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BBC
Manchester United are considering a revamp of their defence in the summer which could mean England centre-back Harry Maguire, 30, and Sweden defender Victor Lindelof, 29, leaving if significant offers are made for them. (ESPN)
Juventus and Netherlands defender Matthijs de Ligt, 24, is one of the targets being considered by the Red Devils. (Gazzetta dello Sport - in Italian)
Fulham have made a bid of £30m plus a further £5m in add-ons for 22-year-old Fluminense midfielder Andre and have already agreed personal terms with the Brazil international. (Ben Jacobs)
Sporting Lisbon manager Ruben Amorim says Chelsea will have to trigger the 100m euro (£85.6m) release clause of Sweden striker Viktor Gyokeres if they want to sign the 25-year-old. (Goal)
West Ham are one of the clubs interested in Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips and the Hammers are well placed to win the race to sign the 28-year-old England international. (Standard)
Manchester City have a strong interest in bringing Tottenham and Spain right-back Pedro Porro, 24, and Aston Villa and Brazil midfielder Douglas Luiz, 25, back to the club in deals that could cost them £200m. (Football Insider)
Saudi Pro League clubs are ready to revive their interest in Liverpool's 31-year-old Egypt forward Mohamed Salah in the summer. (90 Min)
Newcastle may sell Brazil midfielder Joelinton this summer if they fail to agree an extension to the 27-year-old's current contract, which expires in 18 months. (Mail)
French striker Karim Benzema is open to leaving Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad but, while the 36-year-old believes a move to England is a possibility, his wages may prove a stumbling block to any potential switch to Arsenal or Chelsea. (Standard)
Aston Villa have launched a bid to sign Middlesbrough winger Morgan Rogers, 21, with manager Unai Emery keen on the player who has represented England at youth level. (Independent)
Tottenham playmaker James Maddison, 27, is aiming to return from a knee injury for his side's FA Cup fourth-round tie against Manchester City on 26 January. (Telegraph - subscription required)
Leeds United are working on a permanent deal to sign on-loan Tottenham and Wales defender Joe Rodon, 26, who is valued at more than £15m. (Football Insider)
French club Lyon are trying to sign 26-year-old Netherlands winger Arnaut Danjuma, who joined Everton on a season-long loan from Villarreal last summer. (Liverpool Echo)
Everton midfielder Amadou Onana has been linked with Arsenal but Toffees boss Sean Dyche has played down speculation linking the 22-year-old Belgium international with an exit. (90 Min)
Spanish defender Javier Manquillo, 29, is set to leave Newcastle United and join La Liga side Celta Vigo. (Athletic - subscription required)
Italy striker Moise Kean, 23, is close to making a loan move from Juventus to Atletico Madrid. (Sky Sports Italia)
Sky Paper Talk
HE SUN
There is growing noise in Spain that Real Madrid want to use Erling Haaland's friendship with Jude Bellingham to tempt the Manchester City striker to eventually move to the Bernabeu.
Raphael Varane could face a probe over holiday snaps that appeared to show the Manchester United defender at a ski resort - United are understood to forbid players from skiing during the season due to the risk of injury.
Chris Smalling has hit back at now former Roma boss Jose Mourinho over claims the defender could have played through his knee injury, saying his absence was one he could not control and that he remains totally committed to the club.
Manchester United are on the hunt for a food safety officer just weeks after 30 guests were served raw chicken at Old Trafford.
Sir Andy Murray is far from a business ace - as his five-star hotel flopped to a near-£1m loss last year.
Ronnie O'Sullivan will headline a stunning new snooker tournament in Saudi Arabia.
David Beckham is locked in a secret multi-million legal battle over fake products including clothes and fragrances bearing his name.
DAILY MAIL
Sources behind the Qatar-based bid for Manchester United have rubbished claims they did not meet the Glazer family's asking price for the club and failed to produce proof of funds and may seek a corrective statement from the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Joelinton may have played his last game for Newcastle United amid reports he will need season-ending surgery on a thigh injury and remains in a stand-off with the club over a new contract beyond the summer of 2025.
Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana is set to start for Cameroon in their Africa Cup of Nations clash with Senegal on Friday after missing their opening game with travel issues.
Everton's much-delayed takeover by 777 Partners is having a major impact on the future of key players, including Dominic Calvert-Lewin, whose contracts expire in the next 18 months.
Manchester United have teamed up with Manchester Metropolitan University's Institute of Sport to use their expertise in Artificial Intelligence and attempt to use it for competitive advantage.
DAILY TELEGRAPH
Liverpool great John Aldridge has disclosed his worries about football's dementia crisis, admitting to experiencing "some problems" and having undergone tests.
Chelsea are facing another backroom shuffle after long-serving medical director Dimitrios Kalogiannidis informed the club he would be leaving after 13 years for family reasons.
Joe Schmidt is set to be confirmed as Eddie Jones' replacement as Australia head coach leading to the prospect of a clash with his former Ireland assistant Andy Farrell when the British & Irish Lions visit.
Wales head coach Warren Gatland has joined the growing band of voices calling for an Anglo-Welsh rugby union league.
England spinner Rehan Ahmed has revealed he turned down the chance to play in the IPL to work on developing a new delivery like Shane Warne's famous flipper.
THE TIMES
Manchester United have been placed on red alert amid reports that Bayern Munich defender Matthijs de Ligt could leave this summer because of a tense relationship with boss Thomas Tuchel and a lack of playing time.
Fulham have offered £30 million for the Fluminense defensive midfielder André as they prepare for the possibility of losing João Palhinha this summer.
