Walcott ready to pick up where Henry left off

Arsene Wenger believes that the moment when Theo Walcott stakes his claim to be the next Thierry Henry is fast approaching. And the young winger could soon be given the chance to play as an out-and-out striker - thus emulating Arsenal's French legend, who arrived at the club as an inconsistent midfielder and left as one of the most feared marksmen in world football.

Wenger's decision to talk up Walcott's striking credentials at a time when he needs all the midfielders he can get is curious. The Gunners travel to Shakhtar Donetsk for tonight's Champions League clash without Cesc Fabregas, Alex Song, Abou Diaby, Denilson and Andrei Arshavin. So, although Walcott will start the game, it is unlikely that he will be asked to play through the middle.

Instead the young Englishman is likely to start alongside Tomas Rosicky and Samir Nasri in a 4-2-3-1 formation, supporting front-man Marouane Chamakh.

However, defences in the Premier League and beyond have been put on notice that the 21-year-old, who has already notched six goals in seven games this season, will soon be unleashed as a centre forward. And, given that Walcott routinely destroys full backs with his pace, the traditionally more cumbersome central defenders will not be looking forward to the transformation.

Wenger said that Walcott had been working hard on his finishing and that the central role was suited to him.

"He is very, very close to playing that striker role," announced the Arsenal boss. "He is more of a natural striker as he likes to put the ball into the net himself."

And Wenger had a message for anyone who harbours doubts about his ability to create goalscorers. "Don't forget that when Thierry [Henry] came here, he was a winger. When I first played him as a central striker, he said to me, 'I can't score goals'."

If that wasn't enough, Wenger went on to twist the knife by reminding defenders up and down the land that they would be dealing with the new goalscoring Walcott for many years to come.

"Theo is 21," said the Arsenal boss. "Give two more years to Theo and imagine what he will be. Theo can be a prolific goalscorer as once he is a yard in front of the defender nobody can catch him. Before he rushed his decision but now he is different. It looks to me that Theo has a calmness in front of goal."

Wenger went on to say that although Walcott was not a carbon copy of Henry the pair shared certain traits. "They have in common tremendous pace, they are good finishers and both are intelligent," he explained, before paying tribute to Walcott's maturity, saying: "To go through what Theo has gone through, live it, as he has lived it, is incredible. No matter whether he has gone through – good or bad times – he shows commitment, intelligence, respect and humility." ·