ARSENE Wenger has no intention of letting Theo Walcott or any other of his Arsenal youngsters out on loan.

The Gunners, who host Newcastle in the fourth round of the FA Cup today, are still smarting from the midweek mauling at arch-rivals Tottenham, as Juande Ramos' men booked their place in the Carling Cup final at Wembley after a resounding 5-1 win.

Walcott started the game at White Hart Lane from a central attacking role, having netted an equaliser in the first leg.

However, the England Under- 21 international produced only an average display.

Wenger accepts Walcott, who turns 19 in March, is not where he was expected to be after two years with Arsenal but maintains he will get there'' following what has been a rollercoaster ride after a big-money move from Southampton and subsequent controversial inclusion in Sven-Goran Eriksson's ill-fated 2006 World Cup squad.

There have been suggestions the Arsenal manager could now be ready to let Walcott, who has battled back to match fitness following a shoulder problem, spend some time away from Emirates Stadium, with Liverpool and Coca-Cola Championship promotion hopefuls Stoke both said to be keen on a loan deal.

However, the Arsenal manager maintains he needs all of his squad as they enter a crucial phase of the season - especially given Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Eboue and Alex Song are all at the African Nations Cup while striker Robin van Persie remains sidelined.

No, because we are very short,'' said Wenger when asked whether anyone would now be allowed to go on loan following the Carling Cup exit.

We have 17 players at the moment, and you could see with the players who were on the bench at Tottenham that they should not have been there.'' The Arsenal manager maintains the Carling Cup experience, which last year took his young side to the final in Cardiff, was all part of the learning process, and accepts those youngsters may currently lack maturity'' in such situations.

However, Wenger insists he made the right decision not to gamble with the fitness of senior men.

He said: My focus is on different targets now - it was never the main focus of the season.

Our main targets are the championship and the Champions League. We prioritise that from now on.''