Paper Talk
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has put Manchester United's Chris Smalling back on his list of potential January signings to solve his defensive nightmare.
Arsenal will also look again at Southampton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin.
England boss Roy Hodgson has slammed FA chiefs for staging American Football games at Wembley.
Manchester City will try for Pep Guardiola again if they feel Manuel Pellegrini cannot deliver the success they crave.
Brendan Rodgers has insisted he will never shirk the big decisions, even if he knows getting too many wrong will get him the sack.
Jermain Defoe is at the centre of a boardroom split at QPR over Harry Redknapp's bid to sign him in January.
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal will not buy any stop-gap defenders in January because he wants to give rookies Tyler Blackett and Paddy McNair a chance to impress.
West Brom striker Saido Berahino, who has been called up by England for the first time, is at the centre of a massive transfer battle between Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham.
Yaya Toure has promised Manchester City fans: "I'll make it up to you."
Roy Hodgson has failed to speak to Brendan Rodgers over 'Tiredgate'.
West Ham are giving Diafra Sakho a lucrative new five-year deal worth almost £10million.
Wilfried Bony is set to give Swansea a huge boost by agreeing a new contract.
Middlesbrough are sure they can keep on-loan Patrick Bamford until May.
Brendan Rodgers admits his job is on the line at Liverpool.
England manager Roy Hodgson has slammed the FA for staging regular American Football matches at Wembley.
Real Madrid will move for Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea next summer.
David Moyes has been urged to take the vacant Real Sociedad job.
Lille defender Simon Kjaer says that a switch to the Premier League could happen as soon as next summer.
Wilfried Bony is set to sign a new contract with Swansea.
Inter Milan are edging ahead of Fiorentina in the race to sign Liverpool striker Fabio Borini.
Liverpool manager Rodgers has vowed to keep making bold decisions even though he accepts too many wrong calls would mean he pays a heavy price.
Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud will return to first team training next week after stepping up his comeback from a broken leg.
Jermain Defoe's fall-out with his MLS side Toronto just one season into a four-year contract is being blamed in Canada on his mum.
Roy Hodgson warned on Thursday he will ditch England players who say they are too tired to train as the fall-out continued from last month's Raheem Sterling rumpus.
QPR striker Charlie Austin and Tottenham talisman Harry Kane are on the verge of a sensational call up for the England squad.
Arsenal will ramp up their search for a new central defender during a scouting meeting next week.
Fiorentina hope to make a shock loan swoop for Arsenal forward Theo Walcott.
Manchester United's move for Real Madrid's Fabio Coentrao looks in serious doubt after Bayern Munich's David Alaba picked up a long-term injury during the German team's win over Roma.
England manager Roy Hodgson has reopened the war of words with Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers over Raheem Sterling and 'Tired-gate' by saying he has 30 witnesses to back his version of events - and he would do exactly the same again.
Manchester City are set to sell Yaya Toure next summer and replace him with either Paul Pogba of Juventus or Everton's Ross Barkley.
BBC
TRANSFER GOSSIP
Manchester City are set to sell 31-year-old Yaya Toure next summer and replace him with either Juventus's Paul Pogba, 21, or Everton 20-year-old Ross Barkley. (The Times - subscription required)
West Brom's England new boy Saido Berahino, 21, is at the centre of a transfer battle between Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham. (The Sun - subscription required)
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is set to make a January move for Manchester United defender Chris Smalling, 24. (Daily Mirror)
Dutch duo Virgil van Dijk of Celtic, 23, and Aston Villa's 29-year-old captain Ron Vlaar are also on Arsenal's defensive shopping list. (Daily Mail)
Fabian Delph has told Aston Villa he has no plans to sign a new contract and is set to leave the club in the summer, with Liverpool, Everton and Tottenham all interested in signing the 24-year-old midfielder. (Daily Telegraph)
Serie A side Fiorentina, who already have Manchester City's Micah Richards in their ranks, are lining up a shock loan swoop for Arsenal and England winger Theo Walcott, 25. (Daily Express)
Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham are continuing to monitor 23-year-old Bayern Munich winger Xherdan Shaqiri, 23, who is unhappy after failing to become a regular at the German club. (Daily Star)
Real Madrid are lining up a move for Manchester United keeper David De Gea, 23, and are confident of landing him, especially if the Reds fail to qualify for the Champions League. (Daily Star)
Meanwhile, United's January move for Real Madrid's left-sided midfielder Fabio Coentrao, 26, looks in serious doubt after Bayern Munich's David Alaba - a target for Real - picked up a long-term injury during the German team's win over Roma. (Daily Express)
OTHER GOSSIP
Manchester City will attempt to lure Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola to the Etihad to replace Manuel Pellegrini if the club's poor form continues. (Daily Mirror)
Liverpool defender Glen Johnson, 30, may decide to retire from international football after being left out of Roy Hodgson's latest England squad. (Daily Telegraph)
Reds manager Brendan Rodgers admits he faces the sack if he gets too many big calls wrong at Anfield. (Guardian)
Jose Mourinho could face a fresh backlash from Chelsea fans after hailing QPR's "amazing" supporters, days after he complained about the lack of atmosphere at Stamford Bridge. (The Sun - subscription required)
Manchester City legend Denis Law says his old club must battle harder if they are to succeed in the Champions League. (Daily Mirror)
Millwall will make history when they face Brentford in a one-off camouflage kit as part of the 100th anniversary of the First World War. (Sky Sports)
Ross Barkley can have the same impact on the England set-up as Paul Gascoigne, according to Roy Hodgson. (Daily Mail)
Aston Villa skipper Ron Vlaar says the players share the disappointment felt by the fans over the current run of six defeats and that the team is missing injured midfielder Fabian Delph. (Birmingham Mail)
CSKA Moscow defender Pontus Wernbloom says Manchester City are vulnerable in defence and it is "obvious" how opponents can beat them. (The Independent)
Meanwhile, the Home Office has hit back at claims by CSKA that a Manchester airport official tried to sabotage the Russian club's chances of victory over City by denying Serbian striker Zoran Tosic entry to the UK. (The Times - subscription required)
Former Liverpool midfielder Jermaine Pennant, 31, without a club since being released by Stoke at the start of the year, has joined Indian Super League side FC Pune City. (The Sun - subscription required)
GLOBAL GOSSIP
Manchester United vying with Valencia to sign Benfica midfielder Enzo Perez, 28. (Marca - in Spanish)
Valencia's 21-year-old striker Paco Alcacer, a reported target for Chelsea and Arsenal, says he has no desire to leave his current club. (AS - in Spanish)
Former Tottenham midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng, 27, is set to dash hopes of a Premier League return by extending his contract at Schalke until 2017. (Bild - in German)
Paris St-Germain striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, 33, is set to return to action after resuming training following his injury lay-off. (AS - in Spanish)
BEST OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Tottenham midfielder Benjamin Stambouli posted this photo of himself and a group of happy Spurs players on the way home from the Europa League win over Asteras Tripolis.
