Transfer talk: Messi move, Balotelli rejects approach and United in for two centre-halves

Day seven of the January transfer window is upon us and, despite scoring against Elche last night, talk of Lionel Messi's move to the Premier League still runs rampant across the very excitable media.

According to the Manchester Evening News, there are "genuine aspirations to lure Messi to the Etihad Stadium." Manchester City would have to shell out over €600m for the Barcelona icon who is said to be frustrated under current Barca boss Luis Enrique. After his goal against Elche last night, he blew a kiss to the Camp Nou crowd. Could this have been a goodbye kiss? Meanwhile, it's been reported in The Daily Star that Olympiakos' attempts to bring Liverpool struggler Mario Balotelli to Greece on loan have been rebuffed by the Italian. That's not to say that Balotelli will be a Liverpool player come February as Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain are keen on the services of the controversial striker as they attempt to get back to top spot in the league. Imagine a Mario - Zlatan reunion. It'd guarantee at least 600 stories for us. Louis van Gaal looks set to be sure up his dodgy defence by finally making a bid for someone who's not a forward. The Manchester United boss could take advantage of Borussia Dortmund's shocking domestic form this season to bring in centre-back Mats Hummels for a cut-price fee according to The Mirror.  Failing that, LVG is also quite keen on Atletico Madrid defender Diego Godin who has a €35m buy-out clause in his contract, according to The Daily Star, but the Red Devils would have to double the Uruguayan's wages if they were to lure him to Old Trafford. Meanwhile Arsene Wenger could shock everyone by signing a Frenchman. The Daily Express report that the Arsenal manager is eager to bring Lyon's star forward Alexandre Lacazette to North London. The 23-year-old with 19 goals in 20 appearances this season which makes him one of the hottest properties in Europe and the Gunners could face competition from Liverpool and Manchester City for the player's signature. Liverpool could be set to finally replace their cross-a-phobic goalkeeper this January according to The Daily Star. Brendan Rodgers' faith in current stoppers Simon Mignolet and Brad Jones has never been the strongest so he is apparently considering a move for Barcelona's Marc-Andre ter Stegen. Ter Stegen only joined the Catalan club in the summer but has had to play just a bit-part role as Claudo Bravo is currently number one at the Camp Nou. The 22-year-old told Bild: “It’s good to be at Barca but the situation is difficult. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t care and it isn’t easy being a spectator."