Live Coverage: Transfer Talk - January 11

Good morning and welcome to Sports Mole's live transfer blog. With a little over three weeks to go before the window slams shut, will today be the day that we see a big-name transfer go through? To find out, stick with us throughout the day as we bring you regular updates.

As ever we have seen plenty of rumours emerge overnight, including news that West Bromwich Albion striker Saido Berahino is stalling on a new deal at The Hawthorns.

The 21-year-old has scored 13 goals already this campaign, although with Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool said to be interested, he could potentially be on his way out this January.

It's time to bring you the first of our Transfer Talk Update's for today, which includes the latest on the likes of Mario Balotelli, Saido Berahino and Winston Reid - all of whom have been linked with moves away from their respective clubs this month.

The move may have collapsed last week following pressure put on the club by sponsors, but Oldham Athletic director Barry Owen insists that he "will never regret" the League One outfit's attempt to sign convicted rapist Ched Evans. Read his comments in full right here.

One transfer saga could be coming to an end today with reports suggesting that Swansea City striker Wilfried Bony's switch to champions Manchester City is close to being confirmed.

It is claimed that the two clubs have agreed a £27m deal, with the Ivory Coast international close to finalising terms on a £75,000-per-week move.

© AFP

Well that brings to an end my stint on transfer watch for now, but worry not because Sian Cowper is on hand to take you through until midday with any new developments.

Thanks Daniel! Let's start with news from Scotland as Celtic defender Virgil van Dijk, who has been linked with a move to the Premier League, has revealed that the club will not let him leave during January's transfer window.

Arsenal's Benik Afobe has been in impressive goal-scoring for during his loan spell with MK Dons this season, and he appears to have caught the eye of Wolverhampton Wanderers. According to a report, the 21-year-old missed Saturday's game in order to continue contract talks with the Championship club.

Liverpool are being linked with numerous strikers at the minute as they try to find a replacement for Luis Suarez, who was sold in the summer. The latest player rumoured to be on his way to Anfield is Aston Villa's Christian Benteke, who could make the switch alongside teammate Fabian Delph according to reports.

Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy was thought to be on his way to Crystal Palace in the summer before Tony Pulis quit as manager. Now that the Welshman is in charge at West Bromwich Albion, it looks like he has renewed his interest in Vardy, reportedly preparing to offer £5m for the 27-year-old.

Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur are both thought to have been keen on West Brom stirker Saido Berahino. However, it is now being claimed that they both prefer Birmingham City's Demarai Gray, who is thought to be available for a quarter of the price of Berahino.

If Berahino does leave West Brom, it looks like former Chelsea and Newcastle striker Demba Ba could be his replacement. The Besiktas striker is being linked with a return to the Premier League.

Former Chelsea trainee Gokhan Tore could reportedly be heading back to England, with Manchester United thought to be keen to sign the Besiktas winger.

Stoke City are reportedly in the race to sign Ipswich Town defender Tyrone Mings, who is also thought to be on Arsenal and Chelsea's wishlist.

Toronto's Jermain Defoe is thought to be keen to head back to the Premier League, while Sunderland's Jozy Altidore is being linked with a return to the MLS, and it looks like the two could be part of a swap deal.

That's all from me, but stick around as Paul Gorst is here to keen you up to date throughout this afternoon.

Thanks Sian! We'll start with the news that Arsenal striker Benik Afobe is having a medical at Wolves this afternoon. The centre-forward spent the first half of the season on loan at MK Dons and is now likely to join the Championship side.

Reports have been rife all season about Liverpool's attempts to try and bring Divock Origi back from his loan spell at Lille. It's been no secret that the Reds have struggled for goals since Daniel Sturridge pulled up injured back in August, and a new report has claimed that a deal is close to completion for the Belgium international striker.

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has given an interesting take on the future of Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea. United moved to sign Victor Valdes earlier this week and speculation has linked De Gea with a move to Real Madrid. We'll bring you the thoughts of the current Sky Sports News pundit shortly...

"When Real Madrid come for one of your players, no matter who you are, they can still take them," said Carragher. "They've done it to Arsenal, Liverpool and United with [Cristiano] Ronaldo." Full story on its way...

Here's more from Carragher on David de Gea's future. Full story here.

Stoke City striker Peter Crouch has been explaining how he wants to stay with the Potters beyond his contract this summer. We'll have the full story to you shortly...

Here's more on the news from Peter Crouch. The ex-Liverpool man aslo admitted that he is targeting the 100-goal milestone this term, he is currently on 92 Premier League strikes...

Former Juventus coach Massmiliano Allegri has been giving his take on what he feels Mario Balotelli needs to be doing to make his Liverpool career a success. The Juve coach worked with the Italian during their time at AC Milan but Allegri stopped short of claiming that he would take the striker back to his homeland when asked about the possibility of signing Balotelli. Full story is here.

New Inter Milan signing Xherdan Shaqiri has admitted that wanted to move to Liverpool in the summer. The Swiss international joined the Nerazzurri earlier this week but Shaqiri has revealed that Bayern Munich blocked a move to Anfield in the summer. Full story here.

Celtic defender Virgil van Dijk has admitted that he would like a move away from Scotland, but believes that his club are unlikely to do business this month. The centre-back has been linked with several Premier League clubs, and while the Hoops man is open to a switch, he doesn't think Celtic will entertain any forthcoming offer...

