January Football gossip 2007

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Chelsea will make an £18m bid for Manchester City defender Micah Richards, and the Blues want to have him in their squad by the weekend. (The Sun)

Shaun Wright-Phillips does not want to return to Manchester City as part of any deal to bring Richards to Stamford Bridge. (The Sun)

But Wright-Phillips could be on his way to Upton Park with West Ham close to agreeing a £10m bid for him. (The Sun)

Manchester United target Owen Hargreaves says he is just two weeks away from being match fit. (The Sun)

Newcastle could turn their attentions to Everton striker James Beattie, with Liverpool unwilling to sell Peter Crouch. (The Times)

Fulham are considering a move for Everton midfielder Simon Davies. (The Times)

Portsmouth are desperate to stave off reported interest from Chelsea and keep hold of former England centre-back Sol Campbell. (Daily Express, The Times)

Pompey striker Kanu wants to leave Fratton Park to move to Ajax. (The Times)

West Ham midfielder Yossi Benayoun could be on his way to Portsmouth, although he is also wanted by Man City, Bolton and Beitar Jerusalem. (The Sun)

Liverpool are poised to make a surprise £4m move for Watford winger Ashley Young. (Daily Mirror)

Sheffield United are lining up a club record £6m bid for Preston striker David Nugent. (Daily Mirror)

Wolves are set to sign Falkirk star Alan Gow. (Daily Record)

Rangers want to sign Bolton's Kevin Davies, but will have to move quickly with the striker set to sign a new contract at the Reebok. (Daily Mirror)

Portsmouth want to sign Benfica's Manuel Fernandez, but only if the Portuguese club reduce their £12m price tag. (The Sun)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho is under scrutiny from owner Roman Abramovich and the club's board of directors following the team's recent struggles. (Various)

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez has questioned the set-piece tactics employed by Bolton. (Various)

Coventry boss Micky Adams could be out of a job if his side lose to Leeds on Monday. (Daily Mirror)

Rangers striker Kris Boyd says the players should take the blame for the club's poor season, not manager Paul le Guen. (Daily Record)


AND FINALLY...
Bolton striker Kevin Davies is the Premiership player with the worst disciplinary record in terms of fouls and yellow cards, according to official Opta statistics - but the 29-year-old is also the most fouled player in the division. (The Sun)

Tuesday 02nd January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
West Ham boss Alan Curbishley may get an extra £5m to spend after the 6-0 mauling by Reading, taking his January transfer kitty to £20m. (Telegraph)

Portsmouth will tempt Birmingham with a £4m deal for Matthew Upson. (Mirror)

Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham could be scuppered by Real Madrid in the race to sign up Southampton star Gareth Bale. (Mirror)

Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce says Micah Richards will not leave as he is "fantastically happy" there. (Various)

Premiership basement boys Watford want Fulham striker Collins John to solve their scoring crisis. (Times)

The Hornets are also sniffing around Norwich's Robert Earnshaw, but face competition from Portsmouth. (Times)

Watford's Ashley Young continues to attract suitors and to the list of Arsenal and Liverpool you can now add West Ham and Charlton. (Times)

Falkirk striker Alan Gow has rejected initial advances from Hibs to consider his options as Celtic and Rangers are waiting in the wings. (Daily Record)

Wolves are also interested in Gow who bagged a New Year's Day hat-trick at Dundee United. (Daily Record)

Celtic are chasing St Etienne striker Frederic Piquionne to add firepower to their attack. (Daily Star)

Wolves are looking to land Port Vale goal-machine Leon Constantine with a £250,000 approach. (Mirror)

Clubs are forming an orderly queue to sign Leeds striker David Healy, with Charlton, Wigan and Sheffield United among those interested. (Guardian)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea skipper John Terry will play a behind-closed-doors friendly as he continues his speedy recovery from back surgery. (Sun)

Midfielder Barry Ferguson has told his Rangers team-mates he will never play for the club again. (Daily Record)

Arsenal are set to recall Thierry Henry early from his spell on the sidelines to boost their campaign. (Various)


AND FINALLY...
England centre-back Rio Ferdinand wants to open a 'Cockney pie and mash shop in Manchester'. 'Pals' says the Manchester United defender is deadly serious. (Star)

Wednesday 03rd January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Everton boss David Moyes is ready to make a new bid for Barry Ferguson - three years after missing out on him. (Various)

Ivan Campo will leave Bolton to join Athletic Bilbao next week after the two clubs agreed a £2.5m fee. (The Sun)

Juventus have scrapped plans to sign Javier Mascherano from West Ham. (Daily Star)

Sheffield United are poised to sign Matthew Kilgallon from Leeds for £2m. (Daily Mirror)

Leeds boss Dennis Wise will sign his ex-Chelsea team-mate Tore Andre Flo on a free transfer, in a deal which will net Flo £6,000 a week. (Various)

Alan Thompson is also heading to Leeds as he is set to agree a deal with Celtic bosses to terminate his contract early. (Daily Mirror)

West Ham boss Alan Curbishley is pondering a shock swoop for West Brom striker John Hartson. (Daily Express)

Curbishley is also keen to sign West Brom midfielder Nigel Quashie. (The Guardian)

And the Hammers boss wants Moritz Volz from Fulham as well. (The Times)

Fulham boss Chris Coleman is lining up a £1m bid for USA centre back Oguchi Onyewu from Standard Liege. (Daily Mail)

Southampton's teenage superstar Gareth Bale is happy to stay at the club, despite interest from a host of clubs. (Daily Express)

West Brom boss Tony Mowbray will sell Nathan Ellington and Zoltan Gera for a combined fee of £5m. (Daily Star)

Derby are to make a £2.5m bid for Southend hot-shot Freddy Eastwood. (The Sun)

Fulham have agreed to sign American midfielder Clint Dempsey from Major League Soccer's New England Revolution. (Daily Telegraph)

Everton are chasing Hibernian contract rebel Scott Brown, but the Scottish club will demand a £2.5m fee. (Daily Mirror)

Alan Gow will leave Falkirk in the summer - with Rangers his most likely destination. (Daily Record)

Bristol City are to sign Grant Holt from League One rivals Nottingham Forest in a £200,000 deal. (The Sun)


OTHER GOSSIP
Former England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson is now only receiving a half-salary from the Football Association - which works out at £6,500 per day. (Various)

West Ham midfielder Yossi Benayoun says the club "played like drunks" in their 6-0 defeat in Reading. (Various)

Manchester United will give Henrik Larsson a debut on Sunday in the FA Cup against Aston Villa, as Wayne Rooney will be given a 10-day break. (Various)

Carlos Quieroz may quit as Manchester United assistant boss at the end of the season as he wants to return to management in his own right. (Various)

Milan Mandaric says he will complete a £25m takeover of Leicester during the next two weeks. (Daily Star)

Rangers fans have been divided by the row between boss Paul Le Guen and captain Barry Ferguson. (Daily Record)

Hull will appoint Phil Brown as their boss on a permanent basis on Wednesday. (Daily Mirror)


AND FINALLY...
Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper Mark Crossley is getting in some early practice to help him with a media career when his playing days are over. The veteran stopper likes to commentate on the action during quiet periods in matches. (Daily Express)

Thursday 04th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
West Ham believe they have succeeded with a £9.8m bid for Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips. (Sun)

Preston have turned down Sheffield United's £6m bid for striker David Nugent. (Daily Mail)

Fulham are ready to bid for Southend's Freddy Eastwood and also want Chelsea's Lassana Diarra on loan. (Daily Star)

West Ham's Javier Mascherano must ask Fifa to allow him to join Liverpool as rules disallow playing for more than two clubs in a season. (Daily Star)

Alan Curbishley will swoop for Middlesbrough's Mark Viduka or West Brom's John Hartson to save West Ham's season. (Daily Star)

The Hammers are also chasing West Brom's Nigel Quashie (Sun), Tottenham's Anthony Gardner (Daily Mail) and Blackburn's Lucas Neill. (Guardian)

Arsenal have turned down Curbishley's audacious bid to sign Theo Walcott on loan. (Times)

Viduka is set to snub West Ham and opt for a summer move to Italy. (Sun)

Manchester United have made contact with Bayern Munich once again about midfielder Owen Hargreaves. (Sun)

Inter Milan will block Luis Figo's move to a Saudi Arabian club after failing to land David Beckham. (Sun)

Chelsea are refusing to pay Bolton's £3.5m asking price for defender Tal Ben Haim. (Daily Star)

The Blues are also interested in Deportivo's Jorge Andrade, Man City's Sylvain Distin and Roberto Ayala of Valencia. (Times)

Fulham have signed Italian striker Vincenzo Montella on a six-month loan deal from Roma. (Daily Express)

Manchester City defender Micah Richards wants to join Chelsea but he could be forced to wait until the summer for his dream move. (Guardian)

Manchester United's David Jones will join Derby for £1.1m. (Daily Star)

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill says he is not sure if Milan Baros wants to stay at the club. (Daily Mirror)

Portsmouth want West Ham midfielder Yossi Benayoun but if that bid fails, they will go for West Brom's Zoltan Gera. (Independent)

Villa and Everton are leading the chase to sign Rangers midfielder Barry Ferguson on loan. (Times)

Ferguson has held talks with Rangers chairman Sir David Murray in a bid to save his career. (Daily Record)

Ferguson's former Ibrox manager, Dick Advocaat, is monitoring his situation with a view to bringing him to cash-rich Russians Zenit St Petersburg. (Daily Record).

