West Ham United are lining up a shock summer swoop for England international Theo Walcott, according to the Brentwood Gazette.
The Premier League club, who climbed up to fifth in the standings over the weekend after coming back from two goals down to defeat Everton 3-2 on Saturday, are reportedly interested in signing the Arsenal forward.
The 26-year-old, who has 42 international caps for the Three Lions and could feature for Roy Hodgson’s side at the 2016 UEFA European Championships this summer in France, has scored six goals and provided six assists in 39 appearances in all competitions for the Gunners so far this season.
Walcott, who joined manager Arsene Wenger at the fellow London outfit back in January 2006 following his move from Southampton in a deal worth up to £12m, has become a transfer target of Hammers boss Slaven Bilic later this year as West Ham move into their Olympic Stadium.
The report suggests that Bilic’s side are plotting a £26m raid for Walcott, who has scored 82 goals in 335 games for the Gunners.