Sunday transfer round up - something new

A quiet weekend all round really with the postponement of yesterday's game at Portsmouth coupled with not much of note on the transfer front speculated - as you'd expect really over a weekend with most of the media attention focused on the action on the field.

A couple of new names linked with moves in and out of the club though, with us being touted as a possible destination for Andrei Arshavin. Since rising to prominence on the back of Zenit's UEFA Cup triumph last season and then a (mostly) successful European Championships he has been linked with moves to all and sundry.

A move to Arsenal was expected this January, but there appears to some haggling over the fee and/or personal terms so it is possible we could sneak in ahead of them to his signature. I would be surprised if we were interested though. It seems a classic case of another clubs name being thrown into the mix to elicit a higher bid from interested parties. Besides, as good a player as he may be - although given his age (27) you do wonder why he hasn't 'broke through' earlier - it is difficult to see quite where he would fit into our line up and surely our priorities lie elsewhere?

Jo has been touted as a player who has fallen foul of Mark Hughes, with a couple of destinations speculated, but it is the first time I have heard Newcastle linked with him.

The Mail suggests a loan until the end of the season being a possibility. The article also speculates Portsmouth may want to take Benjani on a similar deal, and that we would encourage a bid from Tottenham for Richard Dunne.

I'd suggest that all three possibilities are nonesense. No way do we counter the possibility of loaning Jo or Benjani to a fellow Premier League side whilst as bad as Dunne's form has been, if Dunne exits, who do play there?

As we hit the halfway mark of the transfer window, lets hope for a more prosperous week than the one we have just had as time is beginning to tick away.