Rangers and Celtic will step up their interest in Hibernian pair Kevin Thomson and Scott Brown in the next 24 hours. (Daily Record)

In-form Falkirk striker Alan Gow has been in talks with both Hibernian and Aberdeen, with Rangers, Celtic and Wolves also interested. (Scottish Sun)

Rangers boss Paul le Guen is closing in on Steaua Bucharest midfielder, Nicolae Dica, who is rated at £2.5m. (Scottish Sun)

OTHER GOSSIP
Sven-Goran Eriksson is in talks with Marseille, one other club and a national association. (Daily Star)

Wigan are set to lower their ticket prices in a bid to lure fans back to the JJB Stadium. (Daily Mirror)

Liverpool will not have a big transfer kitty when the Dubai takeover goes through as the club will be mortgaged for £300m. (Daily Express)


AND FINALLY...
Tamworth general manager Russell Moore has promised Norwich co-owner Delia Smith a warm welcome when the two clubs meet in the FA Cup on Saturday. "We'll have a bacon sarnie, then a hot buffet afterwards," he said. "My wife Pam is particularly looking forward to meeting her. No doubt she'll have a chat with her and hopefully pick up some tips." (Various)

Friday 05th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Javier Mascherano will join Liverpool in a few days - but needs to check he is eligible to play because of Fifa regulations limiting the number of clubs a player can represent in one season. (Various)

West Ham will spend more than £20m in January in a bid to save their Premiership status - with £5m Fulham skipper Luis Boa Morte their first target. (Various)

Other targets for the Hammers include Matthew Upson, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Mark Viduka. (Various)

Tottenham have made a £4m bid for West Ham's Anton Ferdinand. (The Sun)

Spurs boss Martin Jol has seen a £7m offer for Charlton's Darren Bent rejected. (Daily Mail)

Tottenham are ready to offer Wayne Routledge and Calum Davenport to Watford, in return for Watford striker Ashley Young. (The Guardian)

Young is closing in on a £5.5m move to Liverpool, with Watford ready to replace him with £1m Will Hoskins from Rotherham. (Daily Express)

Manchester United will try to sign Blackburn's David Bentley - if their move for Owen Hargreaves falls through. (Daily Mirror)

Charlton boss Alan Pardew has made a shock bid for Portsmouth's veteran striker Andy Cole. (Daily Mirror)

Rangers are closing in on a double swoop for Wigan defender Andy Webster and Falkirk striker Alan Gow. (Daily Record)

Aston Villa will sign Manchester United defender Phil Bardsley, but not until the two teams have played in the FA Cup and league. (Daily Mirror)

Charlton have agreed a £2.7m fee for Arsenal striker Anthony Stokes. (The Sun)

Newcastle are still confident they can capture the signature of Liverpool's Peter Crouch. (Various)

Chelsea want to sign Valencia's veteran Argentine defender Roberto Ayala. (Daily Mail)

Fulham striker Collins John has rejected a move to Watford after they failed to meet his personal demands. (Various)

Real Madrid are considering a shock £7m bid for Everton defender Joleon Lescott. (Daily Mirror)

Sheffield United are on the verge of signing Egypt international defender Ahemed Fathi from Ismaily in a £700,000 deal. (The Sun)

QPR have rejected two £2m bids from Spurs and Man City for winger Lee Cook. (Various)

Southampton's young star Gareth Bale has rejected a new contract with the club. (Daily Mirror)

Hibs player Scott Brown says he has been threatened by the club's supporters after requesting a transfer. (Daily Record)

Sunderland boss Roy Keane will raid former club Celtic for midfielder Stephen Pearson in a £400,000 deal. (Daily Mirror)

Birmingham boss Steve Bruce is lining up a surprise swoop for Coventry's Stern John. (The Sun)

Benfica's Manuel Fernandes is keen to stay in England despite his loan spell with Portsmouth coming to an end. (The Sun)

Marseille star Franck Ribery says he has snubbed a second bid by Arsenal - but will consider joining the Gunners in the summer. (Daily Star)

Millwall want to re-sign their joint-record scorer Neil Harris from Nottingham Forest. (The Sun)

Sheffield United winger Paul Ifill will join Crystal Palace. (Daily Mirror)


OTHER GOSSIP
Macclesfield boss Paul Ince claims institutional racism is blighting black players' chances of becoming Premiership managers - but says he still hopes to move there one day. (Various)

Walter Smith is poised to return to Rangers to take charge of the club for the second time - with Ally McCoist and Ian Durrant as his assistants. (Various)

Liverpool legend Sammy Lee has told boss Rafa Benitez to stop being so criticial of Bolton. (Daily Star)

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill fears Manchester United's veteran striker Henrik Larsson - who played under him at Celtic - will come back to haunt him in Sunday's FA Cup tie. (Various)


AND FINALLY...
Macclesfield's £600-a-week defender Matty McNeil hopes laughter affects Chelsea's megabucks stars in Saturday's FA Cup tie.

The 29-year-old former fruit and veg van driver is nicknamed Borat by his team mates - because of his resemblance to Sacha Baron Cohen's character. Although he hates the name, he hopes it will make the Blues' players lose concentration. (Various)

Palermo's sporting director Rino Foschi received an unwelcome festive present after his team fell 13 points behind leaders Inter Milan - inside a nicely wrapped parcel was a bloody goat's head. (Daily Express)

Saturday 06th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
The race to sign Charlton striker Darren Bent is on, but Chelsea have been put off by the Addicks' £18m asking price. (Sun)

West Ham are also in the frame, but the player would prefer to go to Tottenham, who are prepared to offer Calum Davenport plus cash. (Daily Express)

Chelsea are considering a shock move for Aston Villa striker Milan Baros. (Various)

Charlton will win the race to sign Arsenal's Anthony Stokes. (Daily Star)

Celtic have tabled a £2m bid for Arsenal striker Anthony Stokes. (The Sun/Daily Mirror)

Celtic have made an official bid for Hibs duo Kevin Thomson and Scott Brown. (Daily Record)

Tottenham are favourites to sign Watford winger Ashley Young - but the deal will not involve Wayne Routledge going the other way. (Daily Mirror)

Everton are the latest club to show an interest in Young. (Daily Express)

West Ham will turn their attentions to Young if their bid for Chelsea's Shaun Wright-Phillips fails. (Independent)

Spurs have joined Aston Villa and the Hammers in the chase for Wright-Phillips but their £5m bid for West Brom's Curtis Davies failed. (Sun)

Chelsea will make cut-price bids for Blackburn's Lucas Neill and Bolton's Tal Ben Haim. (Daily Mirror)

Manchester United are confident of wrapping up the £17m signing of Bayern Munich's Owen Hargreaves in the next couple of days. (Daily Mirror)

Wigan are still persevering with a bid to sign Alan Smith on loan even though the Manchester United striker is determined to stay. (Daily Mail)

Bolton want to sign Swiss utility player Blerim Dzemaili. (Daily Mail)

Blackburn are poised to offer midfielder David Bentley a new deal worth £1.2m a year. (Daily Express)

West Ham captain Nigel Reo-Coker will leave the club in the next week - with Tottenham and Bolton ready to pounce. (Daily Mirror)

Charlton want former Chelsea midfielder Alexei Smertin and have made bids for Colchester's Greg Halford and West Brom's Nigel Quashie. (Times)

But West Ham could hijack the Addicks' move for Smertin. (Independent)

Aston Villa are poised to sign Manchester United defender Phil Bardsley on loan. (Times)

Birmingham are on the verge of signing on-loan Arsenal midfielder Sebastian Larsson for £500,000. (Independent)

Walter Smith's first act as Rangers director of football will be to sell misfiring striker Filip Sebo for £1.8m. (Daily Record)

Andy Webster hopes to make his loan from Wigan to Rangers permanent in the summer. (The Sun)


OTHER GOSSIP
The Scottish FA want Walter Smith to carry on as the national boss even if he takes the director of football post at Rangers. (Daily Record/Daily Mail)

Barry Ferguson turned to the Sporting Chance clinic to survive the stress of being axed as Rangers captain by Paul Le Guen. (Daily Mail/The Sun)

Former Lyon chief Bernard Lacombe says departed Rangers manager Paul Le Guen complained of players turning up at training nursing hangovers. (The Sun/Daily Mirror)


AND FINALLY...
Newcastle defender Titus Bramble has his kit sponsored by 'Mr Long, Your Local Grocer'. (Daily Mirror)

Sunday 07th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Liverpool have joined the race to sign Charlton's £15m-rated striker Darren Bent. (Sunday Mirror)

Major League Soccer side LA Galaxy have again hinted at the capture of Real Madrid midfielder David Beckham after saying they are poised to sign a player who will make a "monumental impact" on and off the field in the United States. (The People)

West Ham will compete with Chelsea for Bolton defender Tal Ben Haim. (Sunday Mirror)

Newcastle are planning a move for Manchester United midfielder Kieran Richardson. (The People)

Sunderland may snatch striker Anthony Stokes, who has been on loan to Falkirk from Arsenal, from under the noses of Charlton. (Sunday Mirror)

Southampton defender Gareth Bale will decide in the next 48 hours whether to join Manchester United. (The People)

Charlton have failed in a bid to land Portsmouth striker Andrew Cole because they cannot match his terms. (The People)

Real Madrid are keen on signing misfiring Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko and are offering Ronaldo in exchange as part of the deal. (Various)

Ronaldo has also been offered, along with fellow Bernabeu striker Antonio Cassano, to AC Milan but they have rejected any deal for the pair. (AS in Spain)

West Ham have upped their bid for Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips and are now chasing Arsenal right-back Lauren as well as Man City's Joey Barton. (The Daily Star on Sunday)

Real Madrid are set to sign Arsenal target Franck Ribery from Marseille for £15m. (The Star)

Reading and Charlton are competing for the services of Colchester defender Greg Halford. (The Star)

Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp is lining up a £4m bid for French Under-21 and Auxerre defender Younes Kaboul. (The Star)

Chelsea could ease their defensive problems by luring Sylvain Distin from Man City for £3m.

