In surprising transfer news considering he is set for ankle surgery, Santi Cazorla has been linked with a possible reunion with former boss Manuel Pellegrini at Hebei China Fortune.
The creative midfielder, who has not featured since mid-October after sustaining an Achilles injury, is yet to recover from his latest setback and will travel to Sweden next week for surgery.
However, a recent report suggests Pellegrini is interested in signing the Spaniard for his side. Having played under the Chilean at both Villarreal (2007-09) and Malaga in the 2011-12 campaign, he is under the watchful eye of his former manager.
Pellegrini’s new side, which he joined towards the end of August, have already filled their foreign quota of four players in their squad. As a result, they’d need to offload at least one in order to sign Cazorla. That’s assuming he’d be interested in a lucrative move to China.
Arsenal’s former forward Gervinho is one of the club’s notable players, and it’s not hard to believe that the Ivorian would be involved in some way to try and persuade Santi to join him outside of Europe.
The prospect of a possible deal though, is highly unlikely. He has already stressed his eagerness to get back fit and playing for Arsenal, whilst speculation about a possible contract extension is potentially on the cards, provided he proves his fitness after recovering.