Last year it was Tottenham with Rafael van der Vaart, so could Harry Redknapp work his magic again or will Arsene Wenger pull a rabbit out of the hat this time? No doubt the hours leading up to 11pm on Wednesday will have a big effect on the season.

Arsenal

If there is one club desperately in need of reinforcements it is the Gunners.

Sunday’s 8-2 defeat was just another example of the lack of strength in depth at the Emirates Stadium right now and for the first time since the transfer window was implemented we should see a number of last-minute deals go through for the Gunners.

It looks like left-back Andre Santos and centre-half Per Mertesacker will be brought in to try and shore up Arsenal’s leaky defence but will that be enough?

For years Arsenal have been undermined by a lack of defensive strength and rather than opt for the type of old-fashioned, English centre-half, Wenger is continuing to look towards mainland Europe.

Arsenal have drifted to 50/1 to win the Premier League and that looks a lost cause, even if they can draft in all the players they need.

The team’s main aim will be to secure a top-four spot and that is still within their reach, even if they only manage to add a few new faces.

The Gunners are 7/4 to be in the Champions League next season.

Tottenham

Much like their north London rivals Spurs are in need of a number of new faces to avoid their season being a failure before it has really got going.

Redknapp’s men have had two tough fixtures to start the campaign but even so it is obvious Tottenham are in need of a new striker and centre-half.

At present the only deadline-day arrival looks as though it will be Scott Parker from West Ham, with Bolton’s Gary Cahill still a long shot at the moment.

Tottenham’s hopes of finishing in the top four look slim at best right now but with a couple more van der Vaart-type captures they could mount at serious challenge.

Spurs are 4/1 to finish in the top four.

Blackburn

If Tottenham are keen to find a new striker then Blackburn are absolutely desperate.

Having missed out on Vedad Ibisevic, Rovers have reportedly turned their attention to Mounir El Hamdaoui.

Neither are household names and you have to fear for Steve Kean’s team after they narrowly avoided relegation last season.

Their odds of 11/10 for the drop are looking more and more appealing, although if they can unearth a goalscorer from somewhere they will certainly have the edge over the likes of Norwich, Swansea and Wigan in the relegation fight.

Rovers could also do with more cover at the back and a creative midfielder so Kean should be a busy man on Wednesday.

The Rest

A good striker is seemingly hard to come by with Stoke, Newcastle, Sunderland and Wigan all actively searching for a goalscorer.

Expect the Potters to be the busiest of that quartet given Tony Pulis‘ past transfer deadline day dealings, the Stoke boss having said he wants five new faces at the Britannia before Wednesday.

Fulham are another club hoping for reinforcements in order to maintain their European and domestic campaign. The Cottagers’ league form suffered badly during their run to the Europa League final in 2010 and Martin Jol will be keen to avoid a repeat.

Chelsea also look as though they haven’t quite finished splashing the cash, although it is more likely they’ll be trying to move on a few members of their current squad as Yossi Benayoun, Salomon Kalou and Alex look set to go.

Andre Villas-Boas will no doubt be keen to tinker with his new squad further in order to aid the Blues’ title challenge.

Having done most of their business already it is likely to be a quiet deadline day at Old Trafford, Anfield and Eastlands, although Manchester City could spring a surprise by bringing in Owen Hargreaves on a free if reports are to be believed.

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Chelsea (7/1 to win Premier League title) have been linked with a £52m double bid for Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero and defender Diego Godin, though the club have been quick to dismiss reports. The other big transfer gossip surrounding Carlo Ancelotti’s side is they had a £17m bid for Benfica defender David Luiz turned down, but the Blues are confident of pushing through a deal.

If Chelsea hold out any hope of catching Manchester United, a club who have already stated they do not intend to bring anyone in, a new defender would be crucial to their hopes as their back four have looked more susceptible than in many years. A new top striker like Aguero would also make a massive difference as Anelka and Drogba are not getting any younger and have gone off the boil in recent months.

Arsene Wenger has been linked with a number of targets during the window, but what has to be his top priority is a central defender as Arsenal (13/5 to win title) are wafer-thin for centre-backs. It would be a massive surprise if Wenger moved for Jonathan Woodgate, as reports suggest, but it seems the boss might not be willing to splash the cash despite Lille midfielder Eden Hazard and Southampton’s teenager Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain being heavily linked with the Emirates. Many Gunners fans will be disappointed to hear Wenger ruling out bringing in new faces, leaving the Carling Cup as possibly Arsenal’s best chance of ending their wait for silverware this summer.

One transfer link that has refused to go away all January is Liverpool (28/1 to finish in top four) moving for Luis Suarez. There is no doubting the addition of the Uruguayan striker would improve Liverpool drastically, but with both clubs struggling to agree on a price it would not be a shock if no deal were done before the window closes. The same can be said of Liverpool’s interest in Charlie Adam as Kenny Dalglish seeks to improve a struggling Reds side for the second half of the season. New players are needed to inspire Liverpool so Dalglish could be busy right up to the closing moments of the deadline.

Sunderland have money to burn following the sale of Darren Bent, which despite the inflated price could be the smartest deal of the window as Aston Villa needed a goalscorer and that is exactly what Bent (20/1 to be top Premier League goal scorer) is, and so there are likely to be incomings in addition to the capture of Ricardo Fuller. Freddie Piquionne has been linked with a £3.5 million move, but he is not a patch on the goal-scoring talent of Bent, while Sulley Muntari seems to be on his way from Inter Milan. Sunderland have had a great season to sit in sixth, but unless they get a truly quality replacement for Bent they are likely to drop down the table.

Villa have done the second-biggest deal of the window with the capture of Bent, with Manchester City’s £27 million signing of Edin Dzeko looking likely to ensure they are United’s biggest threats for the title (City 12/1 to win Premier League), and Gerard Houllier could still be a busy man. He has been linked with Spurs’ forgotten midfielder Jermaine Jenas, who would offer a good attacking threat through the middle, and he would replace the under-performing Stephen Ireland – who seems likely to head out on loan, possibly to Newcastle. There is no doubting Ireland’s ability and if he got his head back in line then his talent would be a great addition to compliment Kevin Nolan and Joey Barton in Alan Pardew’s side.

The Robbie Keane saga continues to rumble on and there is no conclusion about where he is going to end up. A move to Birmingham failed to materialise, the likes of Wolves, Newcastle and Sunderland have all been linked, and now West Ham (4/7 to be relegated) are the latest suitors for the Spurs star. With seemingly half the Premier League interested in him it might be a case of just picking a name out of the hat, but it continues to look nailed on he will be wearing a new shirt by the end of the month.

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