Arsenal urged to move for Stoke City midfielder Allen

Arsenal have been urged to move for Stoke City midfielder Joe Allen in a bid to reinforce their midfield this January.

James Benge of Football.London, said Allen could provide a good short-term option for the Gunners in midfield and valued at just £15m, he would be far far cheaper than a number of options on the market. Allen has missed one game through injury since the 2016/2017 season and was touted as a potential deep-lying midfield replacement for Granit Xhaka, should he move to Hertha Berlin. Of course, Allen has plenty of top-flight experience with Swansea City, Liverpool and Stoke, while he has also earned 52 caps for Wales.

Allen has been a crucial part of Stoke’s squad this season, making 24 Championship appearances this season and scoring three goals. With the departure of Badou Ndiaye and Oghenekaro Etebo now confirmed, Stoke have become slightly short in midfield and will not be able to to afford another key player leaving. While NDiaye joined Trabzonspor earlier in the window, the club confirmed yesterday that Etebo would be Spanish side Getafe.

Aside from Allen, Stoke still have Ryan Woods, Jordan Cousins, Sam Clucas, Mark Duffy and Nick Powell to call upon, however Duffy and Powell have lacked game time throughout the season. One man that could be coming in for Stoke is Shrewsbury Town midfielder Josh Laurent. The 24-year-old is said to have impressed with his displays over the past 18-months and has also attracted attention from the likes of Reading and Cardiff City.

Memorably Laurent scored against Stoke last season when Shrewsbury came from two goals behind to beat the Potters 3-2 in the FA Cup.