Two years ago I can remember sitting frustrated, worried, even slight angry, over whether Arsenal were going to cough up and give Theo Walcott a new contract.
The forward was in arguably the form of his career, typified by a hat-trick against Newcastle just days before his contract went into its final six months. He ended the season with 21 goals in 43 appearances.
At the time, Walcott was demanding £100,000-a-week. An amount that seemed justified when a glance over the Arsenal squad suggested a worrying lack of fire power. Robin van Persie had headed up north to Manchester United, while new boys Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski were still finding their feet.
