Arsenal Face Uphill Battle To Sign Valencia Midfielder

Valencia have warned Arsenal that they will not let midfielder Daniel Parejo leave the club without a battle as they try to convince the 22-year-old to stay in Spain.

Arsenal had emerged as the favourites to sign the former Real Madrid youngster as he had fallen out of favour with Valencia boss Unai Emery earlier in the season.

Parejo was signed from Madrid based side Getafe in the summer for €6million but did not make his debut for the club until October 15 and it seemed as though he was destined to leave the club in the New Year.

Arsenal is keen to strengthen their midfield in January after the summer departures of Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, with Parejo heavily linked with a move to the Emirates.

However, Valencia are now keen to hold onto the midfielder after learning that attacking midfielder Sergio Canales will be ruled out of action for six months with a knee injury.

The La Liga side is now hoping to hang on to the midfielder and according to Talksport will turn down any offer for the player in January.

Arsenal will still hope to persuade Parejo to make the move to the Premier League as the midfielder has previously had a spell in England when he went on-loan to QPR back in 2008.

Liverpool Alerted To Wantaway Munich Striker

Liverpool have been alerted to Bayern Munich striker Ivica Olic, who has voiced his dissatisfaction at being left on the sidelines.

The Croatian, who had been linked with a surprise move to Liverpool over the summer has re-emerged as a target, after revealing to Goal.com his desire to leave the club if he remains on the substitute's bench.

Olic, who missed most of last season with a knee injury, has found himself fourth choice striker, behind Mario Gomez, Nils Petersen and Thomas Muller.

Speaking after Bayern's 6-0 victory over Ingolstadt, in which he was used as a second half substitute, Olic said: "With each workout I feel a little bit better.

"But I was disappointed that I could not play from the beginning today. In the end I was happy to come on for a half hour.

"I always hope that I will play. I was injured a long time, maybe I need to have more patience. Nevertheless, I feel well and I've always said that I would not be happy if I did not play. And I will say it again now.

"When I see that I am no longer being given playing time, then I have to think about a change.

"I've always said that I will not be happy if I'm sitting on the bench during the winter of my career. If I cannot play here, then I will try to elsewhere."

Liverpool currently have four strikers on their books, but with Dirk Kuyt often used as a midfielder and Andy Carroll misfiring, Olic would find more first team opportunities at Anfield than the Allianz Arena.

Man City Poised To Open Cheque Book Again To Land Belgian Ace

Manchester City is set to renew their interest in Belgian winger Yassine El Ghanassy when the transfer window re-opens in January.

El Ghanassy, 21, has been one of the star performers for Gent and has also attracted interest from Inter Milan, Fiorentina and Lille.

Roberto Mancini was strongly linked with a move for the talented midfielder throughout the summer but the move never materialized.

Mancini is determined to maintain Manchester City's position at the top of the Premier League and wants to ensure his squad has enough depth to cope with all the games they will face in the second half of the season.

El Ghanassy mainly operates on the left wing, but his versatility will appeal to the City boss as he can also play in the centre or down the right hand side.

City are likely to face a battle for his signature as several big clubs across Europe are also keen and reports in France suggest that Lille see him as the ideal replacement for Eden Hazard who looks set to leave the club next summer.

Wenger Sends Scouts To Watch Welsh Teenage Sensation

Arsenal is reportedly casting their eye over Macclesfield teenager Elliot Hewitt and is contemplating a move in the new year.

The 17-year-old defender has broken into the League Two club's first-team this season and has already made nine appearances in all competitions.

He is capped for Wales' Under-17 side and made his first appearance for the Under-21s in August.

And according to the Daily Mail, the Gunners have been made aware of his sharp progress and have sent scouts to watch him in action.

If Arsenal's scouts return to Wenger with positive reports, it is thought he will make an approach when the transfer window reopens in January.

Wenger has long focused his transfer policy on recruiting the world's finest young talents and will add Hewitt to Arsenal's ranks if the player continues to impress for Macclesfield.

The League Two club reportedly value Hewitt at around £1.5m but it is unclear whether they would demand add-ons should Arsenal pursue the young centre-back in the new year.

Newcastle Face Fierce Rivals In Pursuit Of Senegal Striker

Newcastle reportedly faces competition from fierce rivals Sunderland in their pursuit of Freiburg striker Papiss Demba Cisse.

The St James' Park club had a bid rejected in the summer for Cisse, thought to be worth around £10m, as Alan Pardew desperately searched for a long-term replacement for the departed Andy Carroll.

And while Demba Ba, brought in from West Ham, has proved to be a success, Pardew is still reportedly keen to strengthen his forward options and has not lost interest in Cisse.

However, it is now thought he must see off the interest of rivals Sunderland, who are also reportedly interested in the 26-year-old Senegal international.

Sunderland boss Steve Bruce has been left short of strikers following the return of loanee Danny Welbeck to Manchester United and the loan exit of Asamoah Gyan to UAE club Al-Ain.

Peter Crouch and Connor Wickham have both been brought to the Stadium of Light but it is thought Bruce is plotting a January move for Cisse to help kickstart their season.

If Newcastle and Sunderland are to firm up their interest with officials bids, they must be willing to pay as Cisse is valued by Freiburg at around £12m.

