He's one of the most divisive figures in the Premier League and many Arsenal fans will be delighted with the news in the Daily Mail this Monday morning that Mesut Ozil "wants to quit Arsenal as soon as January". Not only that but the over-hyped, overpaid and underperforming German will be offloaded to Bayern Munich in the new year for around £30m.
Quite why Bayern would want to cough up such a sum for a player who has a reputation for bottling the big games isn't clear but the Mail says the "Gunners are ready to do business". Ozil joined Arsenal from Real Madrid last year for a club record £42.5m and though the money hasn't been quite as wasted as the £15m the club paid for the atrocious Andrei Arshavin there have been times in the past year when the Arsenal faithful have pined for the days of Ray Parlour in the midfield.
But according to the Mail the antipathy is mutual with the paper alleging that Ozil "has grown increasingly unhappy at Arsenal". Currently sidelined for three months with a knee injury Ozil is unlikely to be seen in an Arsenal shirt again. And for those who want him out, there's more good news in the Mail, which claims that Arsene Wenger will use the money made on flogging Ozil to Bayern by signing two other German internationals in Matt Hummels and Julian Draxler.
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Elsewhere, and Liverpool are in "pole position" to sign MK Dons 'whizz-kid' Dele Alli. It's been many years since the words Dons and whizz-kid have been found in the same sentence but according to the Daily Star the England Under-19 midfielder is being chased by a posse of Premier League clubs, including Chelsea, Arsenal and Spurs. It's said that the Dons are demanding around £9m for the teenager and the Star says Reds boss Brendan Rodgers is "expected to complete the deal in the January transfer window". Once Alli has been signed Liverpool will look to loan him back to MK Dons until the end of the season.
Still with Liverpool and the Daily Mirror claims that their chances of signing Victor Valdes look to be going down the Swanee. The former Barcelona gloveman is currently seeking gainful employment as a free agent and rumours re-emerged last week linking him with a move to Anfield. But the Mirror says that Valdes has "turned down Rodgers' request to spend four days" with the club, to prove he has recovered sufficiently from a major knee injury. The 32-year-old veteran keeper apparently believes he has proved enough in his career not to have to suffer the indignity of a trial.
Finally, Metro reports that Juventus have "admitted defeat" in their attempt to hold onto Arturo Vidal and are now poised to sell the midfielder to Manchester United in a swap deal involving Juan Mata in the New Year. Vidal has been linked to Old Trafford longer than Marouane Fellani has been underachieving for United and now it seems the long-running saga is approaching a conclusion. Taking its cue from Italian rag Corriere dello Sport, Metro says that the Serie A champions have resigned to losing the playmaker and "could part with the 27-year-old for as little as £27.5m" in January – provided they can negotiate a deal for Mata as part of the move. Undeterred by Mata's failure at United, Juventus want the Spanish international ahead of Bayern Munich midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri and Marco Verratti of PSG.
But Metro does have a warning for United: namely interest in Vidal from Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, although the prospect of landing Mata means United remain favourites to snap up the 27-year-old Vidal in January.
