HERE ARE THE good, the bad, and the unlikely football moves being talked about today…
Sunderland have unsurprisingly rejected a £6 million bid from West Ham for striker Jermain Defoe, but reports say the Hammers are prepared to come back with an increased offer.
The Black Cats insist the England international is not for sale and immediately rebuffed West Ham’s approach but the player may fancy a move back to his former club with Sunderland languishing in the relegation zone.
Defoe, 34, has already scored 11 goals this season and West Ham have identified the prolific goalscorer as a key target this January as they look to turn their season around.
Rio Ferdinand has hinted Patrice Evra could be set for a return to Manchester United.
Evra spent over eight years at Old Trafford, winning the Premier League five times and lifting the Champions League with United in 2008.
He left for Juventus in 2014 and has since achieved two Serie A and Coppa Italia doubles with the Turin club.
But retired former United defender Ferdinand indicated Evra could be on his way back to the club, captioning an Instagram post with a picture of him and the Frenchman celebrating.
Middlesbrough have signed Rudy Gestede from Championship side Aston Villa.
The Benin striker has joined on a deal which ties him to the Riverside Stadium until June 2020.
Gestede moved to Villa from Blackburn Rovers in July 2015 and scored nine goals in 50 league appearances for the West Midlands club, who were relegated last season.
Carlo Ancelotti says Holger Badstuber will only be allowed to leave Bayern Munich on loan.
Badstuber has been struggling to secure regular first-team football under Ancelotti – partially due to injury – and has been heavily linked with a move away from the Allianz Arena in recent weeks.
Manchester City and Hamburg have been credited with an interest in signing the 27-year-old and Ancelotti would not veto an exit this month – but only if it is on a temporary basis. Previous reports suggested that he might depart for as little as €3 million.
Arsenal are expected to complete their first signing of the January transfer window for as little as £40,000.
Arsene Wenger is ready to splash the cash on 20-year-old Cohen Bramall from Hednesford Town. The left-back will sign a two-and-a-half year deal at the Emirates having recently completed a trial period with the club.
And the Gunners may have competition from Chelsea and Manchester City for the signature of former Blackburn and Stoke midfielder Steven N’Zonzi.
According to Spanish newspaper AS, Pep Guardiola has targeted the 28-year-old and is prepared to let two players go in the opposite direction to Sevilla.
The Morgan Schneiderlin transfer saga looks set to continue with Everton now preparing a new bid for the French midfielder, according to reports.
The Toffees have already had a £19 million bid for the Man United man rejected but they are said to be coming in with an improved offer close to the £24 million valuation set by the Old Trafford hierarchy.
Finally, Celtic have agreed a fee in the region of £3 million for Ivorian midfielder Kouassi Eboue. The 19-year-old arrived in Glasgow last night and is expected to complete his move from Russian outfit Krasnodar in the coming days.
Retro Deal of the Day: Tony Yeboah
On 5 January 1995, Tony Yeboah completed a £3.4 million move from Eintracht Frankfurt to Leeds United and became a cult hero at Elland Road.
The Ghanaian striker was voted the club’s Player of the Year in his second season and went onto score 32 goals in 66 appearances for Leeds…including this against Liverpool:
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