10 big deals that could well come to fruition when the transfer window re-opens.
Chris Smalling
From: Man United
To: Arsenal
Price: £11m
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger sees the 24 year old as an ideal acquisition to help boost his options at the back, with the England international comfortable in both right-back and centre-back roles.
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Old Trafford boss Louis van Gaal is apparently open to offers for the former Fulham man, who’s contract expires in 2016, and Arsenal are more than capable of meeting his £52k a week salary demands.
Arsenal have experienced something of an injury crisis of late with full-backs Nacho Monreal and Mathieu Debuchy both being sidelined.
Indeed the sale of Thomas Vermaelen to Barcelona has arguably also left the Emirates Stadium side short of central defensive options to boot, though youngster Calum Chambers has been superb when called in to fill in on that front.
Ron Vlaar
From: Aston Villa
To: Man United
Price: £9m
Having seen the likes of Jonny Evans and youngster Tyler Blackett struggle for form and England man Phil Jones having injury concerns the Man United manager feels he needs to sign two fresh centre-back options.
29 year old Aston Villa skipper Vlaar is into the final year of his contract at the club and is a player van Gaal feels he can lure to beef up his defence.
Vlaar played a prominent role in Holland’s 2014 World Cup campaign and has been in fine form thus far this season and is a player Paul Lambert would be loathed to lose.
Kevin Strootman
From: AS Roma
To: Man United
Price: £30m
Old Trafford boss Louis van Gaal wants to bring in 24 year old Stadio Olimpico star Strootman and his chances of doing so may have been aided by manager Rudi Garcia’s apparent interest in PSG starlet Adrien Rabiot.
Van Gaal knows Strootman well from his time in charge of the Dutch national team set-up and will be well aware of the many qualities the former PSV Eindhoven man possesses.
The rangy midfielder is strong in the tackle but is also very effective in the final third though any potential January move will depend greatly on how Strootman recovers from the long term knee injury that has left him on the sidelines since March.
Victor Valdes
From: Free Agent
To: Liverpool
Price: Free
The former Barcelona star is out of contract and recovering from a long term ankle injury but is said to be a player Brendan Rodgers is keen on bringing in after a less than glorious start to the season from number one Anfield custodian Simon Mignolet.
The 32 year old is a hugely experienced campaigner and a player who has won it all, from six La Liga titles, three Champions League winners medals with Barcelona and a World Cup triumph with Spain in 2010, and may be tempted by a fresh challenge in the Premier League.
Valdes would offer Rodgers a top level back-up for Mignolet, arguably far superior to current number two Brad Jones, and could well unseat the former Sunderland man if he was to return to the form that made him one of the most respected keepers a few years back.
Sami Khedira
From: Real Madrid
To: Arsenal
Price: £15m
Khedira has turned down the offer of a new contract and with his current deal set to expire next summer the Spanish giants wish to sell the former Stuttgart man when the transfer window re-opens to prevent losing the midfield battler on a free transfer.
Wenger will be handed £30m to invest in his squad in January and the need to bring in a steely midfield presence is clear and the Gunners boss is known to have a long running interest in Khedira.
The defensively minded midfielder missed most of last term due to his knee injury but returned to help Real Madrid secure a Champions League triumph and then played a prominent role in Joachim Low’s national team triumph in Brazil before once again being sidelined with injury.
Arturo Vidal
From: Juventus
To: Man United
Price: £32m
Man United will step-up their interest in Juventus playmaker Arturo Vidal, with the Chilean still very much a Louis van Gaal target despite recently signings.
The 27 year old was said to be close to moving to Old Trafford over the summer but seemingly the formal bids registered didn’t tempt the Serie A side to sell.
The Old Trafford outfit will return with with a January bid that may be accepted by Juventus if they have not successfully negotiated their way through the Champions League group stage.
Indeed it’s Juventus’s inability to ‘crack’ the Champions League that could be a factor when Vidal considers his future in Turin, that and the departure of manager Antonio Conte.
Morgan Schneiderlin
From: Southampton
To: Arsenal
Price: £22m
Arsenal are set to step-up their pursuit of Southampton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin with the north London side preparing a January bid for the French battler.
Arsene Wenger is known to be a big fan of the 24 year old Saints star and is keen to bring in a fresh steely option to field in the centre of the park and hopes a strong offer will be considered by the south-coast side.
Morgan Schneiderlin has played a key role in Ronald Koeman’s side this season, with Southampton faring far better than some would have expected given the loss of talents such as Rickie Lambert, Adam Lallana, Luke Shaw, Dejan Lovren and Calum Chambers.
Adrien Rabiot
From: PSG
To: Arsenal
Price: £6m
The 19 year old is set for a Parc des Princes exit with his contract expiring in the summer and the Ligue 1 side keen to secure a fee for the talented midfielder in preference to seeing the teenager leave on a free transfer.
Rabiot had seemingly been close to agreeing terms with Serie A side AS Roma but the issue of wage demands have derailed the Stadio Olimpico side’s pursuit.
Such is Arsene Wenger’s desire to land Rabiot that he is willing to make a salary offer that would effectively end AS Roma’s hopes of a deal though one imagines Chelsea are well and truly capable of matching any offer from the north London outfit.
Ramires
From: Chelsea
To: Real Madrid
Price: £25m
The 27 year old former Benfica man is used to being a prominent player at the west London side, racking up 195 appearances in his first four seasons at Stamford Bridge, but thus far this season has found his way to Mourinho’s starting eleven barred by Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic.
Real Madrid are said to be courting Ramires, which is perhaps no surprise given it was Bernabeu boss Carlo Ancelotti who brought the box to box performer to Chelsea back in August 2010.
Fabian Schar
From: FC Basel
To: Arsenal
Price: £10m
The Gunners are in particular need of strengthening at centre-back this season, with Arsene Wenger having failed to sign a replacement for Thomas Vermaelen after selling him to Barcelona during the summer transfer window.
Calum Chambers, a summer signing from Southampton, can fill that role but is currently being used as a right-back to cover for the injured Mathieu Debuchy, who could be out for some time.
Schar is an excellent prospect and has been linked with a number of top clubs before, and Arsenal will now hope to beat their north London rivals to his signature when the transfer window re-opens.