COMMENT: They're circling. The vultures. From the Premier League to LaLiga. Serie A to Ligue Une. They're all waiting. Watching. Ready to pick over the bones of VfL Wolfsburg.

It's not simply a clearout. It's carnage. With prime backers Volkswagen slashing their financial commitment - and VfL stuck in the wrong half of the table - there's nowhere for Wolfsburg to go. Come January, they must sell - and sell big.

For coach Valérien Ismaël and - even more so - football director Klaus Allofs, this season's slip couldn't have occurred at a worse time. Allofs and the board knew what was on the horizon, but they rolled the dice last summer, gambling €50 million on new signings. A decision which has flopped.

Now reality is about to set in. The routine €100 million annual grant from VW will be reduced. It's now not a matter of 'if', but by how much. Some insiders claim the reduction could be as high as 50 per cent, leaving Allofs' budget in shreds.

Last week, the transfer guru conceded the club was facing dramatic change: "One will have to see what goals Volkswagen has: football as a hobby or a team to reach the top of the Bundesliga?"

And the spotlight is now shining on Allofs. Regarded among the best football directors in the game, his reputation was forged primarily at Werder Bremen. At Wolfsburg doubts are already being raised over whether the 59 year-old can still work his magic. Wolfsburg as a Champions League power was on the wane well before talk of a budget reduction had even surfaced.

Those inside the VfL board room must be reeling. It's difficult to suggest the directors knew what was coming. After all, they turned down a massive €75 million from PSG this year for Julian Draxler. Oh, what that could've done for the bottom line. Today, on current form, you'd be fortunate get a third of such a fee. But there remains hope inside VfL that Draxler's reputation will help them get at least close to what they rejected from the Parisians just months ago.

PSG could try again. Patrick Kluivert, their green football director, is a fan. But there'll be competition - welcome competition as far as VfL are concerned.

Arsenal are sure to be interested, with Draxler, when still a Schalke player, having twice visited London Colney before eventually accepting VW's money. Jurgen Klopp, the Liverpool manager, is also sure to be more than a bystander in this one. But even if Wolfsburg do get a decent fee for the Germany international and are able to clear his wages off the books, the clearout won't end there.

As mentioned, it potentially could be carnage. Underperforming players, with good reputations, on big wages? Ismael's squad is full of them. Players long coveted by major European rivals, now suddenly available. It's going to be a feeding frenzy.

Jeffrey Bruma, once of Chelsea, only joined in the summer, but could follow Draxler out the exit door. The Dutchman has spoken openly of returning to the Premier League and Ronald Koeman is sure to fancy adding his countryman to Everton's squad if he can't do business with Southampton for Virgil van Dijk.

Ricardo Rodriguez, the Swiss left-back, is already being mentioned in the local press as one player VfL are sure to sell to the highest bidder. Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea have all been named as potential destinations for the 24 year-old.

"I can say that United have called for information, but that Wolfsburg do not want to give in," his agent, Gianluca Di Domenico, stated last year.

Skipper Luiz Gustavo, like Rodriguez and Draxler, are on the list local pundits are convinced Wolfsburg are circulating across Europe. The Brazil international, who chose VfL ahead of Arsenal two years ago when leaving Bayern Munich, has spoken of his admiration for the Premier League.

"Arsenal play an attractive brand of football and are in the Champions League. They also have a very clever manager in Arsene Wenger," says the 28 year-old. Wenger may not be so keen now, but the likes of United, City and even champions Leicester City, are scouring the globe for a player of Gustavo's qualities. He won't be left on the shelf.

But will it end there? What about below the first team? Ismail Azzoui, nicked away from Tottenham 18 months ago, could he be tempted back? What about Josip Brekalo, the teenage Croatian prospect? Would Chelsea or Liverpool fancy a second chance at the former Dinamo Zagreb striker?

For VfL, there's still hope. Francisco Javier Garcia Sanz, who sits on both VW and VfL's boards, is the football club's biggest champion. Herbert Diess, the CEO of VW Brands, wants to shut off the tap. Sanz argues nothing should change. And in the middle is the football club, hoping for a favoured compromise.

But whatever the final result, sales will have to be made. The vultures are already beginning their descent.