Will Texan Clint Dempsey ride into town to save Wenger?

WHAT with Arsenal suffering a third consecutive league defeat on Sunday, Arsene Wenger needs someone to make his day – and that someone might be Fulham striker Clint Dempsey. The American hit a hat-trick in the 5-2 thrashing of Newcastle on Saturday and, according to the Express, there are fears at Fulham that the Gunners will look to pounce for the 28-year-old Texan before the January transfer window slams shut.

"He has a long contract and that's that," the Express quotes Fulham boss Martin Jol as saying in response to rumours that Wenger might be about to renew his interest in Dempsey.  

The nutty professor first made enquiries about the Fulham frontman last summer, only to plump instead for Park Chu-Young, but with the South Korean proving as invisible as a Mitt Romney tax return he is believed to be lining up a bid for the American.

Meanwhile after another diabolic defensive display by the Gunners, the Metro says Belgian centre-back Jan Vertonghen might soon be on his way to the Emirates. The 24-year-old has been linked with Arsenal for a while now and apparently he seems to be growing apart from his Ajax employers.

Speaking to Dutch broadcaster AT5, Vertonghen refused to commit himself to the club, saying: "I think that in the future I could have a very good transfer... Perhaps Ajax will find it to be a good thing when I leave."

If Manchester City are determined to land Spurs star Gareth Bale then it's going to cost the Sky Blues £150m. In what it calls an exclusive report, the Mirror claims that City have made "discreet enquiries" about the 22-year-old Welsh winger, rated one of the hottest properties in the British game.

But even City, a club with a reputation for being as reckless with money as an Italian with a boat, are said to have blanched when Tottenham told them the asking price. The current world record for a transfer is the £80m that Real Madrid paid Manchester United for Cristiano Ronaldo, so City would have to stump up nearly twice as much for the livewire Lilywhite.

The Mirror doesn't speculate on whether City will make a move for Bale but their desire to land the twinkle-toed Taff will have increased following his brilliant goal in their 3-2 defeat of Spurs at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Still with Spurs and the London club are having to fend off more unwanted advances, this time for their Croatian midfielder Luka Modric. Though they knocked back a £40m offer from Chelsea last summer, Spurs are now facing pressure from Manchester United. According to the Daily Mail, the Red Devils are lining up a £50 million bid to winkle the 26-year-old out of White Hart Lane. Apparently United boss Alex Ferguson regards Modric as the answer to his midfield woes that have seen him turn to Paul Scholes of late.

In other news, Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas is determined to lure Eden Hazard from Lille in a bid to maintain the Blues' challenge for a top-four finish. No longer realistic title contenders, Chelsea were held to a goalless draw away at Norwich on Saturday and Villa-Boas believes the 21-year-old Hazard is the man to put some lead back into the Blues pencil.

Their technical director Michael Emenalo has been to see Hazard in action recently, according to the Daily Star, which adds that Lille are likely to sell the Belgian playmaker to Chelsea this month for £25m. ·