Southampton boss Mauricio Pellegrino has praised Theo Walcott who once played for the Saints, but refused to comment on the speculation of a return to the South Coast

The England international, who came through the youth system at Southampton before moving to Arsenal in 2006 as a 16-year-old, is thought to be willing to take a wage cut in order to complete a deal.

"There are many players that we have interest in," he said. "I can't say anything because, obviously Walcott is an excellent player, but I can't confirm this.

"We are in the market ready to try to bring somebody that wants to come but I know it will be difficult.

"In January it is not easy to bring in players but the market is huge and I think we will have some opportunities.

"We have got a couple of targets, four, five, six targets. We have confidence that someone else can come and it will be great for us.

"We are looking for a player that can improve the level of the squad. In the market you never know until the end."