We are just past the half-way stage of Arsenal’s winter transfer window, and as we await final confirmation of 17 year-old Krystian Bielik’s long-awaited capture, we look to our other targets who could give a more immediate boost to our first-team squad.
Gabriel Paulista claims that his agent is in talks with the Emirates club in a bid to thrash out a January move from Villareal, with the club reportedly keen on Joel Campbell arriving on loan as part of the deal.
It would not be the first time an agent had lied, but I think there is substance behind reports. The £5 Million fee however seems rather low for a first-team player of a club chasing the European qualification places at present.
Campbell’s possible loan to Villareal is what leads us to the move for Destro. Mattia Destro has admitted previously he may have to force a move away from Roma in order to further his career, having been forced to play second-fiddle to favoured pairing Gervinho and Francesco Totti, despite having netted more league goals than the pair. However, with the Ivory Coast international away at the African Cup of Nations, I believe the Italian is highly unlikely to be allowed to move on until at least the summer.
The Palermo president has claimed that English clubs are interested in Paulo Dybala, with various reports crediting us as one of those clubs, but also insisted he would only be available in the summer, for over £30 Million. Dybala has been described by Zamperini as the ‘new Aguero’ and as the ‘best striker in Europe at the moment’, but with his sale ruled out until the the end of the season, we will have to come back to this at a later date.
Mario Suarez is a player who I would love to see move to the Emirates and take up the deep-lying midfielder role, and The Express thinks this is now likely. We have lacked a star (until the recent renaissance of Coquelin) who can link midfield to defence for some time now. With the La Liga holders considered to be in financial difficulty, we might just be able to persuade Atletico Madrid to sell at a reasonable price.
The only negative for Mario, is that he turns 28 next month, which is near the limit for an Arsene Wenger signing usually. Paulista’s possible move will most likely be ruled out or furthered by the weekend, while our hunt for a first-team holding player will most likely drag until deadline day, or until the summer…