Arsenal Transfers: 6 Hottest January Rumours for the Gunners

Arsenal are sitting nicely in the Premier League table at the halfway stage of the season.

Early poor results have been turned around by Arsene Wenger and aside from the slip up against Fulham on Monday night, they have been gathering momentum for the highly coveted fourth spot.

There is still a lot of pressure on Robin Van Persie to get the goals—the Dutchman has scored almost half of all Arsenal's EPL goals this term—and Wenger has brought in legend Thierry Henry to help ease the burden.

Whether the move is a shrewd one or not remains to be seen.

Now the transfer window is open, Gooners will be looking to see if Wenger dips into the market to bring some long-term fire power in or whether he looks to strengthen other areas.

It also might be a time for holding onto players, as some of the squad have been linked with moves away from the club.

Here we'll take a look at the top transfer stories—both ins and outs—linked to Arsenal football club at the moment.

Lukas Podolski

German striker Lukas Podolski has been linked with a number of Premier League clubs, but it is Arsenal who are the current favourites to land the player.

Stories surfaced that Podolski has stalled on a new contract, which should stir the club into pressing forward for a move.

Podolski is likely to cost in the region of £15 million or more.

Andrei Arshavin

The little Russian has struggled to hold down a regular place in the Arsenal side this season, and according to the Daily Mail, he may be sold in order to fund other deals, such as the previously mentioned Podolski.

One thing you always get with Arshavin are some amusing anecdotes and frank opinions.

In October, Arshavin was linked with a move to Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala.

Kieran Richardson

Kieron Richardson being linked to Arsenal was perhaps the most startling of transfer stories I have discovered over recent weeks.

Is Richardson really good enough for the Gunners' first team?

Probably not, but the Telegraph thinks that he is likely to be bought as a covering utility player due to the defensive problems Arsenal are currently facing.

The Mirror also got in on the act with this story.

Robin Van Persie

Robin Van Persie is perhaps the one player, aside from Alex Song, that Arsenal cannot afford to sell.

Van Persie has been linked to Real Madrid and Barcelona over the festive season, and they are perhaps the only two clubs worthy of him based on his current form.

The Mirror thinks a £30 million move to Manchester City could be on the cards, but Wenger has stated that he thinks Van Persie will sign a new deal.

Theo Walcott

Theo Walcott has been the subject of speculation following an alleged dispute over his contract renewal.

With his current deal set to expire in the Summer of 2013, Wenger may look to sell the player rather than risk losing the player for nothing further down the line.

Liverpool, Chelsea and Barcelona have all been reported to be keeping tabs on the England winger.

Moussa Sow

Moussa Sow is being touted as a potential £12 million purchase for Arsene Wenger if he can fight off competition from Tottenham, Newcastle and Fenerbahce.

Lille have apparently received an early bid from Fenerbahce and are looking into the finer points and details of what it contains.

Sow plays as a striker and has scored nine goals in 24 games this season, which is considerably down from his haul of 25 in 36 last season.

Sow may provide a long-term solution to who should partner Robin Van Persie.

Thoughts...

Arsenal seem a little short for the title this season, but they have put themselves in a good position to put pressure on Spurs and the Manchester clubs if they can kick on from here.

Thierry Henry may yet have a huge role to play at the club, and if nothing else, he will bring back some of the feel-good factor with his cheeky grin.

Wenger always seems to get good money when making any sales, and one player who I haven't yet mentioned in this slideshow is Marouane Chamakh.

The Moroccan is leaving for the African Cup of Nations, which will be an opportunity to put himself in the shop window again after a lengthy spell out of the first team at Arsenal.

I don't expect big business at the Emirates in January, but there will surely be some movement.

Thanks for reading.

Follow me on twitter @petercwebster

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