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Paper Talk
Chelsea fear they will fail with another bid for 21-year-old Everton defender John Stones in January.
Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are close to signing new contracts at Arsenal.
Manchester United have been given a hands-off notice from Premier League rivals Bournemouth over 26-year-old Scotland international winger Matt Ritchie.
Per Mertesacker claims Arsenal want keeper Wojceich Szczesny back at the club.
QPR want Burton boss Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink as their new manager.
Former Manchester United manager David Moyes would be interested in taking over at Championship side Leeds following his sacking by Spanish side Real Sociedad.
Alexis Sanchez will sign a massive £40m five-year Arsenal contract following interest from Manchester United.
Bournemouth will offer Tottenham outcast Andros Townsend an escape route.
Striker Papiss Cisse has been assured he still has a future at Newcastle despite losing his first-team place to summer signing Aleksandar Mitrovic.
Liverpool have axed around 40 players from their youth academy in the last 12 months - and more are set to follow.
Leeds United fans have been left outraged after the club's official calendar featured semi-naked players.
Aston Villa boss Remi Garde is planning a move for 22-year-old Norrkoping midfielder Arnor Traustason.
Premier League clubs could play the French national anthem before this weekend's matches with the 20 top-flight sides discussing the potential tribute on Tuesday night.
Branislav Ivanovic admits Chelsea now face the biggest mental test of their disastrous season.
Reading will appoint former Leicester manager Nigel Pearson if current boss Steve Clarke leaves for Fulham.
Sky Bet Championship rivals Birmingham, Wolves, Rotherham and Sheffield Wednesday are all tracking 21-year-old Wrexham midfielder Dominic Vose.
Tim Sherwood is set to be offered a shock route back into football by a mystery Spanish top-flight side.
Fulham are close to appointing Reading boss Steve Clarke, 52, as their new manager.
Manchester United are continuing to pursue Servette striker Lorenzo Gonzalez.
Southampton have made a £50,000 offer for Cheltenham forward Luke Thomas, 16. Benfica, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham have all watched him.
Chelsea defender Papy Djilobodji is wanted by Besiktas in January, when Jose Mourinho is expected try to sign Everton's John Stones.
West Brom are preparing to lose striker Saido Berahino in January, with QPR duo Charlie Austin and Matt Phillips lined up as potential replacements.
Tottenham target Sofiane Boufal, 22, says he will only leave French club Lille for Champions League football.
In his forthcoming biography, former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has revealed when he arrived at Stamford Bridge he thought that John Terry was a reserve player.
Inverness have suspended striker Dani Lopez until further notice after "an incident" during an U20s game on Tuesday.
Barcelona have joined Chelsea and Manchester United in the race to sign John Stones after their scouts were detailed to watch the Everton defender play for England against Spain.
Bolton owner Eddie Davies is prepared to write off up to £170m in loans to the Sky Bet Championship side and sell his controlling stake for as little as £20m in an effort to save the club from financial crisis.
Tottenham are set to lose highly rated Milos Veljkovic in January after talks between the 20-year-old defensive midfielder and the club over a new contract broke down.
Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Leicester are tracking 15-year-old Dundee United goalkeeper Josh Donaldson.
BBC
Former Manchester United manager David Moyes would be interested in taking over at Championship side Leeds following his sacking by Spanish side Real Sociedad. The 52-year-old is wanted by prospective owner Steve Parkin - who is in talks to buy the club from Massimo Cellino. (Mirror)
Chelsea fear they will fail with another bid for Everton defender John Stones in January. The 21-year-old centre-back is settled at Goodison Park and is unwilling to move halfway through the season as he focuses on a place in Roy Hodgson's England team at Euro 2016. (Mirror)
Meanwhile, Spanish giants Barcelona are the latest club to show an interest in Stones, after they sent scouts to watch him in action for England against France on Tuesday. (Telegraph)
Real Madrid are ready to bring Juventus striker Alvaro Morata, 23, back to the Bernabeu if they sell 30-year-old forward Cristiano Ronaldo next summer and fail to sign Chelsea attacker Eden Hazard, 24. (Gazetta dello Sport - in Italian)
Tottenham are set to lose highly rated Milos Veljkovic in January after talks between the 20-year-old defensive midfielder and the club over a new contract broke down. (Independent)
Fulham are close to appointing Reading boss Steve Clarke, 52, as their new manager after agreeing compensation with the Royals. (Mail)
Reading will appoint 52-year-old former Leicester manager Nigel Pearson - who was a contender for the job at Craven Cottage - as Clarke's replacement. (Sun)
Sam Allardyce wants to make West Ham striker Andy Carroll, 26, his first signing as Sunderland manager. (Goal)
Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Leicester are tracking 15-year-old Dundee United goalkeeper Josh Donaldson. (Daily Record)
