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QPR are reportedly lining up a shock bid for Aston Villa striker Darren Bent. Reports of a rift between Bent and Villa boss Alex McLeish have spurred Rangers chairman Tony Fernandes to look into a bid for the forward.

Bent joined Villa last January for £24m and the club would be looking to make close to that amount back in return for the 27 year old. QPR boss Neil Warnock is keen to sign a striker and the club have also been linked with moves for Tottenham’s Jermaine Defoe and Roman Pavlyuchenko as well as Fulham’s Bobby Zamora and Peter Odemwingie from West Brom.

Chelsea will release midfielder Josh McEachran on loan in January in an attempt to boost his development.

A number of Premier League clubs have been linked with the 18 year old including Aston Villa, Bolton, Swansea City and Fulham. McEachran has been identified as a future star by boss Andre Villas-Boas who may look to Bolton to loan the young midfielder as a sweetener ahead of his expected bid for defender Gary Cahill.

Last season McEachran made 17 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea, including four for the starting XI, and has represented England at all youth levels.

Wolves boss Mick McCarthy will look to improve his strike force with a bid for Stoke striker Kenwyne Jones.

Wolves have struggled to score this season with top scorer Steven Fletcher on just six goals and with Jones losing his place in the Stoke first XI to Peter Crouch, the Molyneux outfit may be able to prise him from the Potters.

The Trinidad and Tobago International signed with Stoke in 2010 for £8m and would warrant a price of at least £5m if McCarthy were to enter a bid for the striker, who has scored four goals in 19 appearances this year.

Manchester City are preparing a £30m bid for Lille’s Eden Hazard in a race to beat Arsenal and Chelsea to the sought after star.

Arsenal tried to sign the player over the summer but Lille held firm. However, the French club may be more likely to sell due to the public desire of Hazard to leave.

The Belgian International has spoken warmly of Arsenal in the past but it is thought that the Gunners will not be able to match a £30m bid put forward by City. Mancini will reportedly put the bid in for Hazard next month, then loan the player back to Lille until the end of the season before signing him permanently in the summer.