Shenyang Jinde's boss Wang Dezhong has bizarrely claimed that Arsenal's Patrick Vieira will be meeting him for transfer talks on Thursday.
The unsettled French midfielder has admitted that he does not know where his future lies next season, but Dezhong has made the sensational claim that he could be off to the Orient.
The Jinde general manager said: "French footballer Patrick Vieira will come to China on January 10 for a transfer discussion with us."
The C-league team's boss said that he was in touch with Vieira's agent last week and that it was agreed the French midfield ace would travel to China for further discussions.
Wang added: "It depends on how much Vieira will require for his salary. As an Arsenal forward and French international, he is really a brilliant player."
The Gunners prefer it when Vieira plays in midfield, but either way a move to China would surely be the most surprising transfer in football history.
The 25-year-old Senegal-born star has admitted that he is unsure if he will be at Highbury next season and that he will sort his future out before the World Cup finals this summer.
Real Madrid and Juventus have been strongly linked with his signature, but this is certainly the first time that Shenyang Jinde have entered the frame.
Jinde finished the lowest of the 14 C-league teams last season, but escaped the drop because of a temporary 'no relegation' policy in effect for one campaign only.
It was also claimed that Vieira went to China in 1995 for training with Shanghai Shenhua, but he was turned down by head coach Xu Genbao who thought he was a "low-levelled" player.
An Arsenal spokesperson said: "Any kind of speculation we don't comment about. This is purely speculation."
I think it would be a great move for him.
<img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laugh Out Loud]" />
The unsettled French midfielder has admitted that he does not know where his future lies next season, but Dezhong has made the sensational claim that he could be off to the Orient.
The Jinde general manager said: "French footballer Patrick Vieira will come to China on January 10 for a transfer discussion with us."
The C-league team's boss said that he was in touch with Vieira's agent last week and that it was agreed the French midfield ace would travel to China for further discussions.
Wang added: "It depends on how much Vieira will require for his salary. As an Arsenal forward and French international, he is really a brilliant player."
The Gunners prefer it when Vieira plays in midfield, but either way a move to China would surely be the most surprising transfer in football history.
The 25-year-old Senegal-born star has admitted that he is unsure if he will be at Highbury next season and that he will sort his future out before the World Cup finals this summer.
Real Madrid and Juventus have been strongly linked with his signature, but this is certainly the first time that Shenyang Jinde have entered the frame.
Jinde finished the lowest of the 14 C-league teams last season, but escaped the drop because of a temporary 'no relegation' policy in effect for one campaign only.
It was also claimed that Vieira went to China in 1995 for training with Shanghai Shenhua, but he was turned down by head coach Xu Genbao who thought he was a "low-levelled" player.
An Arsenal spokesperson said: "Any kind of speculation we don't comment about. This is purely speculation."
I think it would be a great move for him.
<img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laugh Out Loud]" />