Arsenal are ready to let Freddie Ljungberg leave the club. (News of the World)

Sven-Goran Eriksson is set to take over as manager at Marseille and wants David Beckham to join him at the French club. (News of the World)

Wigan will renew their interest in Man Utd striker Alan Smith by tabling a £6m bid. (News of the World)

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho wants Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe to boost his side's assault on the Premiership title. (Sunday Times)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho's future is in doubt and he may walk away from Stamford Bridge in the summer. (Various)

Guus Hiddink was recruited as Russia coach by Chelsea chairman Roman Abramovich and is favourite to replace Mourinho. (Various)

Mourinho would have played Lassana Diarra instead of Frank Lampard in the FA Cup win over Macclesfield but the French youngster missed the pre-match briefing after turning up 40 minutes late. (News of the World)

Bradford City could be set to bring Peter Reid back into the managerial ranks as they look to replace current boss Colin Todd. (The Star)

Arsenal will offer striker Emmanuel Adebayor a new deal to fend off any advances from Manchester United. (News of the World)

Chelsea midfielder Michael Ballack's first-team place has been questioned by some of his team-mates. (Sunday Times)


AND FINALLY...
Fulham's new striker, Vincenzo Montella, is getting used to his new surroundings in London. He now orders a single espresso as..."otherwise you get given a cup of dishwater." (The Sunday Express)

Arsenal's stadium sponsors, Emirates, want the club to have a third-choice white kit similar to that of rivals Tottenham. (Sunday Mirror)

Monday 08th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Aston Villa are leading the chase for Watford winger Ashley Young and are also set to take Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips on loan. (Daily Mirror)

Nigel Reo-Coker has been told to sort out his West Ham future by Tuesday. (The Sun)

Bayern Munich have cooled talk that Owen Hargreaves will move to Manchester United in the transfer window. (Various)

Sunderland boss Roy Keane has pulled off a major transfer coup and landed Arsenal's Anthony Stokes - ahead of Celtic and Charlton. (Various)

Newcastle are set to extend the contract of Nobby Solano by another year. (The Sun)

West Ham have failed in their attempt to offload £7m defender Anton Ferdinand to Spurs or Chelsea - because neither club will match the asking price. (Daily Mail)

Southampton will hold a board meeting today to decide whether to sell defender Gareth Bale to Manchester United in a deal worth £5m. (Daily Mail)

Sheffield United are closing in on Leeds' England Under-21 defender Matthew Kilgallon. (Daily Star)

Charlton boss Alan Pardew has insisted that Darren Bent will stay with the club until the end of the season - days after claiming he would listen to offers for the striker. (The Sun)

If Bent does leave Tottenham and Liverpool are leading the chase to sign him. (Daily Mail)

Portsmouth are ahead of Fulham in the race for Southend's £2m-rated striker Freddy Eastwood. (Daily Mail)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has held meetings with his agent Jorge Mendes over his future at Stamford Bridge. (The Sun)

The odds on the Portuguese boss leaving Stamford Bridge this summer have shortened to 2-1 amid reports that Guus Hiddink is being lined up to replace him. (Racing Post)

Scottish FA chief David Taylor will plead with Walter Smith not to leave his post as Scotland boss - even if he takes the Rangers job. (Daily Record)

Sheffield United assistant manager Stuart McCall has insisted he has not heard anything from Rangers about taking a role at the club. (Daily Record)

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson says FA Cup goalscorer Henrik Larsson is in the same class as Red Devils' legend Eric Cantona. (Various)

Former Charlton boss Iain Dowie has vowed to make a successful return to top-level management. (Daily Mirror)

Everton's 4-1 FA Cup home defeat to Blackburn was caused by the different ball used in cup matches. (Various)


AND FINALLY...
Macclesfield skipper David Morley has said £30m Chelsea man Andriy Shevchenko would struggle to win the support of the Moss Rose faithful. (Various)

Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest striker Grant Holt said it was tougher playing Accrington Stanley than it was taking on Premiership Charlton in the FA Cup on Saturday. (Various)

Tuesday 09th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
West Ham have made a dramatic £7m bid for Arsenal's Freddie Ljungberg after missing out on Shaun Wright-Phillips. (The Sun)

But the Hammers face competition from Italian sides AC Milan and Juventus for the Swede. (Daily Express)

Arsenal have targeted Marseille's Franck Ribery, which is why they are prepared to let Ljungberg go. (Daily Mirror)

The Gunners have also been linked with Dutch international left winger Ryan Babel from Ajax. (The Independent)

Arsenal's right-back Lauren is another target for the struggling Hammers. (Daily Mail)

West Ham have told Mark Viduka they will better his wages at Middlesbrough to tempt him to Upton Park. (Daily Express)

Hammers boss Alan Curbishley is prepared to offer Viduka a staggering £60,000 a week. (Daily Mirror)

Owen Hargreaves fears Bayern Munich's "crazy" price tag has ruled him out of a dream move to Manchester United. (The Sun, Independent)

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has turned the screw on manager Jose Mourinho by cutting his transfer budget. (The Sun)

Chelsea may swoop for defender Josip Simunic - the player that referee Graham Poll famously booked three times during the World Cup. (Daily Star)

Birmingham boss Steve Bruce has joined the race to sign Luton striker Rowan Vine. (The Sun)

Newcastle are increasingly concerned that an agent-driven plan to move Obafemi Martins to Chelsea in the summer is unsettling the Nigerian. (The Guardian)

Teenage star Gareth Bale will snub Manchester United to stay at Southampton. (The Sun)

Bale has stalled on a new contract extension, prompting disagreement on Saints' board over whether to sell or not. (The Guardian)

Rangers will make a £1m move for Blackburn hardman Andy Todd. (Daily Record)

Aston Villa striker Milan Baros is a shock transfer target for La Liga strugglers Levante. (The Sun)

Villa have enquired about Liverpool striker Craig Bellamy and are ready to test the Reds with a £6m bid. (Daily Mail)

Phil Jagielka will quit Sheffield United for Liverpool in a £9m deal at the end of the season - if the Blades are relegated. (Daily Mirror, Daily Star)

Albert Luque has been offered a quick way out of his Newcastle nightmare by Dutch giants PSV. (Various)

Sheffield United, Blackburn and Portsmouth have joined the race to sign Belgian striker Emile Mpenza, who plays for Al Rayyan in Qatar. (Daily Mirror)

Hamilton whizzkid Jamie McCarthy is heading for Reading for talks over a £250,000 deal. (Daily Mirror)

Watford have put a £9m price tag on the head of star Ashley Young. (Various)

Wigan's David Wright is wanted by Ipswich boss Jim Magilton in a bargain £200,000 deal. (Daily Mirror)

Spurs are lining up a transfer window move for Kilmarnock star Steven Naismith. (Daily Record)


OTHER GOSSIP
Walter Smith will be confirmed as Rangers' new manager today. (Daily Telegraph)

Rangers will have to fork out £250,000 to have Walter Smith released from his contract. (Daily Record)

Former Liverpool boss Graeme Souness is making a shock bid to buy Wolves from owner Sir Jack Hayward in a £20m deal. (Daily Mirror)

Real Madrid are ready to offer under-fire Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho an escape route out of Stamford Bridge. (Daily Express, Mirror)

Chelsea's misfiring striker Andriy Shevchenko has been told he will be dropped if he cannot score against Wycombe in the Carling Cup. (The Sun)

The father of Pompey owner Alexandre Gaydamak has been bankrolling the club's transfers, even though he is also the owner of an Israeli team. (Daily Express)

Aaron Lennon's new five-and-a-half-year deal with Spurs is worth £11m. (The Sun)

Milan Mandaric will give Leicester manager Rob Kelly £3m to save the Foxes from relegation when he completes his takeover of the club this week. (The Sun)

Lord Stevens' bung team will tell the FA the names of the eight agents who have refused to help with their inquiry. (Various)

The inquiry team have already started questioning the eight agents involved in the 17 suspect transfers. (Daily Express)

Stevens' team attended a meeting with Scottish Football Association officials to discuss methods of obliging SFA-licenced agents to assist with their probe. (The Guardian)

The FA has appealed for Lord Stevens' team to reveal the Premier League clubs suspected of breaking transfer rules when they meet today. (Daily Telegraph)


AND FINALLY...
Nottingham Forest defender Julian Bennett reckons he knows all about their FA Cup fourth round opponents Chelsea after playing against them on the PlayStation. (The Sun)

Forest boss Colin Calderwood said he nearly crashed his car when they were drawn against Chelsea. (Daily Star)

Reading star Bobby Convey is praying Tuesday's game against Burnley goes ahead so his family do not have a wasted 4,000-mile trip. The Convey clan have seen the winger miss the Chelsea and Manchester United games through injury and the FA Cup tie at the weekend was called off. (Daily Star)

Wednesday 10th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Manchester United must pay another £1.2m to keep on-loan striker from Helsingborg, Henrik Larsson, for the rest of the season. (The Sun)

Freddie Ljungberg, who has been linked to Tottenham, will demand a £4.5m pay-off for the remaining 18 months of his contract - if Arsenal sell him to help fund a £15m bid for France and Marseille winger Franck Ribery. (Daily Mirror)

Ljungberg has told Gunners boss Arsene Wenger he is going nowhere. (Daily Star)

Blackburn have told Chelsea to forget about trying to sign top scorer Benni McCarthy. (Various)

Fulham are ready to splash out £2.5m to sign Charlton winger Jerome Thomas and Celtic contract rebel Shaun Maloney. (Daily Mirror)

Manchester United have checked on cheaper alternatives to Bayern Munich midfielder Owen Hargreaves - Rio Antonio Mavuba of Bordeaux for one. (The Times)

Portsmouth striker Andrew Cole is frustrated with life on the substitutes' bench and has not ruled out leaving the club. (The Times)

Chelsea are close to signing Bolton defender Tal Ben Haim and are facing a battle with French side Lyon for Aston Villa's Milan Baros. (Daily Mirror)

