Arsenal not close to signing anyone, confirms Wenger

Arsene Wenger has revealed that Arsenal are not close to signing anyone in the January transfer window but are willing to allow the likes of Carl Jenkinson and Mathieu Debuchy to leave if the right offer presents itself. The Gunners are extremely light in midfield with Santi Cazorla out injured, while Mohamed Elneny is unavailable due to his involvement in the African Cup of Nations.

Granit Xhaka is suspended for the next four games after his second sending off in the league where his two footed tackle against Burnley was deemed to be dangerous by referee Jon Moss in consultation with the linesman. Aaron Ramsey and Francis Coquelin are the only two midfielders available for the Gunners but Wenger insists that he is not close to filling that gap with any new additions this window

"We are not on the verge of signing anyone," Wenger told Arsenal's official website. The Gunners signed Elneny last January to avert their crisis in the middle of the park while they averted a similar situation a season before when Coquelin came back from loan to fill an important peg in midfield. They also signed Kim Kallstrom on loan on deadline day but the midfielder was injured and unable to make an immediate impact.

Meanwhile, the manager was all praise for Southampton, who made their way to the final of the EFL Cup at the expense of Liverpool. The Saints had beaten Arsenal on their way to the final, where they will face Manchester United, who sneaked past Hull City on aggregate after losing the game 2-1 at the KCOM stadium.

"They are on a high. They produced a fantastic performance at Liverpool, so overall that makes the game even more interesting and more difficult as well. They are not short of confidence at the moment and will certainly have a big support, but it's an FA Cup game and we want to qualify," Wenger said.