Arsenal transfer news: Wenger reveals January plans, Sanchez deal imminent, and more - 8th January 2018

Arsene Wenger promises new signings in January

The Gunners suffered a shock 4-2 defeat at Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup as the Championship side knocked out the cup holders in the third round. For Arsene Wenger, who has won the prestigious trophy seven times, this is the first time his team has been knocked out at such an early stage of the competition.

This has sparked worry amongst the fans with the possible departures of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil on the cards as well. Thus, speaking after the humiliating loss, Wenger assured that the London side will be active in this transfer window and said:

"No, I cannot give you any news on any transfer because we are not close to signing anybody. We signed a Greek boy [Konstantinos Mavropanos] who looks quite good in training but apart from that, we have not done anything."

"Will we be out there to do something? Yes we will."

On being asked further regarding any developments this week, Wenger replied:

“Yes because we are in the second week of January. After that, it passes quickly.”

Thus, Arsenal are set to reinforce the squad this window with the likes of Leicester City's Riyad Mahrez, AS Monaco's Thomas Lemar and Lyon's Nabil Fekir reportedly on the radar.

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Alexis Sanchez set to complete Manchester City move

Alexis Sanchez is allegedly set to complete a move to Manchester City

The Chilean looked set to join Pep Guardiola's high-flying team in the summer after a deal was reportedly agreed between the clubs on deadline day. However, Arsenal's failure to land Thomas Lemar in time led to the London club pulling the plug on the deal.

This left Sanchez frustrated, and the 29-year old is now reportedly looking to complete the move this time around with only six months left on the contract, as per several reports.

Further, Wenger is reportedly willing to cash in on the player now than let him go for free in the summer. As per journalist, Maks Cardenas, who works for Chilean TV channel Canal de Futbol, a deal is pretty close, with the transfer fee being the only facet left to be hashed out. He posted on his personal Twitter account explaining the situation.

Arsenal out of the FA. @Alexis_Sanchez did not play so he will not be cup tied. Alexis is close to sign with Manchester City, but Arsenal wants 35 million and not the 20 that the City offers. pic.twitter.com/zn4qYkx5La

— Maks Cárdenas (@MaksCardenas) January 7, 2018

As per Cardenas, Sanchez was not a part of Arsenal's FA Cup squad this weekend so that means he will not be cup-tied. Thus, a deal looks imminent in the next few days and the 29-year old could finally move to his desired club, who are cruising in all competitions this season.

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Southampton confirm interest in Theo Walcott

Back to where it all began?

The 28-year old joined Wenger's side from Southampton back in 2006, having come through the ranks at St. Mary's. More than 400 appearances and 100 goals later, the Englishman is yet to establish a starting spot for himself in the first-team.

Now, with the arrival of Alexandre Lacazette in the summer and rife talk of potential new signings, Walcott's game-time is in serious jeopardy. Further, the World Cup this summer is another incentive why the attacker could be wanting to move away from the Emirates for regular playing time.

Despite failing to live up to his lofty expectations for the past decade, Walcott remains a good player and several Premier League clubs are reportedly interested in him.

Now, Southampton manager, Mauricio Pellegrino, has also expressed his desire to bring Walcott back and he told Sky Sports:

"I have been talking about him. He is a good player, but I don’t know with the negotiations, with the market, I imagine that this type of player would have a lot of possibility. For us, it’s not easy."

The deal makes sense for all three parties and Walcott's time as an Arsenal player is most likely going to come to an end in the near future.