Are Arsenal after soon-to-be out of cotract stars?

 

By Nick Lander

 

There has been renewed speculation over the last few days about Arsenal's interest in Shalke striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. The 29-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season, and Shalke could be prepared to part with the Dutchman for just £6m, with the Daily Mail and the Daily Mirror both reporting that the Gunners will make a move for him during the January window, having had scouts watch him on a number of occasions recently.

 

More surprisingly, the Gunners have also been linked with a move to bring Frank Lampard across London from Chelsea. The 34-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season, and interim manager Rafa Benitez has confirmed that the England midfielder will not be having his deal renewed. He had been expected to move to the MLS and LA Galaxy or China, but those options now seem less likely.

 

One legend of the game that Arsenal do seem certain to sign is Thierry Henry, with Wenger having stated his desire to make arrangements with New York Red Bulls for the Frenchman to have a third stint in North London, to provide cover for Marouane Chamakh and Gervinho, who will both be competing in the African Cup of Nations in January. His fitness will be assessed when he starts training with the Gunners on his return from holiday.

 

Personally, I can envisage all of these moves happening, with Huntelaar and Henry the most probable. Both would enrich Arsenal's squad and, in Henry's case, bring a passion for the club that the players could be accused of lacking in some games so far this season. With regards to Lampard, I normally would not give this story the time of day, but when asked about it at his pre-Olympiakos press conference yesterday, Wenger was particularly cryptic; "We are in the country of Socrates. He said, 'I know that I know nothing', and that is a bit like football." On the face of it, that does sound like a denial, but usually Wenger is far more direct than that, so it could just be that Lampard will be swapping blue for red in either January or the summer.

 

After a torrid start to the season, that has seen Wenger's side win just three of their last 12, the club are likely to be far more active in the January window than normal. I am sure there will be much more speculation over the weeks to come and The N5 Blog will try to keep you up to date with it all.

 

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