Manager Harry Redknapp has been given the go-ahead by Portsmouth owner Alexandre Gaydamak to strengthen the squad during the transfer window. (Various)

West Ham's Argentine midfielder Javier Mascherano has rejected the renewed interest of Juventus to hold out for a move to Liverpool. (Daily Star)

West Ham captain Nigel Reo-Coker is ready to resist all offers to lure him away from the club and stay until the end of the season. (Daily Express)

Newcastle are targeting Birmingham defender Matthew Upson. (Daily Express)

Hibernian have knocked back a £2m bid from Birmingham for midfielder Scott Brown. (Daily Record)

Celtic have added Cameroon international full-back Jean-Joel Perrier-Doumbe to their list of transfer targets. (Daily Record)

Sheffield United have given up on trying to sign Preston striker David Nugent after tabling a £6m bid because Blades boss Neil Warnock believes he is overpriced. (Various)

Sheffield United are chasing Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie. (Daily Star)

Tottenham have made a £3m bid for Deportivo La Coruna defender Fabricio Coloccini. (Various)

Striker Jermain Defoe fears Tottenham may be ready to sell him as they launch a bid for Charlton's Darren Bent. (Daily Star)

Darren Bent will be out of action with a knee injury until the end of February so he will be sold by Charlton. (Daily Express)

Ex-Ipswich forward Darren Bent will be staying at The Valley after making a quicker than expected recovery from injury. (Daily Mail)

Newcastle will not renew their pursuit of Addicks forward Darren Bent. (The Times)

Middlesbrough defender Chris Riggott has been linked to Newcastle. (The Times)

Aston Villa expect to hear within 48 hours if they have clinched the signing of Chelsea winger Shaun Wright-Phillips. (Daily Mail)

Villa will be turned down by Wright-Phillips. (The Guardian)

Manchester United's Alan Smith, who can play in attack or in midfield, has told clubs they are wasting their time in trying to sign him. (Daily Express)

Newcastle are ready to bid for West Ham defender Anton Ferdinand. (Daily Mirror)

Aston Villa are ready to bid for Liverpool striker Craig Bellamy after having a £5m offer for Kevin Doyle rejected by Reading. (The Sun)

Liverpool's bid for Blackburn captain Lucas Neill is being held up - because they are demanding £500,000 for Stephen Warnock in the exchange deal. (Daily Mirror)

Middlesbrough have insisted that they will not sell England winger Stewart Downing. (The Sun)

Downing has committed his future to Boro after a crisis meeting with boss Gareth Southgate. (Daily Mirror)

Birmingham co-owner David Sullivan has promised the fans he will do his best to sign Luton striker Rowan Vine. (The Sun)

Charlton want to sign Benfica midfielder Manuel Fernandes on loan following his unsuccessful spell at Portsmouth. (Daily Mirror)

Southampton have blocked midfielder David Prutton joining Hull for £400,000. (Various)

Hull hope to sign Sheffield United defender Chris Lucketti for £400,000. (The Sun)

Tottenham boss Martin Jol will listen to offers for Mido after falling out with the striker. (Daily Mirror)

Juventus are ready to move for Manchester United defender Gabriel Heinze. (Various)

Rangers have been given the go-ahead to make their move for Blackburn defender Andy Todd. (Daily Record)

Liverpool are close to a £1.85m deal for Argentine midfielder Sebastian Eduardo Leto, who plays for Lanus. (Various)

Watford are preparing to sell striker Ashley Young, with Tottenham, Aston Villa, West Ham and Liverpool the clubs in serious contention. (The Guardian)

Tottenham are the favourites to sign Hornets star Young, although if Spurs fail to land him he is likely to move to Aston Villa. (The Times)

Fulham have told forward Collins John he will be frozen out at Craven Cottage if he does not join Watford. (The Times)

Tottenham defender Calum Davenport is adamant he will not be leaving the club this month. (The Independent)

Wigan have failed in their bid to sign their former striker, Nathan Ellington, from West Brom. (The Independent)


OTHER GOSSIP
Former England captain David Beckham is set to defy Real Madrid's ultimatum that he must sign a new deal or leave. (The Sun)

Graeme Souness has told Wolves owner Sir Jack Hayward that the ex-Newcastle boss is the man to lead the club forward after he offered £20m in a takeover bid. (Daily Mirror)

Souness insists that his £20m offer remains on the table. (The Sun)

It is believed that Pini Zahavi, the Israeli agent who wants to raise the capital to buy a high-profile English club, is not involved in Souness' bid to buy Wolves. (The Guardian)

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho is to fine midfielder Lassana Diarra for repeatedly defying his authority. (The Sun)

Mourinho has publicly backed midfielder Michael Ballack and has dismissed suggestions that senior Blues players have confronted him over the German's form since his arrival at the club. (Various)

Striker Neil Harris insists he could not care less about missing out on a dream FA Cup tie against Chelsea after rejoining Millwall from Nottingham Forest. (The Sun)

Five Ipswich players have been disciplined by boss Jim Magilton after going on a lads' trip to Amsterdam just before the FA Cup tie with Chester. (Various)

Striker Kanu has earned a new one-year contract at Portsmouth after activating a clause by playing 20 Premiership games. (Various)

Sheffield Wednesday striker Steve MacLean is set to become the club's top-paid player by being offered £8,000 a week. (The Sun)

Rangers have secured the services of Scotland boss Walter Smith as their new manager and of former striker Ally McCoist as assistant. (The Guardian)

Former Rangers striker Mark Hateley believes the Scottish Football Association should smooth current national boss Smith's return to Ibrox as a gesture of goodwill. (Daily Record)

Rangers doctor Ian McGuinness has been sacked - days after calling for champagne to celebrate the exit of manager Paul Le Guen. (Daily Record)

Blackburn midfielder David Bentley is hoping to sign a one-year extension to his contract, which will keep him at the club until 2010. (Various)

Football Association director of football Sir Trevor Brooking says the long-term health of the game involves children becoming more involved and that England is lagging behind other European countries when it comes to skill levels. (Daily Telegraph)


AND FINALLY...
Hearts midfielder Paul Hartley overcame a foot injury by wrapping the affected limb in a couple of strips of raw meat to nourish the damaged tissue - a remedy told to him by a professional from another club. (Daily Record)

Blackburn will give season ticket holders free admission to next month's Uefa Cup tie with Bayer Leverkusen after being forced to kick-off at 6pm in order to earn a £650,000 TV windfall. (Various)

Newcastle striker Michael Owen, who is recovering from injury, may be able to look for advice from his sister Lesley, who is setting up a holistic health clinic near Chester. (The Guardian)

Wednesday 17th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Tottenham are preparing a £10m offer for Micah Richards in the hope that Chelsea's interest in the Manchester City defender cools. (Telegraph)

Spurs have joined Juventus and Valencia in the race to sign Manchester United's Gabriel Heinze. (Various)

Tottenham will only land the Argentine left-back if United can sign Southampton's Gareth Bale. (Various)

The Premiership leaders are 90% of the way to closing a deal for Bale, which could rise as high as £10m. (Guardian)

West Ham have offered £4m for Matthew Upson. Birmingham want £8m. (Various)

The Hammers have also looked at Tottenham's Anthony Gardner and Callum Davenport in their efforts to bolster the defensive ranks. (Daily Express)

And Upton Park officials have not given up hope of persuading Watford's Ashley Young to sign a deal. (Telegraph)

Fulham have been put off by Charlton's £14m valuation of Darren Bent. (Times)

And England international striker Bent has told West Ham he wants a £100,000-a-week deal. (Star)

Dennis Rommedahl has told Charlton he will move to FC Copenhagen in the summer if the club go down. (Times)

Tottenham's Edgar Davids has knocked back Charlton's interest. (Independent)

And Charlton boss Alan Pardew has shelved plans to sign Sheffield Wednesday defender Madjid Bougherra. (Guardian)

Talks between the Addicks and Portsmouth over a swap deal involving Souleymane Diawara and Andy O'Brien have collapsed. (Mail)

And that has alerted Leeds who could end their search for a defensive replacement for Matthew Kilgallon with a move for O'Brien. (Times)

PSV Eindhoven have asked about signing Pompey's leading scorer Kanu. (Mail)

Portsmouth have been priced out of the market for Ghana midfielder Sulley Muntari. Udinese want £10m. (Star)

But they have joined the race to sign £3m-rated Lyn Oslo striker Edu. The Nigerian had a trial at Wigan. (Mail)

Arsenal full-back Lauren has turned down offers from Bolton and Newcastle. Portsmouth, Villarreal, West Ham and Sevilla remain in the chase. (Times)

And then there are French champions Lyon, who are front-runners in the race for the fit-again right-back. (Mirror)

There are also conflicting reports over who is in pole position in the race to sign Kepo Blanco from Sevilla. Put your money on Manchester City. (Times)

Elsewhere, Charlton are set to secure the Spainish striker's services. (Sun)

And West Ham have stated an interest in the much-wanted 23-year-old. (Mail)

Liverpool look set to give want-away Blackburn defender Lucas Neill the cold shoulder after he asked for a £30,000-a-week pay packet. (Mirror)

Former Liverpool coach Gerard Houllier is interested in signing Milan Baros again, with the striker set for a move from Aston Villa to Lyon. (Times)

Arsenal midfielder Abou Diaby could also be heading to the continent. Real Sociedad want him on loan. (Mail)

Sebastian Larsson is poised to join Birmingham from the Gunners. (Various)

Wigan are trying to tempt Fulham into freeing midfielder Papa Bouba Diop on loan, with a view to a permanent deal in the summer. (Mail)

Latics boss Paul Jewell has rubbished a £750,000 offer from Rangers for striker Lee McCulloch. He said: "The offer can only be described as derisory." (Mirror)

