Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge has completed a loan switch to West Brom leaving former Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez purple-faced. The England attacker has been out of favour at Anfield after falling down the pecking order. His chances of playing for the Reds have not been helped by injuries, poor form and the form of Roberto Firmino. He has been attracting the attention of some of Europe’s top sides including Sevilla and AC Milan. But he has decided to remain in the EPL. West Brom were delighted to have sealed the move after they paid Liverpool’s 2 million pound loan fee and had him pass his medical. Alan Pardew would be hoping he can stay fit and fire them to safety this season. Newcastle were the bookies’ favourites to sign the attacker but were not quick enough to conclude the deal allowing West Brom to steal a march on them. This is the latest episode in the Magpies bid to remain in the Premier League this season, and Rafael Benitez may resign his position if they fail to add a new attacker this month. Sturridge last started a game for Liverpool in their 1-1 draw against Chelsea last year, but he could make his debut for West Brom at the weekend.

With the transfer market just one day away from closing, Chelsea are yet to sign a target man. The Blues have spent the whole of this month trying to sign a new target man to help reduce the goalscoring burden on Alvaro Morata, but they have still not gotten a deal over the line. The likes of Burnley’s Ashley Barnes, Stoke City’s Peter Crouch and Edin Dzeko of AS Roma have been their targets. They have spent the last couple of weeks trying to sign the latter but they seem to have given up on his pursuit. The Blues have now turned their attention to Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud but Arsenal want to complete the move for Pierre Emerick Aubameyang first before allowing the French man leave. Dortmund in turn also wants to sign a replacement for Aubameyang before completing the switch. Giroud had been targeted by Dortmund, but the French man has told the Germans he is not interested in moving away from London, clearing the way for Chelsea to sign him. Reports this morning are now claiming that Antonio Conte would return for Tottenham’s Fernando Llorente should he fails to land Giroud. Llorente was close to joining Chelsea last summer, but Tottenham hijacked the deal and signed him for 12 million pounds. He has since netted just 2 goals for them this season.

Swansea City have turned their attention to Liverpool winger Lazar Markovic after failing to land Nicolas Gaitan from Atletico Madrid. Swansea were looking to add Argentina’s Gaitan to their team this month, however, the Argentine is unwilling to move to a side struggling with relegation and they have decided to turn their attention to Markovic. Markovic has been declared surplus to requirements since Jurgen Klopp became the manager of Liverpool and the closest the Serbian came to playing this season was being named a substitute in their 1-0 loss to Leicester City in the Carabao Cup earlier in the season. He seems to have impressed Carlos Carvahal during his loan spell at Hull City in the second half of last season. He starred for Marcos Silva’s side as they ultimately failed to escape relegation from the Premier League. Swansea are hoping to sign him permanently, but in the event that they cannot agree on a fee, the Swans are open to a loan switch with the option of making it permanent at the end of the season. German side Wolfsburg are also interested in taking Markovic on this month.

Manchester City are set to complete the signing of Athletic Bilbao’s defender Aymeric Laporte. The Cityzens have been looking to sign a new defender this month but after missing out on their high profile target, they are set to settle for Laporte. Pep Guardiola had demanded the signing of Virgil van Dijk from the club, but the Dutchman decided to move to Liverpool instead.  Johnny Evans was another target for Guardiola, but he believes Laporte provides longer term option. Athletic Bilbao are notorious for not allowing their players leave for any amount under their release clause and Manchester City are ready to pay the French man’s release clause. Laporte was left out of Bilbao’s squad for their last match against Eibar and reports in the Spanish media is claiming that he is set to move to England. Laporte is still uncapped by France but played for their Under 21 side when he was younger. At 23, he has been playing for the Bilbao first team since 2012 having joined them in 2010. Manchester City wanted to make him one of Pep Guardiola’s first signings when he was named their new manager, but Laporte turned down their advances as he had just returned from a long injury lay off.

Arsenal’s £25 million bid for West Brom’s Johny Evans has been left hanging as the Baggies look to squeeze more cash out of the Gunners. Arsene Wenger is desperate to add the former Manchester United man to his team as he believes Evans has the experience the bring calm to his defence. The Northern Ireland man is also looking for a move away, although he prefers to join Manchester City for personal reasons. Manchester City had a £30 million offer for the defender rejected last summer and the Baggies expected them to return with an improved offer this month. However, they have decided to move for Athletic Bilbao’s Aymeric Laporte even though he would cost them significantly higher at £57 million. Pep Guardiola wants a composed defender, however, he also wants a younger player that would easily be groomed. West Brom have told Arsenal they would need to make their offer £27 million if they are serious about signing Evans. The Gunners are currently busy trying to sign Pierre Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund and they want to sign the Gabonese attacker before the start of the new week, they would then shift their focus back to signing Evans.

