Hotting up on the transfer front for Arsenal?

You don't need me to tell you it's the hottest day of the year today, and that serves as a tenuous link to the transfer market.

The first website I visited this morning was thisisfutbol.com. The headline that attracted my attention was to do was a 19-year-old English sensation, who could be moving to Arsenal according to the Daily Mail. The teenager they were talking about with Birmingham City's Jack Butland. This England under 21 goalkeeper could be a good backup for Woijciech Szczeny, it's true. However, there is a school of thought that believes the number two should be a more experienced keeper than the current custodian between the sticks.

 That's why the likes of Craig Gordon is also being linked to the club. As a free agent, Gordon would make an excellent signing; however, it is hard to imagine him settling for a place on the bench. Brad Guzan of Aston Villa could be another kettle of fish! That's my tip for Arsene Wenger anyway, and I'm sticking to it.

Talking of tips, one player I can see us making a move for is Solomon Kalou, who could be leaving Chelsea on a free transfer. We have considered signing the player in the past, so now that he is available on a free transfer it is very easy to imagine the striker moving across London to join us. Let's never forget that Sol Campbell did exactly the same thing, although instead of joining us from Chelsea, he of course joined us from Spurs. However, now that Chelsea have won the Champions League perhaps Kalou will want to remain where he is. But the flipside of that is the uncertainty surrounding the managerial situation at Stamford Bridge. That can't be good the team morale at all. The departure of Didier Drogba could signal the beginning of the end of this current Chelsea team.

I suspect there will be some major squad rebuilding at Stamford Bridge this summer and the club are already active on the transfer front bidding £32million for Lucas Moura. The 19-year-old São Paulo winger will not be leaving for that price according to the Daily Mirror, as the Brazilian club are hoping for a bidding war. That may well ensue given the reported interest from Inter Milan and Real Madrid. If Chelsea to win the race for Moura’s services, it could mean the departure of Daniel Sturridge and, according to Setanta, Arsenal are interested. It's hard to imagine that deal actually happening though.

It is also difficult to imagine the club winning the race for Eden Hazard, who has the choice of joining Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea or a mystery club. While it's true, that we may be the mystery club it is difficult to conceive Arsenal paying £32 million for the 21-year-old playmaker. According to the player's agent, John Bico, who is quoted in the Daily Star we will have to wait until after Belgium's match against England at Wembley on June 2^nd to find out. On the plus side, at least it will make that friendly international little bit more interesting from an Arsenal point of view.

A little bit closer to home, ClubCall are linking Arsenal with a £3million move for Wales international Joe Allen. Of course, Swansea City have some excellent players as we discovered last season when we visited the Liberty Stadium. However, if I remember correctly Danny Graham and Scott Sinclair caused a lot of problems for our team and that's why they would be the players I would be looking at buying. Stephen Dobbie was also a handful. Apparently, we are also interested in Michael Vorm, the Holland international goalkeeper, and Iceland international midfielder Glyfi Sigurdsson. He was on loan at Swansea last season from 1899 Hoffenheim, so it will be no surprise if he does indeed move on this summer. However, I'll be most surprised if we see any of the above - apart from Kalou - in an Arsenal shirt next season.