Transfer Deadline Day Thread!

Good morning, everyone. It's Transfer Deadline Day! Yay! For Jim White and the rest of the Sky Sports News crew, it's Christmas in August. For the next 12 or so glorious hours, many fanciful rumours will be made up, many players "dream move" will be made, and many people will take the piss out of transfer reporting (case in point--Just saw Mario Goetze going to an estate agent in St Albans). 

For Arsenal, this is the day that could, more than any other day, define our season. Yes, it is that important. Our midfield, quite frankly, is lacking in creativity and talent. We cannot wait for Tomas Rosicky to rediscover his 2007/08 form, we cannot rely on Andrey Arshavin to become the real Andrey Arshavin. Quite simply, Arsene Wenger must buy a creative midfielder, and possibly a wide forward in the mould of Samir Nasri. Eden Hazard, Mario Götze and Marvin Martin are the reported chief targets. The first one is virtually impossible (despite Lille signing Joe Cole), the second one highly unlikely. The third one is the likeliest. There are also reports of Arsenal signing Yossi Benayoun, and/or Florent Malouda. The first would please me, as a squad player, the second not so much. 

There is also, of course, the other option: Arsene Wenger signs someone not on the radar. Ricardo Montolivo? Niko Kranjcar? A sly bid for Luka Modric! All, my friends, are within the realm of possibility on transfer deadline day, and that is why it drives men to jump up and down when announcing the signing of Papa Bouba Diop for West Ham and then embarrass themselves talking to, and indeed following, managers driving around in cars. 

So, get comfortable, have the coffee nearby and the snacks at hand. This year, the window slams shut at 11 PM BST. That is 6 PM EDT, 5 PM CDT and 3 PM PDT. It's the latest I ever remember it, much to the media's excitement.