Striker Papiss Cisse, 30, has been assured he still has a future at Newcastle despite losing his first-team place to summer signing Aleksandar Mitrovic. (Star)
Former Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood, 46, is set to be offered a route back into football by a Spanish top-flight side. (Mail)
West Brom are preparing to lose striker Saido Berahino in January, with QPR duo Charlie Austin, 26, and Matt Phillips, 24, lined up as replacements. Chelsea, Newcastle and Tottenham are all keen on 22-year-old Berahino. (Express)
Borussia Dortmund are willing to sell striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, 26, for offers over £42m, but he has a 'pact' he will not leave as long as forward Marco Reus, 26, remains at the club. (Bild - in German)
Norwich City are considering a loan move for Juventus' Italy forward Simone Zaza, 24. (Tuttosport, via Gazetta World)
Bolton Wanderers owner Eddie Davies is prepared to write off up to £170m in loans to the Championship side and sell his controlling stake for as little as £20m in an effort to save the club from financial crisis. (Telegraph)
Liverpool have offloaded about 15% of their academy players in a bid to focus on quality rather than quantity. (Liverpool Echo)
Tottenham target Sofiane Boufal, 22, says he will only leave French club Lille for Champions League football. (Express)
Premier League clubs could play the French national anthem before kick-offs this weekend in solidarity with France after the Paris attacks. (Sun)
And finally
Australian side Newcastle Jets have honoured the work of the Royal Australian Air Force by unveiling a new kit covered in pictures fighter planes. (Metro)
Leyton Orient's players have been punished for a poor run of form in League Two by being made to stay in a hotel all week - at the orders of owner Francesco Becchetti. (Mail)
Guardian Rumour Mill
Simon Burnton
What next for England’s elegant possession-happy defensive prospect John Stones? Everton resisted repeated bidding from Chelsea in the summer, but now it seems Barcelona are poised to join the hunt. The Iberian giants apparently sent scouts to watch him play in England’s friendly against Spain last week, and haven’t been entirely put off by the fact that all he did on that occasion was watch the action from the bench. It is also being seen as telling that Stones was recently named in a World XI selected by Gerard Pique, with the Telegraph reporting that “it is a technique of all the world’s top clubs to enlist players to try to turn the heads of targets”. If that is indeed the case Pique’s World XI represents something of a wasted opportunity, given that most of them already play for Barcelona.
Manchester United are being linked with Arjen Robben, who apparently wants away from Bayern Munich after falling out with Robert Lewandowski – the Pole apparently requested that he pass the ball occasionally – and are still keen on Matt Ritchie, though West Brom, Stoke and West Ham have been added to the list of clubs keen on Bournemouth’s creative livewire. “It is not welcome by us,” raged Eddie Howe of the rumours. “We’re not looking to sell anybody.” But they are coincidentally looking to buy another right-sided midfielder, in the shape of Tottenham bench-warmer Andros Townsend, so draw your own conclusions. Also on United’s shopping list: 15-year-old Servette striker Lorenzo Gonzalez, though both Barcelona and Real Madrid are scouting him too (the Swiss starlet was excluded from Pique’s World XI, which tells you something). In other teenage forward news, Southampton have bid £50,000 for Cheltenham 16-year-old Luke Thomas.
Despite Barcelona’s sudden interested Chelsea are said to be braced for more Stones-related transfer-tussles come January, which is probably bad news for Papy Djilobodji, the defender the Blues turned to on deadline day after their repeated summer bids for Stones came to nothing, and is now – one Capital One Cup minute of first-team football later – being linked with a January move to Besiktas. And Chelsea’s new year shopping list doesn’t end there: the arrival of 18-year-old Bologna midfielder Amadou Diawara is considered very much a formality.
West Brom are bracing themselves for a megabucks January enormobid for Saido Berahino, with Tottenham (again) and, yes, Chelsea potential buyers, by lining up a double deal for QPR’s Charlie Austin and Matt Phillips, who between them might be snaffled for £20m, £5m less than the Baggies’ wantaway goal-grabber might command single-handedly. Meanwhile Arsenal have been warned that Borussia Dortmund won’t sell Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for a penny less than £42m, but that the Gunners needn’t bother making a bid as the Gabonese ace has made a pact with Marco Reus that they will leave the club at the same time, or not at all.
Aston Villa hope Arnor Traustason can provide the midfield goal threat that (is one of the many things) they have so badly lacked this season, with the Icelandic 22-year-old at a bit of a loose end having helped his Norrkoping side to Allsvenskan glory, the Swedish league having ended a couple of weeks back. Talking of a much-needed goal threat, Norwich want to sign Italian striker Simone Zaza, but Juventus would prefer to sell to a team more likely to create a few chances for Zaza to convert – Arsenal and West Ham are apparently interested, and the Gunners handily already have scouts in Italy, where they’ve been casting an eye over Genoa defender Armando Izzo.