He told The Herald: "You never know in football, but for now Celtic will not co-operate with a departure in this transfer period. It would be a boost for my career if I could make a step up, but I have no problem if I remain a little longer in Scotland. Perhaps in the summer something happens."

Newcastle United striker Papiss Cisse has hinted that he could move away from St James' Park this summer. Swansea City are expected to be in the hunt for a Wilfried Bony replacement as the Ivorian closes in on a switch to Manchester City and Cisse's name has crept up in connection with the Swans...

Cisse is quoted by The Mirror as saying: "I have one and a half years left on my contract. Today I focus on the African Cup of Nations. Then we will see how things will evolve and my future with Newcastle. We talk about a lot of clubs, Swansea and others."

Hi folks, Dan Lewis here with you through until 7pm this evening. One of the biggest transfers of the January window could be reaching its conclusion with news that Wilfried Bony is close to finalising a move to Manchester City.

That could potentially see Swansea City delve back into the market for a new forward and, as touched on a little earlier, Papiss Cisse has hinted that he could be interested in joining the Welsh outfit. Read his comments in full right here.

© Getty Images

Reports have emerged this afternoon suggesting that Manchester United are closing in on the signing of Athletic Bilbao defender Aymeric Laporte.

The 20-year-old has yet to have been capped at senior international level by France, but his performances for Bilbao are said to have caught the eye of Louis van Gaal.

Sticking with the Premier League, could Chelsea midfielder Andre Schurrle be on this way out of Stamford Bridge this January?

If fresh reports are to be believed, then the German World Cup winner has his sights firmly set on a move back to his homeland with Borussia Dortmund.

Some more news concerning Chelsea now, although this surrounds a player who looks likely be remaining in West London this month - Islam Feruz.

The youngster had been on trial with Championship outfit Cardiff City, but manager Russell Slade has confirmed that the Blues striker has returned to Stamford Bridge.

Moussa Sissoko has once more hinted that he would be interested in a switch from Newcastle United to Arsenal by suggesting that the Gunners "has always been the club of my heart".

A strange thing to say, perhaps, just a couple of days on from announcing your intent to remain at the club. Read the Frenchman's comments in full right here.

One man who has been strongly linked with a move away from his current side this month has been Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva.

Reports have previously claimed that he could be on his way to Inter Milan for £7m in the coming days, although it is suggested elsewhere that no bid has yet to have been made.

I brought you an update on Lucas Leiva's Liverpool future a little while ago, with reports suggesting that no bid has yet been made for the Brazilian midfielder, although one man who looks likely to be leaving Merseyside this month is Oussama Assaidi.

The 26-year-old, who is currently on loan at Stoke City, is expected to join Dubai-based Al-Ahli for £4.7m before the transfer window closes.

It's now time to bring you the second of our Transfer Talk Updates of the day, which neatly rounds up all the latest speculation and activity from the mid-season window.

Lucas Leiva, Andre Schurrle and Aymeric Laporte have all made the headlines - but who have they each been linked with?

© Getty Images

It's now time to pass things over to Callum Mulvihill, who will keep you up-to-date with all the latest goings on for the next four hours.

Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers have been linked with a number of strikers in recent weeks, and it appears they are a step closer to a signing after agreeing a fee with Arsenal for Benik Afobe, who spent the first half of the season on loan at MK Dons.

Reports have suggested that Liverpool are keen to bring Divock Origi to the club earlier than planned, and if the Belgian does arrive at Anfield this month, Crystal Palace and West Bromwich Albion could attempt to sign Rickie Lambert.

Manchester United have reportedly gone cold on Radamel Falcao in recent weeks, with some reports claiming that they won't sign him on a permanent basis in the summer. The tale may have taken another twist today. Falcao, who was left out of the squad as United lost to Southampton on Sunday, is believed to have left Old Trafford before kickoff.

The form of Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason recently has seen Paulinho slip further down the pecking order at Tottenham Hotspur, and the Brazilian could be a step closer to leaving White Hart Lane, with Juventus rumoured to be interested.

Swansea City were rumoured to be interested in signing Tottenham Hotspur defender Kyle Naughton, but it appears that they could face competition from Leicester City, who have reportedly tabled a £3m bid.

That's all from me tonight, but Shane Callaghan is here to keep you updated on all of the transfer gossip until 2am.

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, and I'll kick off my three-hour spell with Tony Pulis's admission that he would sell West Brom striker Saido Berahino for "stupid money".

Some Aston Villa-related news to tell you about now, and Paul Lambert is reportedly closing in the signing of a certain Valencia midfielder, whose name you will learn upon clicking right here.

Let's go continental for a moment and Atletico boss Diego Simeone insists that he isn't tightening the purse strings just yet and hopes to add more reinforcements, having signed Fernando Torres and Cani this month.

Bad news for Manchester City and Chelsea fans as Barcelona ace Lionel Messi insists that he has no intention of joining your club. This one had typified the term 'silly season' but it looks like Messi has drawn a line under the speculation once and for all. More in here.

Back to Premier League now and Alan Pardew rules out a move for Toronto striker Jermain Defoe, who worked with Pardew at West Ham way back when. You'll find more on this in here.

We've got another Pardew story up now, and the Crystal Palace boss confirms an interest in signing out-of-favour Liverpool striker Rickie Lambert, but admits that he is pessimistic over the switch materialising.

Anyways, that's all we've got for now, folks, but our transfer blog is back on line at 7 am so check back in a little later for the latest productions of the rumour mill. Until then, take care!