen. He is a young lad who will
listen to his advisors and parents and everything they think has got to be taken
into account.
"Our academy facilities and management structure make it easier to attract
players and Theo has flourished in our structure here.
"He has played a lot of first-team football and done tremendously well and we
want him to continue that with us."
Head coach George Burley has admitted that players will be leaving Southampton
this month, however, and Lowe remained tight-lipped on reports linking captain
Nigel Quashie and fellow midfielder David Prutton to West Brom in a
player-plus-cash deal involving striker Robert Earnshaw.
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