Jewell is set to get a call from Celtic boss Gordon Strachan who wants Wigan back-up keeper John Filan. (Mirror)

Present Bhoys reserve David Marshall is going to join Norwich. (Mirror)

Celtic will have to increase their £500,000 offer for Burnley's Kyle Lafferty if they want to land the Northen Ireland striker. (Various)

The SPL leaders are also tracking Bayer Leverkusen's Ukraine international striker Andriy Voronin and Sheffield United's Geoff Horsfield. (Guardian)

And they have been given the go-ahead to sign Swiss youngster Zdravko Kuzmanovic, 19, from Palermo. (Record)

Rangers want to sign Middlesbrough defender Ugo Ehiogu. (Record)

Emre will not be leaving Newcastle despite the allegations of racism against him and Bayern Munich's long-standing interest. (Times)

Real Madrid striker Ronaldo may join AC Milan on loan before securing a permanent summer deal. (Guardian)

Barnsley want former Sheffield United striker Neil Shipperley. (Star)

Striker Emile Mpenza is set for a move from Al Rayyan to Blackburn. (Times)

Birmingham's David Dunn will choose Bolton over former club Blackburn, who came in with a late bid for the injury-prone midfielder. (Various)

Chelsea are close to completing a £2m deal for Bolton's Tal Ben Haim. (Various)

And the Blues will spend £20m at the end of the season on Atletico Madrid striker Fernando Torres - a player Jose Mourinho does not rate. (Daily Star)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko has told Roman Abramovich he should get AC Milan boss Carlos Ancelotti in to replace Mourinho. (Various)

Ancelotti will be leaving the San Siro in the summer with either Barcelona's Frank Rijkaard or Holland head coach Marco van Basten taking over. (Mirror)

Mourinho may pick Shevchenko against Liverpool just to keep the peace at "crisis club" Chelsea. (Various)

But Abramovich may not be there to see the striker in action as he has threatened to boycott Saturday's match at Anfield. The Russian does not think Blues fans appreciate him enough. (Daily Mail)

England international striker Darren Bent has put a ring round 10 February in his diary and Charlton's match against Manchester United for a return from his knee injury. (Independent)

Midfielder Javier Mascherano will make an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport if Fifa blocks his loan move from West Ham to Liverpool. (Star)

Fulham boss Chris Coleman will be at the FA Cup match against Leicester despite three days in hospital with suspected blood poisoning. (Various)

Agent Pini Zahavi negotiated himself a £3m fee when he helped Middlesbrough sign Yakubu from Portsmouth. (Guardian)

Sven-Goran Eriksson has taken a step closer to becoming Marseille boss as Jack Kachkar's £66m deal to buy the club is nearing completion. (Times)

David Beckham could sue Real Madrid for damages over the way the Spanish club have treated him. (Times)


AND FINALLY...
Eriksson's £6,500-a-day cheque from the Football Association has been well documented, but he is not the only former member of staff banking a tidy sum. The Swede's former number two Tord Grip is getting £600 each day to boost his pension. (Sun)

Fulham's Moritz Volz is revising for his A-Levels. "I'm working my socks off," he said. "It's pretty tough and there's a lot to soak up." (Star)

On securing the services of Berti Vogts as Nigeria coach, former national boss Christian Chukwu said: "If one has to eat a frog, it has to be a big one. For the first time we have gone for a truly world-class coach." (Daily Record)

Thursday 18th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Blackburn defender Lucas Neill will snub Liverpool to sign for West Ham. (Various)

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez has hit out at Neill after he turned down Champions League football to double his money with the Hammers. (Daily Mirror)

Tottenham defender Calum Davenport is set to join West Ham for £3m. (Various)

St Etienne and Real Betis are reportedly interested in Aston Villa striker Milan Baros. (The Independent)

Bolton boss Sam Allardyce has told Chelsea that Tal Ben Haim is "a lot better than they think" after the Blues had a £2m bid rejected for the defender and refused to up the offer. (The Sun)

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich will get the chance to sign the player he craves most after Brazil playmaker Ronaldinho hinted he wants to leave Barcelona. (Daily Mirror)

Reading have made an approach to sign Luton defender Leon Barnett and are among the clubs interested in Middlesbrough centre-half Seb Hines. (Various)

Argentine defender Gabriel Heinze, who has been linked to Tottenham, Juventus, AC Milan and Valencia but could leave on a free transfer in the summer, has told Manchester United he is going nowhere. (Daily Star)

Manchester United have failed in an £8m bid for Southampton defender Gareth Bale. (Various)

Southampton have slapped a £12m price tag on Bale. (Daily Express)

Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant has turned down a move to West Ham. (Daily Express)

Middlesbrough are ready to swoop for Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere. (The Sun)

Fulham are interested in West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green. (Daily Mirror)

Mido is set to be offered an escape route from Tottenham by Celta Vigo. (Various)

Reading will make a final £2m bid for Colchester defender Greg Halford, whose value they believe is being over-inflated at £4m by his club. (Daily Mirror)

Portsmouth are targeting Arsenal defender Lauren. (The Sun)

Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie, who has just returned from a loan spell at Stoke, wants to go back out on loan after falling out of favour at Villa Park. (Daily Mirror)

West Brom captain Curtis Davies has revealed that he laughed when he heard his club had priced him out of a move to the Premiership by putting a £10m price tag on his head and he added: "I did not realise the club valued me so highly." (Daily Mirror)

Wigan have launched a £5m bid for Fulham midfielder Papa Bouba Diop. (Daily Mirror)

Everton are set to move for Crewe contract rebel Billy Jones. (Various)

Watford are to take midfield free agent Khalilou Fadiga, who had a heart scare when at Bolton, on trial. (Daily Mirror)

Watford have told Tottenham they can sign winger Ashley Young - if Spurs splash out and then loan him back to the Hornets for the season. (Various)

Portsmouth striker Kanu has been told he can join PSV Eindhoven. (Daily Mirror)

QPR are set to release veteran Wales keeper Paul Jones, 39. (Various)

Aston Villa owner Randy Lerner is in talks with Reading over taking their director of football Nicky Hammond to the Midlands club. (Daily Star)

Reading are considering a move for Metz midfielder Daniel Bocande. (Daily Star)

West Ham are on the verge of beating Charlton to the signing of Sevilla striker Kepa Blanco. (Daily Star)

Sheffield United boss Neil Warnock has told prospective buyers that striker Geoff Horsfield will not be sold cheaply. (Various)

Wigan striker Lee McCulloch will ask for a transfer to realise his dream to play for Rangers. (Daily Record)

Kilmarnock are bidding to sign Celtic midfielder Rocco Quinn on loan. (Daily Record)

Bolton are looking at Rennes defender Jean-Joel Perrier-Doumbe, who spent last week on trial at Celtic. (The Daily Telegraph)

Liverpool are looking into the possibility of signing Valencia defender Roberto Ayala, who is expected to join Villarreal in the summer, until the end of the season. (The Guardian)

Middlesbrough defender Ugo Ehiogu is ready to reject Watford and Leeds in favour of a move to Rangers (Daily Express)

Hearts have rejected a £2.5m offer from Fulham for goalkeeper Craig Gordon (Daily Mirror)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko says he is sick of being made the scapegoat over the problems at Stamford Bridge. (Various)

Former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson is turning down jobs in the hope of succeeding Jose Mourinho in the summer - if the Chelsea boss leaves Stamford Bridge. (The Guardian)

Jack Kachkar, the Canadian businessman on the verge of buying Marseille, has denied that he intends to appoint former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson as coach if the sale goes ahead. (The Times)

Arsenal striker Robin van Persie is set to miss Sunday's Premiership showdown with Manchester United after suffering a knock in training. (The Sun)

Former England captain David Beckham received an apology from Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon in front of the whole squad after he called the midfielder "a half-actor living in Hollywood" for choosing to agree to join LA Galaxy in August. Real are also back-pedalling over their threat that Beckham would never play for the club again (Various)

Helsingborg chairman Sten-Inge Fredin has cast doubts over Manchester United's chances of extending striker Henrik Larsson's loan deal beyond March 12 after initially appearing to be ready to consider an extension to the agreement. (Various)

Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes believes team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo deserves to be crowned player of the year because his form is "frightening". (Daily Mirror)

Arsenal have opened new contract talks with striker Nicklas Bendtner, who is on loan at Birmingham and who has attracted interest from Lyon, AC Milan and Juventus. (Daily Express)

Charlton defender Ben Thatcher has apologised to Pedro Mendes for the elbowing incident that put the Portsmouth midfielder in hospital in August and led to an eight-game ban for Thatcher, who was at Manchester City at the time. Charlton visit Portsmouth on Saturday. (Various)

West Ham striker Dean Ashton, who broke an ankle in August, is targeting a return to first-team action next month. (Daily Telegraph)


AND FINALLY...
David Beckham's new club LA Galaxy will help pay his wages by holding February trials in which would-be players can pay around £65 to have an opportunity to earn a place in the squad. (The Times)

Hollywood actor Sylvester Stallone, who watched Everton play Reading on Sunday, allegedly said of the beautiful game on the set of football film Escape to Victory in the 1980s that he "hated the game". (Daily Mail)

Coventry chairman Geoffrey Robinson did not only mistake football agent Andy Gray for Sky Sports pundit Andy Gray in a telephone conversation regarding the future of departing manager Micky Adams. He also allegedly patted Adams' assistant Alan Cork on the back after a game, saying: "Well played, Pagey", having mistaken him for Sky Blues defender Robert Page. (Daily Mail)

Friday 19th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Glenn Roeder insisted he will not be rushed into panic buying by Newcastle's nightmare FA Cup loss to Birmingham. (Various)

Manchester United have launched a £9m bid to sign Southampton star Gareth Bale - and could loan him back to Saints after signing him. (Various)

