The latest player to be linked to Arsenal is an Atletico Madrid player. No, it's not Adrian Lopez. No, it's not Radamel Falcao. It's Arda Turan. The 25 year old, Turkish international has reportedly agreed personal terms with the club with Turan's agent, Ahmet Bulut, further fuelling speculation.
"I can't say the league or you'll know exactly who I'm talking about but let's just put it like this, there are only 5-6 clubs which could afford Arda right now and he's going to join one of these five clubs. He is interested in working under Arsene Wenger because he is very good at working with young players, and Arda wants to work in England."
Now if this move were to happen, it would certainly be a step in the right direction - Turan is a versatile left winger who is creative and tricky. Adding him to an already talented midfield would improve our chances of finishing in the top three - which I honestly believe we can achieve again - and maybe help us push for that elusive trophy.
Arsenal seem to do better when we have a creator on the wings as well - this was seen when we had Samir Nasri and Yossi Benayoun for example. With our players right now in Theo Walcott and Gervinho for example, they are too pacy and direct, and having someone like Turan would add a new dimension to our team.
With that said, is Turan a replacement (as we would suppose) or a compliment to the current team? Arsenal were linked with a lot of strikers recently but not anymore with Wenger even ruling out a move for legend, Thierry Henry - one we 99% expected to join in the winter window. Adding to this, Walcott has played the last two games in the striker role which he clearly prefers. Has he finally "signed da ting"? With Theo now fully considered a striker, is Turan going to be his replacement on the right wing?
One would certainly hope so but given the unpredictability of our club in recent years, transfer-wise, it may also be that Turan is Walcott's replacement on the right wing with the England international probably leaving in the near future - a step back as a club needs continuity. It also goes hand in hand with this statement Wenger made a month ago - "It's always important to keep your best players but if selling Walcott should happen, we'll replace him with someone, another big name. Yes, fans are fed up. You think I'm not fed up?"
Whatever happens, we are in store for one of the most important and exciting January transfer windows in Arsenal history. Let's hope it has an even bigger magnitude than the 2009 winter window where a certain Andrei Arshavin was signed on deadline day.