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Rafael Benitez spent most of his Liverpool tenure complaining about the lack of transfer funds but the Spaniard could finally enjoy life from the other side as he confirmed to the press that Chelsea will be spending big in the January window. A midfielder seems to be the priority for the Blues as Oriol Romeu is out for the season and John Obi Mikel will be on African Cup of Nations duty in January. Although the player Chelsea have narrowed in on to pay big bucks for and then release for free after a few years remains unclear, with Brazilian Paulinho and long-time target Cheick Tiote the only names mentioned so far.

The tale of the unwanted right-wingers at Arsenal and Man United rumbles on as the Manchester Evening News reports that United are set to cash in on Nani to fund a January splurge on Porto star James Rodriguez and Celtic’s Victor Wanyama. Both targets have been extensively scouted by Sir Alex Ferguson’s foot soldiers but prying them away from their respective clubs in the winter poses a whole new problem.

Meanwhile, Juventus are back on the trail of Theo Walcott according to TalkSport who claim that the Italian Champions have been sending flowers, chocolate boxes and bottles of wine to the Arsenal winger's mansion to entice him into a January move. There also reports that somewhere in the midst of those gifts is a legal document promising £90k-a-week in wages. (read more)

Manchester United’s search for Patrice Evra’s long-term successor has taken a hit according to TalkSport as the defender they were tracking in France, Lille’s Lucas Digne to be specific, has signed a new contract with the Ligue 1 club until 2017.  Which could either guarantee his presence at Lille for a long-time to come or indicate that the club are preparing themselves for an inevitable day in the future when the 19 year old leaves for greener pastures.

Fernando Llorente has enjoyed a fairly long and steady relationship with the rumour mill, shouldering all the responsibility of an active partner by providing regular sound bites about his future path when he finally quits Athletic Bilbao. Sky Sports now reports that the Spanish striker has ‘alerted’ an already aware Premier League contingent containing Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham and Manchester City by declaring that English football excites him, although a summer Bosman deal is more likely than a January transfer.

And, to maintain equilibrium in the delicate world of European football the Daily Star carry a sensational story about a Premier League star’s dream of playing in the La Liga. Gareth Bale has disproved Duality laws aplenty by being the number one transfer target for both Barcelona and Real Madrid and the latest rumour to surface takes us on a Byzantine maze with claims that Florentino Perez’s Los Blancos will dump £25m worth of talent on Chelsea in the form of Marcelo, who will act as a direct replacement for Ashley Cole should the English left-back leave Stamford Bridge for either PSG or Madrid themselves, and thus finance a £57m bid for Bale in January, all of which would have been impossible had Tottenham and Real not signed a landmark partnership deal in the summer.

His Majesty Didier Drogba, King of West London, is back in the news. The Chelsea and Ivory Coast legend is also being linked with a move to Juventus, according to reports in the ever reliable Gazetta dello Sport. - new

Spicy Rumour

Most people would consider Chilean sensation Alexis Sanchez a fool for even contemplating leaving Barcelona for Europa League outfit Liverpool and the Mirror report that his agent feels the same way as he downright dismissed the rumours that Brendan Rodgers was eyeing the 23 year old winger, who has started a mere four La Liga games this season. Limited first-team opportunities might be a hard pill to swallow for the ex-Udinese attacker but ditching the successful Catalan giants for mediocrity seems implausible.

Sounds Realistic

Borussia Dortmund want to end Liverpool’s agony of trying to fit Nuri Sahin into a working system and in the process relieve Real Madrid of unwanted baggage by raising the prospect of buying back the Turkish midfielder they sold two years ago. The conjecture reported by TalkSport will be a summer story though as Sahin has a loan-deal with Liverpool until the end of the season. (read more)

Across Merseyside, David Moyes is busy planning for a rare event - transfer market business. The Mirror report that Everton are ready to take Joleon Lescott on loan from Man City, then sell Johnny Heitinga to Galatasaray for £7m and thus fund the purchases of PSG’s Kevin Gameiro and Toulouse striker Wissam Ben Yedder.

A desperate Queens Park Rangers side, win-less after 16 Premier League games, are considering recalling striker DJ Campbell from Ipswich Town. The veteran striker is in the midst of a rich vein of form and the Sun believes that Good Old 'Arry needs all the help he can get. - new

Another Campbell, former Manchester United youth product, Frazier, could be on his way out of Sunderland with Martin O'Neill looking to clear some place in his squad. The Daily Mirror reports that Campbell and Titus Bramble could both be sold in January. - new