Arsenal winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is reportedly growing ever-more frustrated with his situation at The Emirates, with just 18 months left on his deal.

His manager, Arsene Wenger, who brought him to north London from Southampton in 2011, has claimed that talks are underway with the England international, however, according to claims from The Mirror, no such talks have happened, and the talk from the Frenchman has begun to annoy Chamberlain.

During the summer window, rumours began to emerge that the 23-year-old was a target for his former club and even club captain and former teammate Jose Fonte had got in touch with the Saints academy graduate to try and convince him to return.

With his future in north London up in the air at the moment, and Chamberlain himself admitting earlier this season that a move may have to be something he considers to better his career, would a fairy-tale return to St. Mary’s be a good option?

Well, Shoot! have taken a look at why he should pack his bags and head south once more…

Main Man

Photo: Charlie Crowhurst / Offside.

Although Chamberlain has played a slightly more prominent role for Arsene Wenger this season, his place in the side is far from guaranteed, and not many Arsenal fans would put him in their best XI.

However, under Claude Puel the Ox would be one of the first names on the sheet week-in, week-out. With many fans and pundits claiming that a decent run of games is all the winger needs to realise his full potential, what could be better than a team where you are the main man?

Hero status

Photo: Charlie Crowhurst / Offside.

The St. Mary’s faithful are very proud of the academy setup, and why shouldn’t they be? So when a player makes it through the ranks and goes on to big things, they are held in very high esteem.

A case in point of this was during the Saints’ recent EFL Cup victory over the Gunners, in which Chamberlain was introduced from the bench by Arsene Wenger and received just as warm, if not warmer, a welcome from the travelling fans as he did his own, who wouldn’t enjoy that?

On the up

Photo: Marc Atkins / Offside.

The atmosphere around St. Mary’s may not be the best right now, having been dumped out of Europe via a lacklustre performance against Israeli outfit Harpoel Be’er Sheva last week.

However, in the grand scheme of things, the Saints are on the up and a far cry from where Chamberlain left them in 2011. The belief and feeling around a club in such a situation is infectious and can carry players to new heights and offers different pressures to those experienced when trying to break into an Arsenal side dominated by Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil.