Source: Telegraph
Arsenal make move for Everton's Mikel Arteta
Wenger is desperate for midfield cover, especially after an injury to Cesc Fabregas, and the Sun[LNB]reports that Wenger is confident he can prise Arteta away from Goodison Park.[LNB]Fabregas is out for four months with knee ligament damage, resulting in a lack of creativity for the Gunners in the middle of the park.[LNB]Arteta, 26, is currently playing his fifth season in the Premier League and so would provide experience as well as vision and technical ability, should he move to the Emirates.[LNB]Wenger had initially earmarked Liverpool playmaker Xabi Alonso, and reportedly made a £15m bid for the Spaniard.[LNB]However, Rafa Benitez refused to sell to one of his nearest rivals and, as such, Wenger has turned his attentions to Arteta.[LNB]The player himself has a contract with Everton that runs until 2012, and manager David Moyes would be reluctant to sell one of his star players.[LNB]Money talks, though, and £12m would enable Moyes to sign a top-class striker - a position in which Everton are currently short on cover. Moyes has been linked with a move for CSKA Moscow forward Vagner Love.[LNB]Arteta may not be the only player Wenger pays big money for in the January transfer window.[LNB]Zenit St Petersburg forward Andre Arshavin has been heavily linked with a move to north London, while reports also suggest that Arsenal are weighing up a £10m bid for Dynamo Kiev centre-half Pape Diakhate.[LNB]Wenger wants to bolster his back-line, and 24-year-old Diakhate fits the bill, especially if unsettled Ivory Coast international Kolo Toure leaves for Manchester City.[LNB][LNB]
