Talk of Arsenal’s German chase proves rumour well is running dry

There are any number of ways to spot a slow news day: The famous Sky Sports News loop is suddenly shorter, Paul Lambert’s opinions get air time and Kolo Toure not touching his dog for seven years through fear is a genuine news article.

While all three of those pointers are true for Tuesday July 21st 2015, they are not the biggest indicator of just how slow the day actually is for football news.

That sizeable klaxon is reserved for the re-emergence of Julian Draxler in gossip columns around the globe.

Remember him? The Schalke wunderkid that was all set for a January 2014 move to Arsenal, after monotonous months of speculation, only to turn it down to stay at the Veltins-Arena?

Well since that rebuttal, the 21-year-old schemer spent large parts of last season on the sidelines through injury. He only returned to first-team action in April and failed to play 90 minutes in any of those seven Bundesliga outings.

Clearly, Draxler is a player edging his way back to full fitness, yet various media outlets believe as many as four clubs – all of them Champions League heavyweights, of course – want to secure the youngster’s services.

Juventus, who are reportedly the first of the quartet to test the water with a bid, Arsenal (who else), Chelsea and Manchester United are the supposed teams trailing the 15-cap international.

First though, the Italian superpower will seek assurances on Draxler’s fitness, because signing a crocked youngster for mega bucks is just not smart business in anyone’s book.

Perhaps then, as is most likely, the clubs can keep their chequebooks closed for just a second, allow the midfielder to remain at Schalke, prove his fitness and talent, then wage war for his signature?

In other news, it’s the anniversary of Patrick Kluivert’s move to Newcastle and BuzzFeed have just released a quiz asking if you know where some well-known UK celebrities are from…

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