QPR's Playmaker Being Watched By Serie A Contenders

Italian side Napoli is reportedly interested in signing QPR's volatile midfielder Adel Taarabt who is being linked with a move away from Loftus Road.

Taarabt fell out with manager Neil Warnock over the summer when he suggested that he should be playing for a top European club and suggested that Paris Saint-Germain were interested in signing him.

The talented midfielder has struggled to make an impact in the Premier League and in recent weeks has appeared to become more and more frustrated at QPR.

Against Chelsea at the weekend the midfielder argued with captain Joey Barton over the taking of a penalty and a few weeks ago stormed away from the ground after being substituted against Fulham.

Reports have suggested that Taarabt may try and leave the west London club in January and according to tribalfootball.com, Napoli are keen to bring the playmaker to Serie A.

Napoli finished second last season and are currently in the same Champions League group as Manchester City and are hoping to qualify for the knock-out stages.

The Italian outfit is also worried about losing Ezequiel Lavezzi or Marek Hamsik in January as the midfielders have been attracting interest from around Europe.

Manchester United Eyeing Up Potential Move For Nicolas Gaitan

Manchester United has made Benfica midfielder Nicolás Gaitán a target for the January transfer window, but will have to meet a £40 million release clause to sign him.

Gaitán, who impressed during United’s 1-1 draw against the Portuguese club in a Champions League group fixture last month, has been watched repeatedly by Sir Alex Ferguson’s European scouting team in recent months.

As a result of interest from United, Inter Milan and Paris St Germain, Benfica have secured the 23 year-old to a five-year contract this week, which will see the Argentine more than double his annual salary to £2 million.

But despite increasing Gaitán’s wages, Benfica have been unable to increase the release clause within the player’s contract beyond the existing £40 million trigger fee.

United, who are also monitoring Anderlecht’s Argentine midfielder Lucas Biglia, remain in the market for an attacking midfielder after failing in summer attempts to sign Inter Milan’s Wesley Sneijder and Samir Nasri, who rejected United in favour of a move from Arsenal to Manchester City.

Although Gaitán has largely been deployed as a left-sided winger by Benfica in recent months, the former Boca Juniors player has regularly played in an advanced role behind midfield and attack, a position United have yet to fill following Paul Scholes’s retirement at the end of last season.

Benfica are determined to resist attempts to sign Gaitán, however, and are understood to be keen to retain the player’s services for at least another 18 months.

Arsenal Set For £25m Inter Milan Swap Offer

Inter Milan are preparing a swap offer for Arsenal midfield dynamo Aaron Ramsey. Corriere dello Sport says Inter Milan is ready to test Arsenal’s resolve with a £17.5 million bid for Ramsey. Inter could also offer Ricardo Alvarez as a makeweight in a bid to tempt Arsenal to sell Ramsey, aged 20.

The Argentinian playmaker was a target for Arsene Wenger before he opted to join Inter in a £10.25m deal during the summer. But Alvarez has struggled to settle in Italy and he has only appeared three times for the Nerazzurri this season.

Arsenal boss tracked Ricardo Alvarez extensively before he opted to move to the San Siro from Velez Sarsfield in July and thus far the playmaker hasn’t had much of a chance to shine under new boss Claudio Ranieri and a move to North London may appeal to the 23 year old Argentine international.

However Wenger’s interest in the talented attacking midfielder is not likely to lead to him considering a swap deal that would see Welsh international Aaron Ramsey leaving for Italy. The Welsh international has taken a while to bed in at the Emirates Stadium, and clearly his long injury lay-off (following a shocking challenge from Stoke City defender Ryan Shawcross) has clearly hampered his development.

Ramsey is still just 20 though and has the potential to be a big star at Arsenal and is a player Arsene Wenger will look to build his midfield around and this is all the more important now that Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri have left.

Inter Milan had reportedly previously been linked with a move for Russian international Andrei Arshavin and a swap deal involving the out of sorts 30 year old would appear to have more chance of success.

Aaron Ramsey has now racked up over 70 first team appearances for the Gunners and over the past couple of months has begun to show the kind of player many had thought he could be and as such a move away from Arsenal any time soon is hugely unlikely.

Tottenham Set To Swoop For Moroccan Defender

Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp is set to step up his pursuit of a new defender and has set his sights on Udinese's Mehdi Benatia.

The Morocco international played a key role in helping Udinese finish fourth last season and qualifying for the Champions League play-offs, but they got knocked-out by Premier League side Arsenal over two legs.

Benatia's performances this season have been impressive and he is playing an important part in the team who are currently second in Serie A.

His performances haven't gone unnoticed and it is believed there is interest from other clubs in Italy, Spain and England.

However it felt Tottenham are one of the favourites to acquire the services of Benatia as Redknapp looks to strengthen his back line with Ledley King, Michael Dawson, and William Gallas all out injured.

Speaking to Radio CRC, the 24-year-olds agent Claudio Vagheggi said: "Benatia is an important player so it is normal that several clubs have looked at him.

"Udinese, however, are currently reluctant to discuss transfers, there is interest from some English and Spanish clubs."

It is believed a bid of in the region of £12million could see Udinese part company with one of their prized assets.