Middlesbrough defender Ugo Ehiogu will complete a move to Rangers on Monday. (Daily Record)

Blackburn boss Mark Hughes has hit back at suggestions by Bolton boss Sam Allardyce that he 'pinched' David Dunn from under the Trotters' noses. (Various)

Blackburn defender Dominic Matteo is a target for Championship high-flyers Stoke. (Daily Mirror)

Liverpool are considering selling Stephen Warnock to Blackburn for £1.5m. (The Guardian)

West Ham will make a £6m bid for Birmingham's Matthew Upson after having a £4m bid rejected on Thursday. (Daily Star)

Fulham boss Chris Coleman says he will not give in to unreasonable cash demands by Spurs to make winger Wayne Routledge's loan deal permanent. (Daily Express)

Tottenham boss Martin Jol has tabled a £2.5m bid for Benfica's Portugal defender Ricardo Rocha. (Daily Mirror)

Newcastle boss Glenn Roeder has been given the green light to make a £6m bid for West Brom defender Curtis Davies. (Daily Star)

Hearts boss Valdas Ivanauskas says keeper Craig Gordon is not for sale after the Jambos rejected a £2.5m bid for the Scotland keeper. (Daily Record)

Reading boss Steve Coppell has agreed a £100,000 fee for Danish teenager Mikkel Andersen. (Daily Mirror)

Brazilian Fabio Rochemback will refuse to play for Middlesbrough in a bid to force a transfer to Sporting Lisbon. (Daily Mirror)

Liverpool striker Dirk Kuyt says he would be happy to spend the rest of his career at Anfield. (Daily Mirror)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea keeper Petr Cech has insisted he is not risking his life by playing again after fracturing his skull. (The Sun)

Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard has hit back at critics who say Liverpool's season is a write-off. (Daily Star)

Pedro Mendes has refused to forgive Ben Thatcher for the infamous elbow which put the Portuguese star in hospital player in hospital - one day before the duo will meet again on the pitch. (The Sun)

But Thatcher's Charlton team mate Marcus Bent says people should move on after the incident. (Various)

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson says that even Liverpool fans want his side to win the title ahead of Chelsea this year. (Various)

Newcastle boss Glenn Roeder has angrily denied he was involved in a cover-up to prevent Emre facing charges over alleged racist comments. (Various)

Liverpool's Xabi Alonso says Reds striker Dirk Kuyt has shown Chelsea's Andriy Shevchenko the way to adapt to life in the Premiership. (The Sun)

David Beckham launched a furious attack on Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon during a meeting between the president and the players on Wednesday. (Various)

Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas says Paul Scholes is the player he most admires in English football. (Various)

Alan Curbishley says he is not overspending during the transfer window after splashing out on Calum Davenport - and reportedly offering Lucas Neill £60,000 a week. (The Sun)


AND FINALLY...
Man City boss Stuart Pearce says he asked one young player whether he would rather have a Ferrari or an England cap - and the player replied: "A Ferrari - they're fantastic aren't they?" (Various)

New Celtic keeper Mark Brown thought he was the victim of a wind-up when he was told the Bhoys had made a £150,000 bid for him. (Daily Record)

Referees chief Keith Hackett will meet with BBC radio and TV journalists in a bid to curb what he sees as "official-bashing" by the media. (The Guardian)

Saturday 20th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Manchester United's £20m bid for Owen Hargreaves will be rejected by Bayern Munich - for now. But the German club will allow the England midfielder to move to Old Trafford in the summer. (Daily Express, Daily Star)

Or will it? United are confident their bid will finally prove too tempting for Bayern to turn down. (Daily Mirror)

Blackburn skipper Lucas Neill has also been left out as West Ham were joined by Newcastle and Everton in a £1.5m scramble for his signature. (Daily Mirror)

Harry Redknapp is set to launch a £6m bid for Auxerre defender Younes Kaboul to add to recent purchases Djimi Traore from Charlton and Lauren from Arsenal. (Daily Mail)

Wigan boss Paul Jewell has rebuffed a £1.1m bid from Rangers for Lee McCulloch. (Daily Record)

West Ham defender Anton Ferdinand is a target of Newcastle manager Glenn Roeder. (The Times)

Watford's Ashley Young will be taken out of the firing line when they face Aston Villa today as he considers a move to the join the Midlanders. (The Sun)

Rangers midfielder Jeremy Clement says he has no desire to play under new Ibrox boss Walter Smith and wants to return to France. (Daily Express)


OTHER GOSSIP
AC Milan have targeted Jose Mourinho as the man they want to take them back to Champions League glory. (Daily Express)

JLloyd Samuel has told Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill he will quit the club unless he gets regular first-team football. (Daily Mirror)

News to cheer all Spurs fans! Assistant boss Chris Hughton has hailed Steed Malbranque as "the new Andy Sinton". (The Sun)

Andriy Shevchenko has admitted to friends he is finding it hard to make an impact at Chelsea while boss Jose Mourinho is said to be "very, very disappointed" with him. (Daily Star)

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will snub the wishes of owner Roman Abramovich and leave Shevchenko on the bench against Liverpool today. (Daily Star)

FA Cup final tickets at the new Wembley could cost up to £100 this year. (Daily Express)

Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd has taken a swipe at predecessor Sir John Hall for inviting bids for the club. (Daily Express)

Rangers defender David Weir said he feared his chance to join the club had passed after Walter Smith tried to sign him when he was at Falkirk 10 years ago. (Daily Mirror)


AND FINALLY...
David Dunn is delighted to have returned to Blackburn Rovers because he was miserable away from his Lancashire roots. "At Birmingham I had to learn to cook and do domestic stuff. My mum and grandma were doing everything for me at Blackburn," he said. (Daily Mirror)

Arsenal star Thierry Henry will be voting for Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes as his PFA Player of the Year. (The Sun)

Middlesbrough's new arrival Lee Dong-Gook has made an instant impression on his new team-mates, with his table tennis skills. (Daily Mirror)

Chelsea keeper Peter Cech's expected return from a fractured skull is in danger of being overshadowed by an extraordinary row over his headguard. (The Times)

Sunday 21th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Manchester United are set to offer Cristiano Ronaldo a double-your-money five-year deal worth £100,000 a week. (News of the World)

Chelsea will swoop for US defender Oguchi Onyewu, currently at Standard Liege, for around £3m. (Daily Star Sunday, News of the World)

Manchester United have won the battle to sign Southampton's wonderkid Gareth Bale - for around £8m. (Sunday Express)

Manchester United are also likely to sign Deportivo La Coruna midfielder Aldo Dusher, the man who broke David Beckham's metatarsal before the 2002 World Cup. (News of the World)

Wigan boss Paul Jewell is planning a £3m bid for West Ham striker Marlon Harewood. (Sunday People)

Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler is ready to follow David Beckham into Major League Soccer. (Sunday Mirror)

Middlesbrough have made a £4m bid for Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere with Massimo Maccarone set to leave the Riverside. (Daily Star Sunday)

Birmingham want up to £8m for Matthew Upson as they have to pay the defender's ex-club Arsenal a percentage of any transfer fee. (Daily Star Sunday)

Aston Villa could swap striker Milan Baros for Lyon's version of Peter Crouch in John Carew. (Sunday Mirror)

John Terry, Frank Lampard and Michael Essien are set to sign new deals at Chelsea, despite the uncertainty over manager Jose Mourinho's future. (Sunday Mirror)

Bolton and Blackburn are expected to slug it out as they try to land Manchester City's central defender Sylvain Distin. (Sunday People)

Tottenham want winger Damien Duff from Newcastle, who could be tempted to sell to raise funds for a central defender. (Sunday People)

England could play their Euro 2008 qualifier against Andorra at Barcelona's Nou Camp stadium because of security concerns. (NOTW)

Juventus are planning a £30m offer for Liverpool's Steven Gerrard when they hopefully return back to Serie A for next season. (Various)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea's inspirational captain and central defender John Terry may not return until late February. (Daily Star Sunday)

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger would not feel "proud" if leaving the club after winning the Premiership but incurring a £200m loss in the process. (Various)

Man Utd boss Sir Alex Ferguson also appears to take a dig at Chelsea's spending by praising his own homegrown stars. (Various)


AND FINALLY...
The Queen will present the trophy at May's FA Cup final. (Mail on Sunday)

It seems Francesco Coco's trial at Manchester City will not be turning into a permanent move after he turned up to the club's training ground puffing on a cigarette. (Sunday Mirror)

Monday 22nd January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill is said to be preparing a £1m bid for Hearts midfielder Paul Hartley (Scottish Sun)

Wycombe striker Jermaine Easter is at the centre of a transfer battle between Manchester City and Blackburn. (Various)

Watford winger Ashley Young will complete a deal to join Aston Villa - in a move worth up to £9.65m. (Various)

Blackburn are targeting Hertha Berlin centre-half Chris Samba to replace Andre Ooijer, who broke a leg against Manchester City on Saturday. (Various)

Blackburn are set to clinch a £1.2m move for Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock within 48 hours. (Various)

Middlesbrough striker Massimo Maccarone is wanted by Torino, Empoli and Siena. (Daily Mail)

Wigan hope to agree a loan move for Ulsan Hyundai's South Korean winger Lee Chun-Soo. (Daily Mail)

Newcastle may offer £9m, plus Titus Bramble, for West Brom defender Curtis Davies. (Daily Mail)

Southampton boss George Burley is resigned to losing teenager Gareth Bale, despite rejected an £8m bid for him last week. (Daily Star)

Fulham boss Chris Coleman will decide within the next 24 hours whether to accept Wigan's £5m offer for midfielder Papa Bouba Diop. (Daily Mirror)

Hull City boss Phil Brown is keen to snap up Derby midfielder Seth Johnson. (Daily Mirror)


