England winger Theo Walcott has rejected a new Arsenal contract and could be sold for £15m with Manchester City and Liverpool favourites to sign the 23-year-old. Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta, 30, has expressed his frustration at new players facing immediate comparisons with departed star Robin van Persie. Former Arsenal midfielder Alex Song insists he wanted to stay at the club for life but, when trying to tie down a new deal, he was continually "fobbed off" - prompting him to leave for Barcelona. Southampton are making a £5m move for Ajax left back Nicolai Boilesen, 20, with Inter Milan and Arsenal also keen.
He's rejected a new £75,000/week deal. Whether we'll give him a better offer is up in the air but I don't think it is likely. He is too inconsistent to be a six-figure earner--especially with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain nipping at his heels already and Cazorla looking like he has star potential. At this point it seems like Gooners shouldn't get attached to any of the guys on the team. As for Song, supposedly he was routinely late for training and team events and had taken an overly causal attitude with his performance. I'm sure he has strong affection for the club and for Wenger but the club is a business before it is a family, at least sometimes. We bought him for £400k and sold him for about 40x that.
Arsenal strikers Nicklas Bendtner and Ju Young Park have been loaned, with Bendtner going to Juventus and Ju to Celta Vigo (La Liga). Andrey Arshavin will remain with the Gunners at least until January. Arsenal are planning a move for Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien, who has been left out of the Blues' squad for tonight's Super Cup in Monaco. Hasn't happened, per the latest. Arsenal are mulling over offers from Malaga and Besiktas to take striker Marouane Chamakh on a season-long loan, the Metro reports. He stays, per the latest.
The Gunners were interested in Demba Ba from Newcastle but in addition to an expensive buyout clause his agents and managers demanded nearly £7.5m in fees for the transfer. Good to see Arsenal avoiding that shady bit of business?
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is reigniting his interest in Rennes midfielder Yann M'Vila, 22, with hopes of making him his first signing of the transfer window. Arsenal are set to end their interest in Crystal Palace's Wilfried Zaha, 20, because 23-year-old Theo Walcott is on the verge of signing a new contract. United are favourites to sign and loan-back Zaha.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is planning on bringing in two signings in the January transfer window as his side's 2-2 FA Cup draw with Swansea added to the club's fixture congestion. Birmingham keeper Jack Butland could be one of those signings with the Gunners ready to bid for the 19-year-old, who is also attracting interest from Fulham and Southampton.
Arsenal have Anderlecht midfielder Lucas Biglia, 26, in their sights, with the Argentina international valued at around £8m. Arsenal forward Theo Walcott, 23, is poised to sign a new contract with the club this week, keeping him at Emirates Stadium until 2017 and increasing his salary from £60,000 to £90,000-a-week.
Arsene Wenger has refused to rule out the possibility of signing Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani, 25, from Napoli. However, Wenger confirmed that he is looking at Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha, 20, also a target for Manchester United. Striker Theo Walcott, 23, has agreed the framework of a new three-and-half-year, £100,000-a-week deal and Arsenal are expecting him to sign it next week. Arsenal are set to miss out on a deal for Athletic Bilbao striker Fernando Llorente, 27, with Juventus said to be in advanced talks over a transfer. Arsenal are trying to sign midfielder Mohamed Diame, 25, from West Ham by offering £3.5m for the Senegal star.
Arsenal are weighing up a last-minute move for 23-year-old Montpellier defender Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa. Newcastle have already agreed a £6.7m fee with Montpellier for the France international. Arsenal have been offered 26-year-old Lyon midfielder Yoann Gourcuff on loan as the French club look to offload his £80,000-a-week wages. Arsenal are offering French second division club Bastia £4.1m and forward Andrey Arshavin, 31, in a bid to land midfielder Florian Thauvin, 19. Manchester United's bid to sign Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha, 20, is on the brink of collapse after Palace rejected a £10m bid. Arsene Wenger will be offered a £30m deal to leave Arsenal and join Paris Saint-Germain this summer, with current PSG boss Carlo Ancelotti interested in succeeding Wenger at the Emirates. Arsenal want 20-year-old French midfielder Gilbert Imbula, who has starred for French second-tier side Guingamp in recent seasons and holds the record as the youngest player to play in the division, at 17 years, one month and four days.
United have reportedly upped their bid to £13m (accepted) and are in talks regarding personal terms with Zaha.
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is considering making a move for Celtic midfielder Victor Wanyama, 21, as he attempts to improve the Gunners hopes of qualifying for the Champions League. French midfielder Yoann Gourcoff, 26, will not be leaving Lyon this month, despite interest from Arsenal, according to the Ligue 1 side's president Jean-Michel Aulas.
I think we were much more interested when he was still young and had room to grow. He hasn't developed into the kind of player people were expecting. At this point 70-80k or whatever it is he gets paid is too much. Still, prefer him to Diaby or Ramsey. Since Song left we haven't been creating so many scoring chances. He could help take the load of Cazorla.
Arsenal have opened talks to sign Barcelona's Spain striker David Villa, 31. Arsenal are set to step up their chase for Barcelona's Villa after manager Arsene Wenger admitted his side are short of fire power. AZ Alkmaar's midfielder Adam Maher, 19, has been urged to join Arsenal - by his own manager. Free agent David Beckham has agreed a top-secret plan with Arsenal to train with the first-team squad while he ponders his next move. Premier League teams including *****ham, Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool are all believed to be interested in signing striker Christian Benteke from struggling Aston Villa. The 22-year-old has scored 11 goals this season. Stoke have made a shock move to take Arsenal's England right-back Carl Jenkinson on loan. But Arsene Wenger is reluctant to let the 20-year-old leave, even on a short-term basis. *****ham are considering meeting West Ham's £3.5m release clause for Mohamed Diame - beating Arsenal, Everton and Fulham to the 25-year-old midfielder. Arsenal are interested in Barcelona winger Isaac Cuenca with the Spanish club willing to loan him out this month. The 21-year-old has not played this season after suffering a knee injury. Arsenal are lining up a £20-million move for Fiorentina striker Stevan Jovetic, 23. Liverpool and Arsenal are set for a summer transfer tussle over Swansea defender Ashley Williams, 28. French international Yann M'Vila, 22, has decided against a move to the Premier League in favour of Russian club Rubin Kazan.
Manchester City have targeted Barcelona's striker David Villa, 31, to replace Mario Balotelli. Arsenal remain interested and have made a bid of under £10m for the Spaniard.
