Man United 'offer £61m for Pogba' as Arsenal land Bielik

With less than two weeks to go until the transfer window closes Arsenal have finally made a signing, although their quest for defensive reinforcements goes on. Meanwhile the futures of Marco Reus and Paul Pogba are back in the news and Chelsea have started to flex their financial muscles:

• Italian newspaper La Stampa claims that Manchester United have made a £61m offer for their former trainee Paul Pogba, who is now with Juventus. The Frenchman left Old Trafford for free in 2012 when his United contract expired. He made seven substitute appearances in his first spell at United, but since then has become one of the most sought after players in Europe. "Pogba has recently spoken of his 'love' for the Old Trafford club, and his agent Mino Raiola said that he will not stay in Italy for 'much longer'." reports The Independent.

• Arsenal have completed the signing of 17-year-old Krystian Bielik from Legia Warsaw for a fee of £2.5m. The deal has been in the pipeline for several weeks and has the teenager was in England for a medical last week. However, he is unlikely to feature in the Premier League in the immediate future. Bielik "is expected to work initially within the Under 21s, with a view to a swift progression through to the senior squad," says the Daily Mail.

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• Manchester City's shock 2-0 home defeat to Arsenal on Sunday has prompted manager Manuel Pellegrini to enter the race to sign Marco Reus. The Gunners, along with Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea are all after the Borussia Dortmund midfielder, but the Daily Star says that the Sky Blues "will pull out all the stops" to bring him to the Etihad Stadium. Reus, who has a £20m release clause in his contract, has also been linked with Bayern Munich but the Star claims City "are willing to make Reus one of the highest-paid stars" in the squad with deal worth around £200,000-a-week.

• West Ham co-owner David Sullivan has dampened speculation that the Hammers are considering selling Winston Reid this month. The 26-year-old Kiwi has been linked to the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham during the transfer window but the Daily Express quotes Sullivan declaring: "We wouldn't let Winston go unless it is a silly deal and I don't think anyone would pay the money we want."

• With Reid unavailable Metro says Arsenal are edging ever closer to signing defender Gabriel Paulista. The paper says the Gunners are in talks with the Villarreal player over a possible move. The 24-year-old Brazilian is valued at £15m by the Spanish side and though Arsenal's initial bid of £6m falls some way short of that figure, Metro claims the north London club "remain hopeful of doing business".

• Chelsea have added Fiorentina winger Juan Cuadrado to their January wishlist, according to the Evening Standard – but they'll have to first find a new home for misfit Mohamed Salah. Apparently the Blues- who drew 1-1 with Liverpool in their League Cup semi-final last night – have made an approach to Fiorentina about the Colombia international's situation and they are prepared to cough up his £26.8m buy-out clause in his contract. As for Salah, the Standard says Roma are ready to take him on loan for the rest of the season with "a view of buying him permanently for £12m" if he proves himself between now and June.

• Chelsea "outcast" Marko Marin has good as joined Anderlecht, says Talksport. Citing sources in Belgium, the broadcaster claims that the 25-year-old midfielder will hook up with Anderlecht this month having "already passed a medical". Marin joined the Blues in July 2012 in a £7m deal from Werder Bremen but he's failed to make the grade at the Bridge and a recent loan spell with Italian club Fiorentina also ended badly. Talksport say Marin will join Anderlecht until the end of the season with the Belgian club having the option to make it a full-time deal in June.

• One player staying put is West Brom striker Saido Berahino. The Daily Mail claims that Liverpool and Spurs were both lining up £20m offers for the England Under-21 striker after his eye-catching performances early this season. But Baggies chairman Jeremy Peace is adamant the club must hang on to Berahino if they wish to stay in the Premier League. "I said in the autumn that the club had no interest in selling Saido and that remains the case," declared Peace. "He is far too important to us to consider trading. His goals are capable of keeping us in the Premier League and would be hugely difficult to replace."

• The Daily Mirror says that Zenit Saint Petersburg midfielder Axel Witsel has "issued a come-and-get-me plea" to Manchester United three-and-a-half years after he was first mooted as an Old Trafford target. But back in 2011 Witsel chose to move to Benfica in a £34m deal but only spent a season in Portugal before another big money move to Russia. But now it seems the playmaker is desperate to become a Red Devil. "I have always liked Manchester United from when I was young," Witsel declared. "I want to play in one of the top clubs in Europe one day [and] it's true that I like the Premier League."