Sanchez for France?

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is good friends with Paris Saint- Germain President, Nasser Al-Khelaifi. I heard that over dinner they talked and without any agreements being made, Arsene got the feeling that Nasser has already spoken with Alexis Sanchez about moving from the Gunners to the capital of France next season. If Arsene cannot persuade Alexis to stay at the Emirates he is determined that rivals Chelsea and Manchester City will not get him. Arsene has spoken of doing a deal with PSG for around £50million if he is to lose his star player.

Sunderland’s main striker Jermain Defoe has said he will quit the club in the summer if they are relegated from the Premier League. And that possibility is looking very likely with the club ten points from safety, seven matches to go and two of those up against Chelsea and Arsenal. Twenty one points are the maximum the Black Cats can achieve but their cause looks pretty hopeless. Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe said this week that if Jermain does leave then he would be keen to take him back to the south coast. Defoe was on loan at Bournemouth from West Ham as a teenager where he scored in ten games in a row and hit the headlines. Manager Eddie Howe actually played alongside Jermain during that period. Eddie has taken a very decent position regarding Jermain and said that he would not approach the player during Sunderland’s difficult run in and would wait until after the season ends.

I received a phone call on Tuesday evening to tell me that Arsenal loanee to Bournemouth, Jack Wilshere, has had a scan on his injured leg which revealed it is broken! Jack suffered the injury in a tackle with Harry Kane in the defeat to Tottenham last Saturday. There is a crack in the left fibula which is similar to the injury which kept him out for most of last season at Arsenal. Whereas Eddie Howe wants to keep Jack at Bournemouth, Arsene Wenger said he also wants Jack at Arsenal although I suspect that is because the midfielder only has 12 months on his contract and could leave the Gunners for free next year. If Arsenal keep him close they could get a good transfer price for him and Arsene Wenger always thinks money when it comes to Arsenal.

Whenever Chelsea train at their UK headquarters Diego Costa is always in a vest, tracksuit with another top over that, scarf tucked in, socks pulled up and often wearing gloves. His colleagues run around in shirt and shorts and laugh at him in fun but he really feels the cold. Now he has hinted to club colleagues that he wants to quit the English weather and return to the warmth of Spain. He said this week that he liked Chelsea, likes London but hates the weather. Diego originates from the streets of Brazil and he enjoys sitting outside during the day, enjoying a meal or drink in the sunshine at a pavement cafe and that isn’t something he is likely to do in the English winter unless he likes iced coffee! Who is going to be crowned the Professional Footballer of the Year? Eden Hazard’s name always comes up and when he is in the right mood there is no one better. His 14 goals puts him ninth in the Premier League table but he is not in the top 20 for assists. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is United’s choice, scoring 28 goals and always a threat anywhere near goal. He has also raised the temperature in the dressing room in the same way that Roy Keane used to do. Alexis Sanchez is Arsenal’s stand out player. He attacks from anywhere, is a goal poacher, can beat defenders and is always a handful. He has more tackles and interceptions than any other player except Chelsea’s N’ Golo Kante. Romelu Lukaku is strong in the air, quick and skilful and at 23 has an assured future. Harry Kane is Tottenham Hotspur’s talisman. Always a threat anywhere around the opposition penalty area and Harry is about to finish his third season scoring over 20 goals. He has consistently outscored Diego Costa, Sergio Aguero and Alexis Sanchez. N’Golo Kante is the brilliant midfielder who many credit as the player who contributed most towards Leicester winning the Premier League title last year. This year, under the guidance of Antonio Conte at Chelsea, he has displayed even more brilliance. It is a decent argument that he, more than anyone, has lifted Chelsea to first place in the title race. So who is your top Player of the Year? Watch this space as I ask many of the Premier League’s leading players and managers who is No.1 but I can tell you that N’Golo Kante is leading the betting and even Eden Hazard said it should be his Chelsea colleague.

I reported a couple of weeks ago that Crystal Place boss, Big Sam Allardyce, said that Wilfried Zaha, their talented winger, must stay at the club. This week Wilfried has commented on the situation and it isn’t good for Palace. Eagle’s chairman, Steve Parish has backed Big Sam and wants to make Zaha one of the club’s top earners on £110,000 a week which matches the salary of Christian Benteke. However, the player has said he wants to move to one of the top of the table clubs and Tottenham Hotspur look to be favourite to sign him. Champion’s League football next season is a big carrot to wave in front of the Ivory Coast international and Spurs look like achieving that.

Could David De Gea really be leaving Manchester United? Rated as one of the world’s best goalkeepers, he has long been courted by Real Madrid and a possible transfer fee of £50million is being openly discussed. De Gea joined United on the last day of the transfer window in the summer of 2015 and his contract extension, which he signed, does not expire until 2019 however Real Madrid are confident they can get their man. Jose Mourhino claimed that De Gea’s non-appearance in the 3-0 win at Sunderland was a minor hip injury however I have heard whispers during training that he is worried about the Spaniard’s lack of focus because of the Madrid interest. De Gea made his return in the 2-0 win over Chelsea but anything less than 100% will see Jose putting him back on the bench.