Arsenal and Man United chase Gianluigi Buffon

Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is reported to be on his way out of Juventus and could be heading to the Premier League. the 32-year-old keeper is widely regarded as one of the best in the world and had stuck with Juve even when they were demoted to Serie B over a match-fixing scandal. But, after a terrible run  that has seen the club lose eight out of 11 games, he has run out of patience with the Turin giants.

Predictably Manchester United and Arsenal are at the top of the list of potential suitors, along with Manchester City.

United keeper Edwin Van Der Sar is 39 and his understudies, Tomasz Kuszczak and Ben Foster, have failed to convince Alex Ferguson they can adequately replace him in the long term. Arsenal also have goalkeeping issues. Manuel Almunia has failed to win over his critics down the years and Lukasz Fabianski has spurned a number of chances to take over - he was unimpressive against Stoke at the weekend. Long term prospect Vito Mannone has signed a new deal with the Gunners but Wenger could be tempted to move for Buffon.

The suggestion in Italian paper Tuttosport that Buffon could move to Manchester City is intriguing as they already have Shay Given on their books, and he is widely regarded as the best keeper in the Premier League.

Buffon cost Juventus more than £30m when he arrived there in 2001 and he would command a similar fee even now.

All the recent transfer talk surrounding Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez has been about who the Spaniard might bring to Anfield. But according to the Daily Mirror Italian giants Juventus are set to make a move for the beleaguered Liverpool boss.

The paper says that Juventus understand that Benitez "has become unhappy in England", particularly with the lack of support he has received from the Liverpool board. A fresh start, particularly with such an illustrious club as Juventus, could prove a strong draw.

Benitez's agent, Manuel Garcia Quilon, is quoted in the Mirror as saying: "Benitez to Juventus? In football you never know. I don't know what will happen in four to five months. In football everything changes quickly.

"The basic principal is that Rafa still has a four-year contract with Liverpool. At this precise moment the idea [of a move to Juventus] is not correct, because he is a very important figure to the Liverpool fans... but you never know what will happen."

Juventus are said to be on the brink of sacking Ciro Ferrara, their current boss, who has overseen a poor first half of the season that included a weekend defeat to Roma. With Benitez frequently complaining that he does not have enough money to build a squad capable of launching a title challenge, it appears an approach from Juventus would be welcomed.

Meanwhile Liverpool's Mersey rivals, Everton, are reported to be ready to buy striker Jermaine Beckford from Leeds. The 22-year-old, whose goal knocked out Manchester United in the third round of the FA Cup, is one of the hottest properties in English football at the moment, and the Mirror says Everton boss David Moyes is "keen" to snap up Beckford before the end of January's transfer window.

Leeds have already turned down a £1.8m approach from Newcastle for Beckford but with the player able to leave on a free transfer at the end of the season the last thing the Yorkshire side want is to see him go without cashing in. The paper says that Leeds are therefore "prepared to do business" with Everton, who are said to be ready to offer £2m for Beckford.

Could Nicolas Anelka and Chelsea be about to part company? According to Sky Sports it's a possibility after contract negotiations between the mercurial French striker and the London club have broken down for a fourth time.

Anelka is enjoying one of his best ever seasons in the Premier League in a career that has taken him from Arsenal to Manchester City to Bolton to Liverpool. The 30-year-old striker has scored 11 times so far and his partnership with Didier Drogba has been arguably the most potent in the league.

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has been trying to persuade Anelka to commit his long-term future to the club but Sky reports that discussions between the Blues and Anelka's representatives have reached an impasse with just a "10 per cent chance" of an agreement being reached. If no way through can be found, Chelsea are likely to offload Anelka in the summer for a hefty fee.

Fulham's highly rated young defender Chris Smalling is reportedly on the verge of signing for Manchester United, after the London club accepted a £7m bid. Goal.com quotes a United source who describes the deal as a "significant coup." Smalling had been closely linked with Arsenal, but Fulham apparently rejected a bid from the Gunners.

The 20-year-old's representatives are now finalising personal terms before the deal goes through.

With Ruud van Nistelrooy now ensconced at Hamburg, there is only one extravagantly monickered Dutch striker available to the Premier League clubs and three of them are reportedly chasing Klass Jan-Huntelaar's signature. The Star says Arsenal will move for him if they can arrange a suitable financial package, which presumably means not paying him £65,000 a week. The same paper reports that having missed out on Nistelrooy, Spurs are keen on Huntelaar, while the Times suggests that Everton are also interested.

Finally, Roma full-back Marco Motta is on the verge of signing for Manchester City. The 23-year-old is eager to move to England but a potential obstacle is the fact that the player is co-owned by Roma and Udinese. "There's a real interest from Manchester City for Motta," the player's representative, Giuseppe Bozzo, told the Italian media, "but it is premature to talk about it because it is necessary that the three clubs - Udinese, Roma and Manchester City - reach an agreement."

Motta is set to appear for Roma in Tuesday's Italian cup tie against Catania, but that might well be his swansong for the Serie A club. "We'll see in the next few days what will happen," said Bozzo. ·