Chelsea’s move for former Manchester City man Edin Dzeko is proven too complicated than expected and the Blues have set a deadline to make the deal happen. According to Sun Sport, the Blues have resumed talks with the Italians and they would be willing to walk away from negotiations if their latest effort doesn’t yield positive results by Monday. Chelsea have been looking to sign Dzeko and his teammate Emerson Palmieri this month, while the move for Palmieri has been concluded, Dzeko’s is proving too hard. The deal is reportedly held back by outrageous demands from the Bosnian, and Roma have also told the Blues that they have no problems keeping him at the Stadio Olimpico. The Blues are desperate to sign a new attacker before the transfer window closes next week and they would now turn their attention to other targets. Leicester City’s Islam Slimani, Burnley’s Ashley Barnes and Peter Crouch of Stoke City have attracted the interest of the defending champions this month. However, Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud is Conte’s preferred alternative to Dzeko. The French man has been offered to Borussia Dortmund this month, but the Germans are unable to meet Arsenal’s demand.

Tottenham seems to have stolen a march on other Premier League clubs interested in signing PSG’s Lucas Moura. Reports in France are claiming the 25 years old Brazilian winger has jetted into London to meet Daniel Levy today. Moura was the first superstar PSG bought in 2012 as they fought off competition from Manchester United to sign him from Sao Paolo. However, he has failed to get enough opportunities this season having played less than 90 minutes of football for the French league leaders. Liverpool and Manchester United were keen on Moura with the Red Devils reportedly agreeing on personal terms with his representatives. However, the lure of playing under a younger and more progressive Mauricio Pochettino was enough to tip the scales in Tottenham’s favour. PSG gave their players Thursday off after their win over Guingamp, Moura is hoping they can make significant progress before he returns to the French capital. Tottenham are believed to be looking for a loan deal with the option of making the move permanent after this season, but PSG want a permanent transfer and they have brought down their asking price to £22 million.

Antonio Conte’s Chelsea future continues to look in doubt and the Italian gaffer has not been helpful. His latest outburst about the club’s transfer policy after their 2-1 loss to Arsenal in the Carabao Cup semifinal has angered the Blues hierarchy. The Italian claimed in his post-match conference that he had no say in the club’s transfer dealings and only try to improve the players he is given. This is a very contrasting admission to that of the club’s board members who have always claimed that their managers have the final say in transfers. Conte would have just one year left after this season as he failed to sign a long-term deal with the Blues last summer, but it looks so much as though this would be his last season at the club. The Italian has always moaned about his squad size despite spending over £200 million last summer. The Blues are currently working on bringing another two of his transfer targets in Edin Dzeko and Emerson Palmieri. The uncertainty surrounding his future was the major reason why the Blues wanted to sign a striker on-loan rather than permanently as they fear their next manager may have a very different approach to the game.

Chelsea are prepared to sign Olivier Giroud on loan this month if their move for Edin Dzeko fails. The Blues are looking for a new attacker, and they have been trying Edin Dzeko from AS Roma over the past couple of days. However, a deal for the Bosnian is taking too long and the Londoners are beginning to make alternative plans. Olivier Giroud is wanted by Borussia Dortmund if the Germans sell Pierre Emerick Aubameyang to the Gunners. However, the Germans want to offer only  £1.3 million for a six-month loan despite demanding £56 million from Arsenal for Aubameyang. Giroud has just returned to full training following a spell on the sidelines and he is open to a move away for first team action. Chelsea are hopeful of signing Dzeko this week, but if they fail to complete the transfer soon enough, Antonio Conte has asked them to sign Giroud. One of Giroud’s key attribute is his heading ability, and hold up play. Having also spent the last couple of years in the EPL, Conte believes he can help the Blues with goals.

Manchester United are not satisfied with the signing of Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal. The Red Devils snatched the Chilean from under the noses of Manchester City by offering him a mouth-watering £450,000 per week deal. However, the Red Devils are not done with raiding the Gunners yet and they could go back for Mesut Ozil. Ozil is in a similar situation as Sanchez, the German has refused to sign a new deal and has only 6 months left on his current deal. Unlike Sanchez, Ozil has not attracted many takers this month, but the Gunners know his suitors are choosing to stay under the radar and sign him for free. One of such suitors is Manchester United. Jose Mourinho had a good rapport with Ozil when they were both at Real Madrid, and they are both keen to work together again. Reports are claiming that the Red Devils are planning to make Ozil an irresistible offer this month. Arsenal are hoping Ozil would sign a new deal worth £275, 000 per week, but Manchester United are happy to offer him more as well as a huge signing on bonus and image rights fee. Arsenal want to wrap up the signing of Pierre Emerick Aubameyang before returning to the negotiations table with Ozil and his representatives.