Paper Round: Arsenal’s £50m move for Edinson Cavani

Arsenal target Cavani: Arsenal could be free to launch a £50 million bid for Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani after his boss Laurent Blanc lost patience with the Uruguayan forward, according to the Express. With Zlatan Ibrahimovic preferred as the French champions’ attacking focal point, Cavani has reportedly fallen out with Blanc and could be open to a switch abroad – despite the pair only reconciling from another disagreement at the start of the season.

Paper Round’s view: While it would be pretty exciting to see Cavani in the Premier League, Arsene Wenger’s reluctance to splash out on a striker in previous transfer windows suggests this one is a non-starter. And it’s hard to see where he would fit in. Olivier Giroud has impressed since his return from an injury lay-off, while Danny Welbeck wants opportunities as a lone frontman. Given Alexis Sanchez, Theo Walcott and Lukas Podolski can also play the role, the Gunners should have other priorities in January. They are desperately in need of a couple of defenders as there’s only so many times Mathieu Debuchy or Nacho Monreal can be deployed as centre-halfs without being exposed.

Inter Milan eye Paulinho: Inter Milan are interesting in signing out-of-favour Tottenham midfielder Paulinho on loan in January, as reported by the Mirror, with the Serie A giants potentially having the option of making it a permanent deal for £12 million. Spurs are set to be busy in the January transfer window and would benefit from freeing up their wage bill to target young England star Saido Berahino of West Brom, as reported in yesterday’s Paper Round. Paulinho has barely featured under Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino, despite playing in all but one of Brazil’s matches at the World Cup.

Paper Round’s view: It’s not happened for Paulinho since his arrival at White Hart Lane and he needs a fresh start. Inter boss Roberto Mancini has already declared his intention to sign a midfielder, with the Italian previously naming Liverpool’s Lucas Leiva as a potential option, but Paulinho may a better fit given his attacking qualities. However, Tottenham would be wise to make it a loan-only deal, allowing them to welcome back the Brazilian midfielder if his stint in Italy is a success. A reinvigorated Paulinho could be exactly what they need for next season.

Manchester City after Mandzukic: Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini is hoping to ease his side’s injury crisis in attack by signing £25 million man Mario Mandzukic from Atletico Madrid, the Daily Star reports. City were forced to field James Milner in a ‘false nine’ role against Crystal Palace last weekend, with Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Stevan Jovetic all sidelined. City are three points behind Premier League leaders Chelsea ahead of the busy festive programme.

Paper Round’s view: While signing Mandzukic would be a smart move by City – the Croatian striker has bagged 14 goals in 22 games for Atletico – it seems unlikely that he would want a transfer so soon after his switch to Spain from Bayern Munich. Even if he did want a switch from Liga to Premier League champions, Atletico are probably going to seek a little more than the reported £25 million. Of course Manchester City need a striker, but in a couple of weeks they will when Jovetic and Dzeko have returned.