OTHER GOSSIP
George Gillett, the owner of the Montreal Canadiens ice hockey team, is set to reopen talks with Liverpool and top the bid from Dubai International Capital to take over the club. (Various)

Celtic legend Murdo MacLeod has revealed he was offered the chance to play for Rangers 25 years ago. (Daily Record)

Ex-Newcastle boss Graeme Souness is refusing to accept defeat in his bid to buy Wolves. (Daily Mail)

Sheffield United boss Neil Warnock faces a 10-match touchline ban after being sent to the stands in Saturday's fiery match against Reading. (Daily Mirror)

Frank Lampard's agent Steve Kutner has denied that the midfielder is close to signing a new contract at Chelsea. (The Guardian)

Referee Uriah Rennie faces being demoted from the Premiership list after allowing James Milner's goal for Newcastle to stand despite Scott Parker standing in a offside position. (The Guardian)


AND FINALLY...
Man Utd star Wayne Rooney has revealed he knows all the songs to the hit musical Oliver! by heart. He also loves hit TV shows The Sopranos and Coronation Street. (The Sun)

Hamilton Academical fan Andy Waring proudly led the Accies out as team mascot on Saturday - at the age of 60. (Daily Record)

Tuesday 23rd January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Tottenham are holding talks with Southampton teenager Gareth Bale after having a £10m bid accepted for the defender. (Daily Mirror)

Spurs and Manchester United are locked in a battle for Bale. (Daily Express)

Tottenham and Arsenal are among the clubs targeting 17-year-old Bale. (Daily Mail)

Manchester United and Tottenham face a head-to-head battle to land Bale. (Daily Star)

Bale has set his heart on a move to Manchester United, despite an £8m bid from Tottenham. (The Sun)

St Etienne defender Fousseiny Diawara is holding talks with Bolton boss Sam Allardyce. (Various)

Tottenham have struck a £3.3m deal for Benfica defender Ricardo Rocha - plus the Portuguese club will play Spurs in two friendly matches. (Various)

Rangers are interested in signing Celtic forward Shaun Maloney. (Daily Express)

Celtic have signed Rennes defender Jean-Joel Perrier-Doumbe. (Various)

Rangers midfielder Jeremy Clement will sign for Paris St Germain within 48 hours. (The Herald)

Celtic captain Neil Lennon is considering a move to the MLS in the USA. (The Sun)

Hearts have signed Ghana midfielder Laryea Kingston from Russian club Terek Grozny. (The Scotsman)

Defender Oumar Konde has completed his move from Hibernian to Panionios after signing an 18-month deal. (The Scotsman)

Celtic will today make a formal offer for Hamilton's much-touted 16-year-old midfielder, James McCarthy. (The Herald)

Porto have priced Chelsea target Ricardo Quaresma at £14m - and the Blues are not willing to stump up that cash. (The Guardian)

Anton Ferdinand has vowed not to walk out on West Ham's relegation fight to join Newcastle. (Daily Mirror)

Fulham have made a surprise £500,000 bid for Preston keeper Carlo Nash. (Daily Mail)

Keith Gillespie, who was sent off at the weekend, has stunned Sheffield United by handing in a transfer request. (Various)

Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp put Lomana LuaLua through an extra hour's training before holding talks over his future. (The Sun)

Reading are understood to have offered about £200,000 for Cork City defender Alan Bennett. (The Guardian)

Fulham boss Chris Coleman wants to sign Celtic forward Shaun Maloney for £500,000 after failing to agree a deal for Wayne Routledge. (The Sun)

Everton boss David Moyes has made a £2m bid for West Ham's Matt Etherington. (Daily Mirror)

Derby boss Billy Davies is close to completing a loan deal for West Ham's Tyrone Mears.(Various)

Birmingham are in talks with Sheffield Wednesday over £3m-rated defender Madjid Bougherra. (Various)

Leeds boss Dennis Wise wants Wolves keeper Michael Oakes on loan for the rest of the season. (Daily Mirror)

Dundee United have withdrawn their attempt to sign Sheffield Wednesday's Graham Coughlin after the defender was injured. (the Herald)


OTHER GOSSIP
Former Chelsea manager Ruud Gullit has told current boss Jose Mourinho to stop moaning about the club's injury crisis - after spending £200m. (Daily Mirror)

Mourinho will give Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko another chance to find his form by naming him in the starting line-up in the Carling Cup semi-final, second leg against Wycombe. (Various)

Rangers duo Libor Sionko and Jeremy Clement have spoken of the dressing room unrest as former manager Paul Le Guen and captain Barry Ferguson battled for supremacy. (Daily Record)

New West Ham signing Lucas Neill has rubbished claims that he moved to Upton Park for the money. (The Sun)

Sports minister Richard Caborn is to gather the Premier League bigwigs together in February to call for a salary cap. (Daily Express)

The Scottish FA hopes to name Alex mcLeish as national manager within 24 hours. (Daily Mirror)


AND FINALLY...
The contenders for the post of commercial director at Manchester United include top circus executive Michael Bolingbroke, who is an accountant by training but is also senior vice-president in charge of shows for the Cirque du Soleil. (Daily Mail)

Watford boss Aidy Boothroyd has looked at no fewer than 25 trialists this month - but none have been deemed good enough for the Premiership strugglers. (Various)

Wednesday 24th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Man Utd will find out on Thursday if they have a chance of signing Owen Hargreaves from Bayern Munich. (The Sun)

Meanwhile, Italy striker Alessandro del Piero has revealed United tried to buy him at the start of the season - but says he could not bear to leave Juventus. (The Sun)

Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce is planning a shock £3m bid for Tottenham misfit Mido. (Daily Mirror)

Bolton boss Sam Allardyce is lining up a £1.5m bid for Spurs defender Anthony Gardner as he fears Chelsea will sign Tal Ben Haim. (Daily Star)

Former Celtic star Mark Fotheringham has been handed the chance of a dream move to Rangers. (Daily Record)

Dinamo Moscow's former Portsmouth and Chelsea star Alexei Smertin is close to a £1m return to the Premiership with Fulham. (Various)

Charlton have been offered St Etienne hot-shot Frederic Piquionne in exchange for Marcus Bent. (Various)

Meanwhile, the Addicks are in talks with Stefano Seedorf - cousin of AC Milan star Clarence. (The Sun)

Milan, Juventus, Roma and Internazionale are all interested in signing Giuseppe Rossi from Manchester United. (The Guardian)

Everton boss David Moyes is considering a cheeky swoop for Leeds hitman David Healy. (Various)

Sheffield United are leading the race to sign Manchester United winger Chris Eagles. (Various)

Man City boss Stuart Pearce wants to sign AZ Alkmaar left-back Tim de Cler. (Daily Mail)

Blackburn are close to signing Hertha Berlin star Christopher Samba on a two-and-a-half year deal. (The Sun)

Sheffield Wednesday chairman Dave Allen says Charlton are using underhand tactics in a bid to sign £3m-rated defender Madjid Bougherra. (The Times)

Portsmouth are ready to take a £1.8m gamble on Nigerian striker Chinedu Ogbuke, who plays for Lyn Oslo. (Daily Mirror)

Middlesbrough expect to wrap up a £2m deal for West Brom's Zoltan Gera within 48 hours. (Daily Star)

Middlesbrough have dropped their interest in Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere. (Daily Mail)

Rangers are lining up a £125,000 swoop for Danish teenage star Adda Djeziri. (Daily Record)

West Brom boss Tony Mowbray has made a new £2.5m bid for Hibs pair Scott Brown and Kevin Thomson. (Daily Mirror)

Milan Mandaric wants to make Carlisle striker Karl Hawley his first signing for Leicester with a £500,000 swoop. (Daily Star)

Goalkeeper Carlo Nash has begged Preston to sell him to Fulham for £500,000. (Various)

Derby boss Billy Davies has bid £250,000 for Blackburn's Jay McEveley. (The Sun)

Lincoln will today sign Dany N'Guessan from Rangers on loan. (Daily Record)

Inverness Caledonian Thistle want St Mirren goalkeeper Tony Bullock to replace Mark Brown - who moved to Celtic for £150,000. (The Sun)


OTHER GOSSIP
Jose Mourinho has revealed that John Terry has said he would leave Chelsea if the Portuguese manager exited Stamford Bridge. (Various)

Scotland will name Alex McLeish as the new national manager on Wednesday. (Daily Record)

Blackburn are to slash ticket prices amid fears that the Premiership is losing its appeal for fans. (The Guardian)

Arsenal's Robin van Persie will not play again this season after breaking a metatarsal on Sunday. (Daily Star)

Sheffield United's transfer-listed winger Keith Gillespie faces a six-match ban after being hit with a violent conduct charge by the FA. (Various)

Wigan's Paul Scharner has criticised his team mates for feeling resigned to relegation. (Various)

Uefa are set to give the go-ahead for England's Euro 2008 away qualifier against Andorra to be played at Barcelona's Nou Camp stadium. (Daily Star)

Celtic defender John Kennedy, who has been sidelined since 2004 with a serious knee injury, moved a step closer to a first-team return after playing 90 minutes in a reserve match. (The Herald)


AND FINALLY...
Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard is heading to the studios of reality TV show Dancing On Ice to support Sky News presenter Kay Burley - but Chelsea have forbidden him from stepping on the ice. (The Sun)

Tottenham midfielder Hossam Ghaly will have his new teeth on display in Wednesday's Carling Cup tie with Arsenal after some advanced dentistry. Ghaly lost four teeth in a nasty collision with Portsmouth's Noe Pamarot on New Year's Day. (Daily Star)

Former Scotland international Gary McAllister says he missed his penalty against England in Euro 96 because he decided to go for power rather than placement - because he was worried he would fall over the ball. (Daily Record)

Injured Fulham midfielder Jimmy Bullard has taken up coarse fishing for carp during his recovery from a dislocated kneecap - and has become so good he is regularly beating England internationals. (Daily Mail)

