Early bird transfer speculation worms (pt 1): David Albelda, David Villa, Nicolas Anelka, Jérôme Rothen, & Ezequiel Garay

Since this is my first official January transfer window post, I thought I'd might as well get the delirium tremens out of my system. Whether we have funds or not, it's always fun to dream.

Nicolas Anelka, FW, Bolton - Laugh all you want, but Anelka would be an incredible re-addition to the club. Why we never kept him, I'll never know, the guy just scores goals and according to Steven Gerrard, was never a problem at the club. The issue is Bolton, are they willing to sell and for how much? Not sure we'd be willing to pay an absurd price, but I don't see £10m + Danny Guthrie being too much to ask. Man City is said to be interested as well, but Anelka has said in the past that he regrets not being able to stay at Liverpool, so I think we have the edge when it comes to player preference. A big plus is that, unlike a player like David Villa, he isn't cup-tied when it comes to Champions League. Unlikely.

David Villa, FW, Valencia - I can only imagine and drool over the thought of having Villa and Torres lining up together. Where Torres is the power and the pace, Villa would be the cunning and conniving. Don't get me wrong, as he has displayed on more than one occasion this season, Torres has quite a few tricks up his sleeves, but Villa is just a more refined product. He is three years older after all. The issue, as with most prospects, is price and availability. Though he pledged his future to Valencia this past summer, things down in the Estadio Mestalla aren't looking too bright at the moment. If he wants to come, I don't see how we can pass on him, transfer funds or no transfer funds, a talent of his level is a rarity and if we have to give Valencia Dirk Kuyt, John Arne Riise, and an I.O.U. for £10m, we should. We should do whatever we have to. It's true he's Champions League cup-tied, but ultimately I think we could use him to give Torres some Premiership matches off, so El Niño would be fresh for CL. Still, highly unlikely.

David Albelda, CM/CB, Valencia - Speaking of chaos at Estadio Mestalla, Valencia manager announced today that team captain Albelda and regular starting keeper Santiago Cañizares have been given an early Christmas vacation and might not be welcomed back into the squad for the rest of the season. Albelda, a defensive-minded midfielder who has played centre back at times in his career, would certainly be a welcomed addition to our side, easing up some defensive issues. Unlike Villa, Albelda was at Valencia when Benitez was manager, so if there's any possibility of him going elsewhere, it looks as if we may have a leg-up. Like Villa though, he's CL cup-tied, but he'd get sufficient time in the Premiership and hopefully Carling and FA Cup ties. Another plus is that he'd probably be a bargain, seeing that he's basically collecting dust and a paycheck for Los Che. Somewhat likely.

Jérôme Rothen, LW, PSG - The 29-year-old Frenchman would certainly solve all our left-wing issues, at least temporarily or until we can pry Valencia's hands from David Silva. The biggest plus, other than he's pretty damn good, is that he's Champions League ready which would also be a lure as he has mentioned his desire to return to the elite competition in the past. He was part of the Monaco side that lost to José Mourinho and FC Porto in the 2004 final. I'm not sure what his valuation is set at, but paying more than £6m would seem a waste. Sure, he's a left winger and all, but he is 29. Somewhat likely. Another negative is that he, like Harry Kewell, has been cursed with fans who make videos with questionable music. I have nothing against the Pet Shop Boys nor the Village People, but putting them together just doesn't 'do it' for me. Exhibit A:


Ezequiel Garay, CB/RB, Racing de Santander - I wrote a post on this kid a while back and if we move Riise in January, it's looking more and more likely that he's coming. With Arbeloa and Garay, Benitez will be able to rotate more like the mad man he now appears to be just a shadow of. Likely.

Part 2: Daniel Alves, Fernando Amorebieta, Kakha Kaladze, Jonathan Zebina, Francesco Modesto, & more

Today's Banter: Kewell survives Nigeria, No interest in Javi Martínez, West Ham want Hobbs? & more

Probably the best news to come out of the weekend was Harry Kewell playing the full match for Australia. The 29-year-old started on the wing for the Socceroos as they beat Nigeria 1-0 at Wembley. Interim manager Rob Baan hopes this helps Kewell get more time and play more often for us. Obviously he's not too familiar with the ways of Rafa.

I don't know where the rumors of our interest in Athletic Bilbao central midfielder Javi Martínez emanated from, but they've been rubbished by Rafa Benitez. I thought it was a bit strange that we were going after the 19-year-old with the amount of players we already have at that position. This pretty much scratches any chance of a move for Momo in the January window, something I'm against anyhow.

There's a little disinformation in this article regarding West Ham's interest in obtaining Jack Hobbs on loan in January. He actually has made his first team debut. In fact, I believe he's played three matches overall for us, one start and two subs, but that aside, I think it'd be a great idea to let him go to the Hammers on a six month loan. He might actually get some pitch time there and if he's as good as everyone says, they won't include an option to make it permanent. I've yet to be impressed by the lad myself, but it's not like he's really had a chance to 'settle in' with the first team.

Finally, in other transfer news it's been reported here that the £17m quoted as the transfer fee for Javier Mascherano may also include his salary over five years. Not sure how that'll work out and it sort of makes little sense, but I hope he's not getting screwed over by MSI and Kia Joorabchian. In that same article is another reference to Racing Santander centre back Ezequiel Garay, who I have to believe is our top target in January. Cheers.

Transfer target: Ezequiel Garay

Ezequiel Marcelo Garay is a Argentine centre/right back currently playing for Racing Santander. The 21-year-old signed with the La Liga club from Newell's Old Boys two years ago and has made quite an impact. Adept with his head on set pieces and solid on penalty kicks, Garay has amassed 9 goals in 38 league matches for the Spanish side. He has received multiple call-ups to the Argentina National team, but has had to reject all but one due to injury. He was also a regular for his country's youth side that won the 2005 U20 World Cup in the Netherlands. Manchester United are among the other clubs in pursuit of his services and his valuation is set at £10m. I think he'd be quite the pairing with Agger. Here's some videos of his work.

A header goal for Newell's Old Boys from a free kick. It begins about 40 seconds in:


Another sensational header goal, this time for Racing:


A six-minute interview which includes a bit about the anchovies of Santander: