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BBC
Ajax are interested in signing England midfielder Jordan Henderson, 33, from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq but face competition from Premier League and Bundesliga clubs.(ESPN)
Al-Ettifaq will not be pressured into selling Henderson in January or allowing him to leave on loan. He is set to have talks with manager Steven Gerrard and sporting director Mark Allen. (Talksport)
Manchester United's England winger Jadon Sancho, 23, will return to Borussia Dortmund on loan, but they cannot afford to make the deal permanent. (Mirror)
Bayern Munich have made a late bid for Genoa's 21-year-old Romania defender and Tottenham target Radu Dragusin. (Sky Sports)
Paris St-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi wants 25-year-old France striker Kylian Mbappe, whose contract runs out in the summer, to stay. (RMC Sport - in French)
Serbian midfielder Nemanja Matic, 35, is unhappy at Rennes and wants to return to the Premier League or could retire. (L'Equipe - in French)
Paris St-Germain are working on a deal to sign 28-year-old Germany midfielder Joshua Kimmich from Bayern Munich in January. (Sky Germany - in German)
Newcastle United will reject any January offers from Paris St-Germain for 26-year-old Brazil midfielder Bruno Guimaraes. (i)
Aston Villa's 31-year-old Brazilian midfielder Philippe Coutinho, who is on loan at Qatari side Al-Duail, could join Inter Miami.(Sun)
England forward Cole Palmer, 21, wanted to leave Manchester City on loan last summer but was told he could "stay or you get sold" before he joined Chelsea. (Sky Sports)
Fulham are monitoring 25-year-old AZ Alkmaar and Greece striker Vangelis Pavlidis, who has been watched by Chelsea, AC Milan and Barcelona in recent weeks. (Evening Standard)
Leicester City manager Enzo Maresca wants Inter Milan's 28-year-old Italy midfielder Stefano Sensi.(Sky Sports Italy - in Italian)
Juventus are planning to meet with English winger Samuel Iling-Junior's representatives to discuss a new contract for the 20-year-old, whose current deal runs out in 2025. (Tuttosport - in Italian)
Barcelona have paused talks over the future of 24-year-old Portugal forward Joao Felix, who is on loan from Atletico Madrid.(Sport - in Spanish)
Tottenham want Middlesbrough's 21-year-old English midfielder Hayden Hackney, who has also attracted interested from Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool. (Evening Standard)
Sky Paper Talk
DAILY MAIL
Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be in attendance at Old Trafford for the first time since his Manchester United share purchase when they face Tottenham on Sunday.
Manchester United will have to pay up to £100,000 a week towards Jadon Sancho's wages in order to push through his return to Borussia Dortmund.
PSV Eindhoven have reportedly firmed up their interest in signing Manchester United youngster Facundo Pellistri on loan until the end of the season.
Former Chelsea and Manchester United midfielder Nemanja Matic wants a return to the Premier League amid reports that he is unhappy at French side Rennes.
Alphonso Davies is "increasingly likely" to leave Bayern Munich for Real Madrid in the summer.
Chelsea star Mykhailo Mudryk is one of 192 sportspeople from Ukraine who have called on French President Emmanuel Macron to ban Russian athletes from the Paris Olympics.
Colour-blindness campaigners have slammed the FA after Sunderland's FA Cup third-round game against Newcastle saw complaints about their striped kits clashing.
DAILY TELEGRAPH
The Football Association will be summoned by government, along with other sporting bodies, to explain why they have not banned transgender women from female events.
Aston Villa are switching kit manufacturers ahead of the 2024-25 season, having secured a deal with Adidas to replace their current relationship with Castore.
Jordan Henderson could be offered a Saudi Arabia escape route by fallen Dutch giants Ajax, and a move to the Netherlands would also solve a potential tax bill for the England midfielder.
The Rugby Football Union has been accused of being "out of touch with reality" by Nottingham's chairman for not offering any financial support to the Championship club after devastating floods.
THE GUARDIAN
Lucas Paquetá will see a specialist for further assessment on a calf injury that will keep the West Ham midfielder out for four weeks.
Brighton have agreed a deal to sign highly-rated teenager Valentín Barco from Boca Juniors after agreeing to pay his £7.8m release clause.
Almost 50 per cent of match officials surveyed by the Rugby Football Union have said they have been subjected to abuse in recent seasons - prompting the introduction of stricter punishments at all levels of the game including the Premiership.
THE SUN
Manchester City remain confident Erling Haaland is happy and settled for the foreseeable future at the Etihad.
Arsenal are one of a number of clubs interested in Ajax defender Jorrel Hato - although they will be unable to make a move this month.
Aston Villa outcast Philippe Coutinho is set to return from his loan spell at Qatar's Al-Duhail and head to MLS, where Inter Miami is one potential destination.