Thursday 25th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Fulham have made a dramatic move to sign Chelsea keeper Carlo Cudicini on loan for the rest of the season. (Daily Mirror)

Birmingham managing director Karren Brady has told West Ham that defender Matthew Upson, who has been the subject of three failed bids by the London club, is not for sale. (Various)

Tottenham have moved ahead of Manchester United in the £10m battle to sign Southampton's teenage defender Gareth Bale. (Various)

Tottenham might have to wait until the end of the season to sign Bale. (Daily Telegraph)

Everton are closing in on Sheffield Wednesday defender Madjid Bougherra. (Daily Star)

Striker Milan Baros, who moved to Lyon from Aston Villa this week, claims he missed out on a transfer to Chelsea because Blues winger Shaun Wright-Phillips did not fancy joining the Midlands club. (Various)

Newcastle are close to clinching a loan deal for Standard Liege defender Oguchi Onyewu. (Various)

Portsmouth have been told they must pay £10m to sign Udinese midfielder Sulley Muntari after having a £7m bid rejected. (Daily Mail)

Everton are targeting Derby defender Dean Leacock. (Daily Mirror)

Southampton want Poland and Troyes striker Marek Saganowski to join the club on loan for the rest of the season. (Daily Star)

Crewe defender Neil Cox is wanted on loan by Macclesfield after being dropped by his club. (Daily Mirror)

Reading have had an improved £200,000 bid for Cork City defender Alan Bennett knocked back. (Daily Star)

Burnley want to snap up Sunderland defender Stephen Caldwell in a £400,000 deal. (Daily Mirror)

Sunderland want to take Manchester United defender Danny Simpson on loan for the rest of the season. (Daily Mirror)

Middlesbrough midfielder Ray Parlour is negotiating a settlement to end his spell at the Riverside and become a free agent. (Daily Mirror)

NK Gorica's Jani Sturm has pleaded with Kilmarnock not to forget him after financial restraints meant that any transfer had to be put on hold until the playmaker becomes a free agent in the summer. (Daily Record)

Stoke want to sign Manchester United winger Lee Martin on loan. (Daily Mail)

Newcastle have told Tottenham not to bother making an approach for winger Damien Duff. (Daily Express)

Charlton have made a bid for Birmingham winger Julian Gray and also want to sign FC Groningen midfielder Stefano Seedorf. (The Independent)

Bolton boss Sam Allardyce is adamant that none of his players will leave in the current transfer window but revealed he must make a signing. (The Independent)

Fulham and Everton are battling to land West Ham midfielder Matthew Etherington. (The Guardian)

Liverpool midfielder David Mannix has had his contract terminated by mutual consent and is understood to be on trial with Norwegian club HamKam. (The Times)

Rangers' French midfielder Jeremy Clement has turned down a £1.5m move to Lyon because he wants to team up again with former Ibrox boss Paul le Guen at Paris Saint-Germain. (Scottish Daily Express)

Hibernian are set to launch a £200,000 bid for Inverness Caledonian Thistle's Scotland B international midfielder Ian Black. (Scottish Daily Express)

Rangers manager Walter Smith has added Motherwell striker Scott McDonald to his January transfer wish-list. (Scottish Daily Express)


OTHER GOSSIP
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has made Inter Milan coach Roberto Mancini his number one target - if Blues boss Jose Mourinho leaves in the summer. (The Sun)

Blackburn striker Benni McCarthy, who played for Mourinho at Porto, believes Chelsea should sort out their problems or risk the wheels falling off if the Blues boss leaves this summer. (The Sun)

Sevilla coach Juan de la Cruz Ramos has revealed his ambition to work in England. (The Times)

Bayern Munich president Franz Beckenbauer has said that Michael Ballack, who left the German club to join Chelsea last May, has made a mistake by joining the Premiership club. (Various)

Chelsea are desperate to tie up captain John Terry's future after claims from manager Mourinho that the England defender could leave the club if he did. (Daily Star)

Chelsea are confident that Terry will sign his new contract - regardless of who is the manager next season. (The Independent)

Liverpool sources insisted the takeover of the club by Dubai International Capital could be confirmed "within weeks", despite claims that fellow bidder, American billionaire George Gillett, was about to start an examination of the club's books. (The Independent)

Multi-millionaire Brian Kennedy is the mystery partner of Graeme Souness in the former Newcastle manager's bid to buy Wolves. (Daily Mirror)

Manchester United defender Gary Neville believes that Blackburn boss Mark Hughes could be a future manager at Old Trafford. (Various)

Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo is set to land a new £100,000-a-week deal. (Various)

Liverpool winger Harry Kewell, who has not kicked a ball all season after developing septic arthritis in a foot, hopes to be fit to face Barcelona in the Champions League on 21 February. (Daily Mirror)

Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry has hit back at defender Lucas Neill for claiming that Reds boss Rafael Benitez did not speak to him before he snubbed Anfield for West Ham. (Various)

Peter Taylor has severed his links with the England Under-21 side to concentrate on his role as boss of Crystal Palace but plans are believed to be well advanced to appoint a current club manager in a part-time capacity. (Daily Mail)

Wigan fear that striker Henri Camara will be out for a further month after he damaged knee ligaments against Sheffield United before Christmas. (Daily Star)

Former Scotland striker Kevin Gallacher believes that the Tartan Army should shove negativity aside and welcome Alex McLeish as the new boss of their national side. (Daily Record)>

West Ham striker Carlos Tevez has returned to training after suffering a calf injury against Fulham on 13 January. (The Times)


AND FINALLY...
Manchester United's secret training sessions have been filmed by a specially adapted spy plane and the footage has been handed to a mystery client. (Daily Mirror)

Former Chelsea and Benfica defender Scott Minto, who retired last summer after a spell at Rotherham, is giving something back to his local community. He spends one day a week ferrying passengers to and from Rotherham hospice as a voluntary unpaid driver. (Daily Mail)

Friday 26th January gossip column

TRANSFER RUMOURS
Real Madrid will offer £35m to Man Utd in the summer for winger Cristiano Ronaldo. (The Independent)

Real Madrid striker Ruud van Nistelrooy has urged former team-mate Ronaldo to join him in Spain. (Various)

Man City boss Stuart Pearce is ready to offer Sylvain Distin plus £3m for Spurs striker Mido. (Daily Mirror)

Inter Milan chief Roberto Mancini says he wants to become Chelsea's new boss. (The Sun)

Celtic have bid £4m for Hibs duo Kevin Thomson and Scott Brown - and will let them stay at Hibs until the end of the season. (Daily Record)

But Portsmouth are preparing a £2.5m bid for 21-year-old midfielder Scott Brown (Scottish Sun)

Hibernian have taken Hungarian international striker Tomas Sowunmi on trial (Daily Express)

Arsenal have entered the race to sign £10m-rated Southampton teenager Gareth Bale. (The Sun)

Wigan boss Paul Jewell is ready to bring ex-Spurs man Thimothee Atouba back to the top flight in a shock deal from Bundesliga strugglers Hamburg. (Daily Mirror)

Birmingham boss Steve Bruce has rejected West Ham's £8m bid for Matthew Upson. (Daily Mirror)

Man Utd will have to wait until next week to discover if they can sign Owen Hargreaves from Bayern Munich. (Daily Star)

Fulham's Papa Bouba Diop has snubbed a £4.4m move to struggling Wigan. (Daily Express)

Newcastle misfit Albert Luque is wanted on loan by Spanish club Racing Santander. (Daily Mirror)

Arsenal's on-loan striker Julio Baptista is desperate for boss Arsene Wenger to sign him permanently. (The Sun)

Man Utd winger Lee Martin is signing for Stoke on loan on Friday. (Daily Mirror)

Preston boss Paul Simpson wants Wigan's veteran keeper John Filan to replace unsettled Fulham target Carlo Nash. (Daily Mirror)

Arsenal are trying to scupper Man Utd's bid for Deportivo La Coruna midfielder Aldo Duscher. (The Sun)

Watford's Aidy Boothroyd is ready to sign Ray Parlour from Middlesbrough. (Daily Mirror)

Luton expect to land Sheffield Wednesday striker Drew Talbot in a £250,000 deal on Friday. (Daily Mirror)

Dundee United defender David Proctor is set to leave the club after falling out of favour. (Daily Record)

QPR are to make a second bid for Nottingham Forest defender Danny Cullip. (Daily Star)

Bristol Rovers will make a £150,000 bid to sign Hereford striker Andy Williams. (The Sun)

Inverness are ready to offer Ross County midfielder Don Cowie a pre-contract (Daily Express)


OTHER GOSSIP
Didier Drogba has begged Roman Abramovich and Jose Mourinho to make their peace - or risk tearing Chelsea's season apart. (Various)

John Terry could be back for Chelsea for Sunday's FA Cup tie with Nottingham Forest. (Daily Mirror)

Chelsea's secret shortlist of managers to replace Jose Mourinho includes Dutch legend Marco van Basten. (Daily Star)

England will recall Jonathan Woodgate for the February 7 friendly with Spain. (The Telegraph)

Robbie Savage has admitted that some people will see his broken leg from a challenge with Watford's Al Bangura and say "he had it coming". (Daily Star)

Man Utd's Gary Neville says he wants to help his side overhaul Liverpool's 18 league titles - United currently have 15. (Daily Mirror)

Man City boss Stuart Pearce and Bolton number two Sammy Lee are both in the running for the England Under-21 manager's job. (Various)

Milan Mandaric's £25m takeover of Leicester has been put on hold as his mother is unwell. (The Sun)


AND FINALLY...
Portsmouth goalkeeping coach David Coles won a competition among players in which they tried to kick a ball into a small trailer from 100 yards. But he had some inadvertent assistance - his attempt bounced off the head of an unsuspecting local photographer. (The Times)