Meanwhile, the Gunners have seen their Carabao Cup semi-final, first leg clash with Liverpool rescheduled due to a rising number of suspected Covid cases in the Reds camp.
Perhaps the only place where things have been quiet around the Emirates is when it comes to incoming transfers. That could change very quickly, however.As previously mentionedunderstands that Maitland-Niles' loan move to Roma is expected to be completed sooner rather than later.
It is thought to be just a straight loan for the England international that does not contain an option to buy, although Jose Mourinho's side may come back in to try and lure him to the Stadio Olimpico on a permanent basis in the summer when he will haIf this does go ahead, it would leave Arsenal somewith Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny having departed for the Africa Cup of Nations and both tipped to be involved until the latter stages, the Gunners only senior options for the rest of January will be Albert Sambi Lokonga and Granit Xhaka.
Youngster Charlie Patino has impressed Mikel Arteta in training and was involved in the Premier League squad for the Boxing Day trip to Norwich after his goalscoring debut against Sunderland in the Carabao Cup, although starting matches semi-regularly for the next few weeks would be a big ask for the 18-year-old, who has just 11 minutes of senior football to his name.
Ben White could move into midfield, while Calum Chambers spent a whole season playing there during his loan spell at Fulham, but there may still be a temptation to go out and recruit externally.
Lyon's Bruno Guimaraes was linked with a move on Wednesday. The Brazilian is a client of Kia Joorabchian, who still maintains a relationship with Arsenal's technical director Edu, which could help secure a move relatively quickly.
Bruno Guimaraes continues to be linked with a move to Arsenal. (Photo by Catherine
Meanwhile, Renato Sanches of Lille has been linked, and given the Gunners regular recent dealings with the Ligue 1 club in signing Nicolas Pepe and Gabriel, there could perhaps be scope for a move there.
However, it should be noted that Arteta has publicly questioned the wisdom of bringing in a long-term signing to make up for a short-term lack of numbers.
"I don't think we are going to be able to sign players just for this short period of time," the Spaniard said last month. "I think it’s a little bit unrealistic."
Arsenal's plan was to look further at bringing in a central midfielder in the summer and they could well stick with it, but when it comes to the centre-forward position, things could be very different.
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The Gunners were not expecting to be looking for additions in this department in January, but the situation with Aubameyang may well alter their plans.
The 32-year-old is currently away with Gabon but has not featured for Arsenal since being stripped of the club captaincy last month, and has been training away from the main group at London Colney.
Should he leave in January then once again numbers could be a problem for the Gunners.
football.london understands that Balogun is close to completing a move to Championship side Middlesborough until the end of the season, while the club are hopeful of obtaining a fee for Eddie Nketiah this month before his contract expires in the summer, despite Arteta's public pleas to have the England under-21 international stay at the Emirates.
Although the former has been excellent in recent weeks since taking over the captain's armband, his contract is unlikely to be renewed before it runs out at the end of the season, while Martinelli has generally looked at his best on the left wing during a recent run in the team.
This could leave the Gunners on the hunt for a centre-forward.
Arsenal have been linked with a move for Dusan Vlahovic
Reports have suggested that the club have proposed a deal for Dusan Vlahovic to Fiorentina that would also see Lucas Torreira going the other way, although the Serbian is yet to be convinced.
Meanwhile, there have been links to Lille's Canadian striker Jonathan David and England duoshould any of these deals be done before the rearranged the Carabao Cup semi-final against Liverpool, then any new signing would be able to play.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles' loan move to AS Roma is complete. The Arsenal midfielder was spotted in Rome on Friday ahead of sealing a loan move to the Serie A side for the remainder of the season and an official announcement came on Saturday afternoon ith the chance of regular game time and to work with former Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho , Gunners boss Mikel Arteta admitted he could not block Maitland-Niles ' request for a temporary departure. "Ainsley came to me and explained the reasons why he thought the best thing for him and his career was to move away," the Spaniard revealed in his pre-Nottingham Forest press conference ."He felt the opportunity to go to Rome and work with Jose was a good one. Being fair with the amount of minutes that he’s played he was entitled to that opportunity. We wish him the best. "We're very short at the moment [in midfield], but this shouldn’t be the only reason for ...
Arsenal's need for activity in the January transfer window was made abundantly clear with a woeful performance against Nottingham Forest. The early FA Cup exit highlighted the lack of depth in problem areas of the squad and puts the pressure on heading into a huge week with clashes against Liverpool and Tottenham. Midfield and a new striker are top of the wishlist, with those issues exacerbated by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's exile and the involvement of players at the Africa Cup of Nations. Unsurprisingly, there's already a wealth of rumours floating around this month and we've run the rule over some of the latest 138208710559 Arsenal three-man transfer shortlist makes perfect sense as Alexandre Lacazette danger lingers Arsenal are set for a busy period in the January transfer window and we run the rule over the latest rumours including Bruno Guimaraes, Arthur Melo and Alexandre Lacazette. footballlondon SHARE Mikel Arteta on Arsenal's striker situation 0 seconds ...
Some students of the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, have sustained injuries following an attack by armed men on their off-campus hostel at Barika area, Agbowo in the town. According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the armed men invaded the hostel in the Ibadan North Local Government Area of the metropolis in the early hours of Wednesday. A student, Romoke Olukemi, told NAN that the robbers arrived in the area around 2:00am and started shooting sporadically. “A night watch-man according to eyewitness was allegedly shot but narrowly escaped death. A student simply identified as Victor was also allegedly shot on the leg by the robbers and was rushed down to the Jaja clinic on the university campus,” she said. When contacted by NAN, the Police command’s Public Relations Officer, Adewale Osifeso, confirmed the incident but said that he had not received details on the matter. “You would be updated, please,” he said.
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