The Six Nations will feature names on the backs of all shirts this year as a tournament requirement after England, Scotland and Italy began to do it in 2023.
Deontay Wilder says he wants to fight on the undercard of Anthony Joshua's clash with Francis Ngannou to try and redeem himself after being beaten by Joseph Parker before Christmas.
Nottingham Rugby Club have launched a desperate plea for £50,000 in funding after Storm Henk devastated their Lady Bay ground and flooded the clubhouse and training areas.
DAILY EXPRESS
Paul Lambert believes Roy Keane should be a "no-brainer" appointment as the next manager of the Republic of Ireland.
DAILY STAR
Manchester United staff are feeling a new buzz around the club following the arrival of billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Red Star Belgrade's Gabon international Guelor Kanga had to prove his real age after bizarre claims were made he was born four years after his mother died.
DAILY MIRROR
Mikel Arteta has invited players' families on Arsenal's mid-season break to Dubai in an attempt to rejuvenate his squad after losing their last three games.
Bacary Sagna has said he doesn't "understand the criticism" aimed at Oleksandr Zinchenko following Arsenal's recent run of disappointing results.
Chris Sutton believes Eddie Nketiah needs to consider his future at Arsenal as the amount of playing time he receives could affect the remainder of his career.
THE TIMES
England face going into their Six Nations opener against Italy in February with a rookie loosehead prop as Joe Marler, Ellis Genge and Bevan Rodd are injured while Mako Vunipola will have missed four weeks running up to the game through suspension.
DAILY RECORD
Rangers have been told they will have to go beyond £5m to land Hellas Verona left-back Josh Doig, who is now also receiving interest from French side Marseille.
Ross County and Dundee are among a string of clubs who want to sign Burnley's young striker Michael Mellon, who scored 15 goals on loan for Morecambe under now Staggies boss Derek Adams.
SCOTTISH SUN
Rangers could be set to pull off a major transfer coup by signing Belgian striker Michy Batshuayi.
Guardian Rumour Mill
Michael Butler
How is Joshua Kimmich only 28 years old? He has seemingly been at the top of the game for decades, an elite Swiss-army knife of a player that has been operating at either full-back, central midfield or any of the inverted libero, withdrawn raumdeuter positions that seem to be in vogue these days. He’s just a very, very good footballer, and Bayern would be mad to lose him, but lose him they might. It all feels a little bit Toni Kroos.
Kimmich’s contract expires in 2025, and could be available for a cut-price deal either this January or in the summer. Pep Guardiola is a long admirer of the German, having managed him at Bayern 2015-2016 and the feeling is mutual: Kimmich called playing under Pep “an incredible experience”. So Manchester City are keen but so are PSG, who could do with the maturity, talent, poise and pausa of Kimmich in their midfield. It should be an almighty scramble to get his signature.
More bad news for Bayern: Alphonso Davies also is exploring his options and with the end of his contract also up in 2025, the German giants could lose him on the cheap. Real Madrid, the swines, are lurking and apparently in contact with Davies’ agent. The left-back is good friends with David Alaba from his Bayern days and it would not be a shock to see the pair link up again in Spain. And even more bad news for Bayern: Tottenham have nicked Radu Dragusin from under their nose.
Jordan Henderson is due to have talks with Steven Gerrard and Al-Ettifaq club suit Mark Allen over his future in Saudi Arabia, after reports linking him with a return to the Premier League. Now apparently Ajax are in for the veteran midfielder, although it remains to be seen how they can anywhere near matching his current £350,000 weekly salary. Saudi Arabia and Amsterdam famously have very similar vibes, so you never know.
Something needs to be done about these Premier League parachute payments. Leicester City, 10 points clear at the top of the Championship in early January, apparently have the means to sign Italy international Stefano Sensi from Internazionale. What on earth is going on, here? Being relegated used to be a punishment, not a way to just do a deep clean of the squad, which by the way is already looking healthy enough. In their most recent victory over Millwall, Leicester had on their bench: Wales No 1 Danny Ward, England internationals James Justin and Harry Winks, Belgium international Wout Faes (who arrived on Premier League wages for £15m), Denmark international Jannik Vestergaard, Stephy Mavididi (signed for £7.5m in the summer), Fatawu Issahaku (on loan from Sporting Lisbon), Tawanda Maswanhise and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (easily a Premier League player). How the heck can Leicester afford these players to just be in reserve, and add Sensi? The Championship used to be a fair fight.
Queen’s Park’s Callan McKenna is a target for Manchester United, who could pay less than £1m for the 17-year-old Scotland youth international, despite other interest from Arsenal.
The Athletic
West Ham duo Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta face spell on sidelines with injuries
By Roshane Thomas
West Ham United duo Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta are expected to be out for an extended period with injuries.