The former England defender Casey Stoney will not replace Emma Hayes at Stamford Bridge when the Chelsea manager departs for the United States at the end of the season.
THE GUARDIAN
Reading's dire financial state has left staff to rejig training plans and avoid turning the undersoil heating on to try and curb costs, while a further 19 members of staff have been made redundant and suppliers are still owed around £4m.
THE ATHLETIC
Sevilla had just cause to cancel defender Joris Gnagnon's contract for being 'severely overweight', a court has ruled.
Major League Soccer's Los Angeles FC have added Grasshopper Club Zurich to their growing network of clubs, buying a 90 per cent stake in the Swiss outfit from Hong Kong-based Champion Union.
DAILY MIRROR
Roy Keane claims Manchester United no longer strike fear into opponents, that clubs now actually enjoy visiting Old Trafford, and has also accused his former club of going soft.
Jan Molby says Liverpool should prioritise a move for Crystal Palace winger Michael Olise as they look to add further goal power to their attacking options as well as avoid him joining rivals Manchester United.
DAILY STAR
Langley FC from the Combined Counties League, the 10th tier of English football, have made a cheeky seven-day notice of approach to sign Chelsea striker Armando Broja.
Ligue 1 side Brest have made a formal request to French football authorities demanding that VAR is removed from football after previous condemnation from their manager Eric Roy over decisions which have gone against his side.
DAILY RECORD
New Hibs signing Myziane Maolida was branded a player "as lazy as I have seen" by one of his former Hertha Berlin managers Pal Dardai in a savage attack last year.
Hearts CEO Andrew McKinlay says the club has gone above and beyond their current wage structure to try and keep striker Lawrence Shankland at Tynecastle but warned fans breaking the bank now could come back to bite them in the future.
Guardian Rumour Mill
Dominic Booth
We live in a world where Manchester United, after 21 games of a serious Premier League season, have scored the same number of goals as Luton Town (24). Fewer than Brentford, Fulham and Bournemouth. So naturally, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s first big move – according to latest rumours – will be to revamp the United, er, defence and ship off Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelöf, Raphaël Varane and Jonny Evans in one fell swoop.
The cavalry of defenders supposedly coming in replacing them include Everton starlet Jarrad Branthwaite, Ineos-owned Nice best centre back (obviously) Jean-Clair Todibo and (even more obviously) the former Erik ten Hag Ajax disciple Matthijs de Ligt. The Galatasaray full-back Sacha Boey is also said to have attracted United’s attention. So that’s all completely normal and feasible and don’t worry about the four main forwards who have scored eight goals between them all season.
Across town and Manchester City have been told they may now need to shell out a whopping €150m (£129m) on Bayer Leverkusen wunderkind Florian Wirtz with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich also keen on the 20-year-old, who has been sensational under Xabi Alonso this season.
In a more realistic world, Tottenham are in talks to sign the Norwegian winger Antonio Nusa from Club Brugge and loan him straight back, while Ivan Perisic is about to complete a heartwarming move to home town team Hajduk Split. Thanks for the wing-back memories under Conte, Ivo.
Elsewhere, Fulham are bidding in the region of £30m for the Fluminense star André Trindade (or just André to his friends) who is also on Liverpool’s wishlist. And Newcastle might have to consider selling Joelinton, yes the Joelinton, with his contract running down in 18 months and the club in fear of breaching financial rules. Javier Manquillo is definitely leaving Tyneside, having agreed to reunite with Rafa Benítez at Celta Vigo.
And finally, in the least surprising news of the days, the big-hitters of the Saudi Pro League are gearing up their engines for another Mohamed Salah summer swoop. That’s very exciting news for Ajax this time next year.
TeamTalk
Kalvin Phillips: West Ham offer prompts Man City to alter demands for midfielder keen on Hammers
West Ham have made a move for Kalvin Phillips, and are in discussion regarding their loan offer with an option to buy him from Manchester City.
Pep Guardiola has shown that Phillips is far from one of his preferred assets at City since signing him in the summer of 2022. His Premier League minutes in the year and a half since he joined tally up to just 379.
Guardiola has also admitted he “struggles to see” the midfielder when he picks his teams. That’s led to a number of sides looking to snare Phillips in the January window.
Newcastle United is his preferred destination, as recently revealed by TEAMtalk, but City are playing hardball with the loan fee they want to receive when they see him exit on a short-term deal.
That’s a sticking point that might hinder the Magpies and a number of sides that are after him, with that list now including the likes of Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, as well as Crystal Palace and others.
But Phillips’ agents are looking to lower the £7million fee City want, and that coincides with the latest offer for his services.
That comes from West Ham, who are now in discussion with City regarding a loan with an option to buy him at the end of that period.
Sources have told TEAMtalk that City would prefer a full sale, but negotiations are ongoing with the Hammers.
It’s not clear what price City would accept in order to let Phillips go, but given their stance on a loan fee, and the fact he’s contracted until 2028, it’s not likely to be cheap.
It remains to be seen if West Ham or any other side will pay what’s demanded, or if they’ll manage to come to an agreement over a loan.
A move within England still seems to be the most likely at this point, especially with Phillips eager to move to West Ham and David Moyes’ side leading the race.
That seems like it will give Phillips the best chance to plead his case for a spot in England’s EURO 2024 squad, one of the main reasons he’s looking to leave City.
West Ham News & Views
@WestHamViews
West Ham are in discussions with Arsenal over a loan move for winger Emile Smith-Rowe.
It is not clear yet if the 23 year old is willing to make the switch across London, but negotiations are underway.
[@ExWHUemployee] #WHUFC #COYI
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