Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger breaks the bank to keep England international Theo Walcott at the Emirates Five months after Walcott rejected Arsenal's first offer of a £78,000-a-week deal, the forward finally signed yesterday , delivering a significant boost to manager Arsène Wenger, and potentially signalling a change in policy at the Emirates. Wenger has operated with a wage ceiling of around £90,000 a week for his leading players, and said recently he set the wages and terms of all players personally. Andrei Arshavin is among those Wenger has placed at the top of the Arsenal pay structure without necessarily justifying his value to supporters. Walcott's willingness to hold out for an improved deal forced Wenger to blink first for fear of losing another marquee player at the end of the season. In the last two years Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri and, most damagingly, Robin van Persie left Arsenal to seek titles elsewhere. Had Walcott, in the last year of his current deal, taken a similar route it would have been a severe blow to Wenger. He is the fifth English player to commit to the club, after Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jack Wilshere, Kieran Gibbs and Carl Jenkinson signed new deals in December.