Bowen, who scored his 14th goal in all competitions during a 1-1 draw against Bristol City, had to be assisted off the field by two members of the physio team, having injured his left ankle.
The 27-year-old is expected to be out for at least one month with the issue, in what will be a blow to manager David Moyes, with Bowen leading the way as West Ham’s top scorer this season.
Bowen has been playing as a striker for large parts of the campaign due to fellow striker Michail Antonio currently being sidelined with a knee problem. The Athletic reported that he had suffered an injury setback in training that is set to keep him out of action throughout January.
Paqueta, meanwhile, is set for a spell on the sidelines due to a calf injury.
The 26-year-old’s appearance was cut short to just 14 minutes in the FA Cup third-round draw against Bristol City. It also prevented the attacking midfielder from participating in the goalless Premier League draw against Brighton & Hove Albion five days before.
The initial problem occurred during the warm-up preceding the 2-0 victory against Arsenal, leading to Paqueta’s substitution in the 33rd minute at the Emirates Stadium.
Paqueta will now see a specialist for further assessment on the issue.
The Brazil international has been influential for West Ham this season, having scored five and assisted six times in 27 appearances across all competitions.
Moyes was handed a further blow at the weekend as defender Konstantinos Mavropanos also sustained a knock. The Greece international landed awkwardly following a contested header with Bristol City forward Tommy Conway.
Sport Witness
West Ham make move for exciting player – 10 goals, 3 assists, among ‘best in his role’ this season
Two months ago, Calciomercato.it reported West Ham United were keen on signing Genoa star Albert Guðmundsson and ready to meet the Serie A side’s €20m request to sign him in the winter market.
Fast forward to January and Gianluca Di Marzio now provides the latest on West Ham’s efforts to try and sign the 26-year-old this month.
Guðmundsson’s preferred position is on the wing, but he has been used mainly behind the striker this season, scoring 10 goals and registering three assists from 19 games.
His impressive performances have caught the Hammers’ attention and the report states they have ‘made a move’ to secure his services in January. The report doesn’t provide any clarity on whether David Moyes’ side have tabled an offer for the Iceland international.
However, they do state the Italian club have ‘rejected every attempt’ made by the UEFA Conference League winners to sign the attacker.
Guðmundsson is his side’s top scorer this season and has been among the ‘best in his role’ in Serie A. Therefore, Genoa aren’t willing to part ways with the player and have blocked West Ham’s attempt to secure his services.
The Hammers will have to try harder.
HITC
22-goal striker ‘ready’ as he opens door to West Ham or Crystal Palace transfer
Vangelis Pavlidis believes he is ready for ‘the next step’ with Premier League trio West Ham United, Crystal Palace and Fulham keen on the AZ Alkmaar striker.
HITC Football understands that, after sending scouts to watch the Greek international in action over the last two months, West Ham, Crystal Palace and Fulham have installed Vangelis Pavlidis among their array of potential January signings.
And who can blame them for being impressed? The skilful striker has been in stunning form this season, after all.
He has already matched his tally of 22 goals from 2022/23, despite playing only 29 matches in all competitions. And after spending the last six years in the Netherlands – joining Willem II from Borussia Dortmund in 2018 – Pavlidis may feel as if he is approaching ‘big fish in a small pond’ territory.
West Ham United in Vangelis Pavlidis race
“Are there things going on (regarding a transfer)? I don’t talk about that now, I prefer to keep that to myself,” Pavlidis tells De Telegraaf.
“It is clear that I am physically and technically ready to take the next step.”
Pavlidis does, however, have doubts about whether now is ‘the right time’ to leave AZ, without the benefits of a full pre-season at his next club.
“The transfer window in the winter is, of course, different than in the summer,” adds the 25-year-old, one of the most stylish and technically gifted forwards around.
“It is more difficult in several ways. That is why I don’t know whether this is the right time.
“Everyone knows that I wanted to take the next step last summer. In the end it was not the right time, because a suitable club did not present itself. I am very happy at AZ.
“If nothing comes, I will just continue with what I did in the first six months of the season. I want to continue to provide goals and assists and help win games. I am very motivated to be (the Eredivisie’s) top scorer, to play with AZ for a place in the Champions League, and to strive for success in the cup.”
Hammers want Danny Ings gone
HITC Football has been informed that West Ham are hoping to move on Danny Ings this month, his departure potentially opening the door for Pavlidis to take his place. That, however, is easier said than done. Ings’ eye-watering wages are proving to be substantial stumbling block.
“There is a lot of interest in Vangelis,” AZ technical director Max Huiberts explains to Voetbal International. “He is now at a level that he is interesting for all leagues in Europe.
“But he understands that, if he continues like this, the choice for him will be much wider in the summer.”
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