Agents of the world: if your man plays in midfield and can squeeze out more than 20 league games a season – 15 might be enough – your luck could be in. Jack Wilshere is out for three months after his latest ankle injury, so Arsène Wenger is on the hunt for new blood.
The Arsenal manager surely never expected Wilshere to last a whole season, so he must have a long list of players tucked away in a shoebox somewhere at home, ready for this exact moment. So, step forward Bayer Leverkusen’s Lars Bender, who is thought to be Wenger’s first midfield choice but Sevilla’s Grzegorz Krychowiak is also being considered. Buying a midfielder plus a defender means Wenger will be spending more than £20m in January.
Also on that list could be an old Wenger favourite, Yohan Cabaye, for whom he offered £12m in January, before the France international left Newcastle for Paris Saint-Germain. He is not getting enough games at the Parc des Princes, apparently. Failing that, there is always Everton’s James McCarthy.
Over at Manchester United, Louis van Gaal could find one of his rejects back at Old Trafford. Nani will return to the club in the summer because Sporting cannot afford his wages. He earns £3.95m a year, all of which is paid by United but which is more than a quarter of Sporting’s budget for transfers and wages. Van Gaal would prefer to ship him off his own payroll next year, so the Portugal winger could be off to Italy, Spain or Germany. More of this, though, and he may be able to pick his next club.
Meanwhile, Roberto Mancini will go for Robin van Persie, whom he tried to sign for Manchester City in 2012. But the Internazionale manager will have to wait until the summer for the Dutchman, whose contract runs out in 2016. He would cost £10m.
And while Ander Herrera stews on the bench, Kevin Strootman is likely to make the Spaniard’s life even harder because he will probably end up at Old Trafford in January, or the summer, or some time. This one has run and run. The Roma midfielder is an old favourite of Van Gaal but has been recovering from a nasty knee injury, which kept him out of the World Cup.
Hull City will lead the chase for Darren Fletcher, 30, and out of favour at Manchester United, yet also the club’s vice-captain. He is out of contract at the end of this season but is hoping for an extension.
Unsettled Jozy Altidore has held talks (or his agent has) with a number of clubs, including Lille. “Jozy’s the main striker on the bench at the moment,” said Gus Poyet, which surely is music to Altidore’s ears. So, at least when the Sunderland substitutes are warming up, he is first-choice.
Relief for Foxes fans. Nigel Pearson says Leicester will not re-sign Emile Heskey. The former England and Liverpool bulldozer, 36, is available after leaving Newcastle Jets in Australia. Paul McShane may leave Hull in January. He has played only five league games this season.
And Harry Redknapp is warming up for new year. The QPR manager has said: “We need one or two additions, whether it be a couple of loans or whatever. We could do with strengthening in certain areas. I don’t see us spending, though.” Watch this space.