In Championship-based managerial news, QPR have targeted Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink to replace sacked Chris Ramsey, while Reading will appoint Nigel Pearson when Steve Clarke’s switch to Fulham is confirmed, Justin Edinburgh has refused to rule out a switch from Gillingham to Brentford, and David Moyes is “not too proud” to take the Leeds job – should there be a change of ownership at the club from coach-chopping Massimo Cellino to someone who focuses a much greater extent on stability and the expenditure of mind-boggling sums on the manager’s salary. And finally, Wrexham midfielder Dominic Vose is a target for Birmingham, Wolves, Rotherham and Sheffield Wednesday.
HITC
West Ham poach key figure from London rivals Arsenal ahead of big move to Olympic Stadium
West Ham United are taking the lead from Premier League rivals Arsenal on how to make a success of their move to the Olympic Stadium.
Damien Lucas
The Gunners moved to their fantastic Emirates Stadium back in 2006, and it is considered to be one of the best arenas in Europe.
Since then, the 60,000 capacity stadium has undergone a process of "Arsenalisation" with the aim of restoring the club's rich heritage and history.
But it is the impact on the all important bank balance that has been most welcoming.
Arsenal’s match day revenue increased from £37.4m in their old Highbury stadium to over £90m in the new Emirates Stadium (equivalent to an additional income of over £1m per match), and that excludes other commercial revenue.
The financial success meant Arsenal could clear all their bank loans in 2010 and have been able to emerge as a club with arguably the best financial footing of any club in Europe, applauded by UEFA as the defining model for other clubs to follow in meeting the requirements of the UEFA Financial Fair Play initiative.
What better blueprint to follow?
So what better blueprint for the Hammers to follow for their own major move from their famous 35,000 seater Boleyn Ground home of 112 years to the 54,000 seater Olympic Stadium, which has the option to be increased to 66,000 in future years.
So what did West Ham do? They went out and poached Felicity Barnard from the North Londoners and appointed her West Ham's commercial director.
And speaking to Sports Pro, Barnard says her time at Arsenal will help the Hammers make a success of the move.
"Lots and lots (of lessons to be learned)," Barnard told Sports Pro.
"Arsenal is a fantastic club, the time I was at Arsenal it went through its major period of growth and move to the new stadium.
"So there is obvious synergies between my current role moving to a new stadium and the one that I went through at Arsenal.
"From that I think there's a lot of lessons in personnel and how to deal with resourcing that change and that move.
"And also educating the business and wider market to the importance of growth.
"I also think Arsenal did very well at professionalising the business and making sure commercial partnerships, because of their huge margin within that business, were seen as very important and that's we're trying to do at West Ham as well."
If, like Arsenal, the Hammers can get their stadium move right, then unlike the Gunners they will not be saddled by the huge costs of building the stadium in the first place.
So, it could leave the Hammers in a very healthy position to finally start challenging the Premier League's elite.
Barcelona reportedly willing to sell Alen Halilovic; should West Ham renew alleged interest?
Barcelona are reportedly open to selling playmaker Alen Halilovic.
Olly Dawes
According to Spanish newspaper Sport, Barcelona are open to the possibility of selling Croatian playmaker Alen Halilovic at the end of the season.
Halilovic, 19, emerged as one of the world's top wonderkids during his time in his native Croatia with Dinamo Zagreb, and after an almighty scramble for his signature, he chose to join Barcelona.
With four goals in 30 games for Barcleona B last season, the Catalan giants then sent him out on loan to Sporting Gijon, where the playmaker is thriving this season.
Now though, Spanish newspaper Sport are suggesting that, with manager Luis Enrique believing Halilovic won't be a key player for Barcelona next season, they are willing to let him leave - but with a buy-back clause in place.
We've seen Barcelona negotiate similar deals for the likes of Adama Traore and Gerard Deulofeu, both of whom are now playing in the Premier League with Aston Villa and Everton respectively - so could Halilovic follow them to the Premier League?
It was reported by the Daily Star over the summer that West Ham were keen to sign Halilovic, given that their Croatian manager Slaven Bilic is familiar with the playmaker.
Now, the Hammers have the likes of Dimitri Payet, Manuel Lanzini, Victor Moses and Michail Antonio in their ranks after arriving over the summer, meaning Halilovic may not have a place in the West Ham side should Bilic still be interested in his signature.
Yet, with Lanzini and Moses only on loan, Halilovic should be a fallback option should either not complete permanent moves to East London, given that he still has plenty of potential at his disposal.
The buy-back clause may put teams off a move for Halilovic, but given his availability and obvious talent, Bilic should certainly be exploring the possibility of a deal either in January or at the end of the season.
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