Andros Townsend, who got Spurs up and running with a penalty, paid tribute to fellow scorer Harry Kane by tweeting: "Another good win! Just can't keep the main man Harry Kane off the scoresheet at the moment!"
Arsenal's Aaron Ramsey lets slip how he spent his free evening, posting: "Time for Life Story on BBC One, another brilliant series by David Attenborough."
Hull City midfielder David Meyler reveals he's a fan of folk music, tweeting that he's heading to a gig by Irish singer Christy Moore.
AND FINALLY
Wayne Rooney recited a poem about how much he loved playing for his country after England were knocked out of the 2002 Under-17 European Championships. (Daily Telegraph)
Gerard Pique's miserable time at Barcelona of late - struggling to get in the team, fined for using his mobile phone on the sub's bench - continued when, at the airport after arriving back from the Spanish club's Champions League game at Ajax, a fan shouted at him: 'Hey Pique, wake up! You need to run more'. (101 Great Goals)
A Republic of Ireland fan has revealed how he applied to take over as manager when Giovanni Trapattoni departed and received a letter back from the FAI. (The Guardian)
Guardian Rumour Mill
Barry Glendenning
While today’s rumours can only speculate about what certain folk of a right wing disposition are making of Burundi born West Brom striker Saido Berahino coming over here to escape a civil war, make a new life for himself and play well enough to take a “proper” England international’s job, here at your wishy-washy pinko liberal Guardian we could scarcely be more pleased for the boy.
His elevation to the England senior squad has only added to speculation that a big money move to a more trendy Premier League club is very much ahoy, with Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur all believed to be battling for his services. As it’s well documented that his mother Liliane is such a devoted Arsenal fan that she once scolded her boy for scoring against them, you’d have to surmise Spurs are the rank outsiders in this particular three-horse race. Meanwhile at Old Trafford, United insiders will no doubt be aware that theirs is the team Berahino supports.
It’s the only snippet of good news on an otherwise bleak day of transfer speculation for Manchester United fans, who won’t like hearing their excellent Spanish goalkeeper David De Gea continues to be mentioned in conjunction with a possible move to Real Madrid. Meanwhile United’s mooted January move for Real midfielder Fábio Coentrao may well hit the skids now that Real’s targeted replacement, the Bayern Munich midfielder David Alaba has knacked his knee.
Having developed into one of the world’s greatest central midfielders after leaving Manchester United for Juventus, Paul Pogba could continue riffing, be-bopping and scatting all over the pain of Sir Alex Ferguson and assorted other Manchester United staff by signing for Manchester City. Reports suggest that City could sell Yaya Touré in the summer and replace him with the France midfielder or Everton’s Ross Barkley. They’re unlikely to replace him with Fabian Delph, who has decided he wants a change of scenery and will leave Aston Villa on a free transfer in the summer. Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool are all monitoring the situation with interest.
Arsenal have featured as prominently as anyone in the whirligig of transfer guff that’s been spinning since the transfer window slammed shut and today is no exception. Depending on your media outlet of choice, Arsène Wenger will attempt to placate fans angry with his reluctance to purchase anything in the way of defenders by bringing in Ron Vlaar from Aston Villa, Chris Smalling from Manchester United, Basel centre-half Fabian Schar or Virgil van Dijk from Celtic. Basically, if you’re tall, in reasonably good shape and can head a football without closing your eyes, you’re in with a shout of getting a game for Arsenal. Once there, you might find yourself pinging the ball towards Morgan Schneiderlin, the Southampton midfielder who is also on Wenger’s big list o’shopping now that Adrien Rabiot has committed to Paris Saint-Germain.
In one of those occasional snippets of transfer tittle-tattle that makes the Rumour Mill hoot with derision at the likelihood of such a move coming to pass, it is also being reported that Italian side Fiorentina are lining up a loan move for Theo Walcott. Well, we say hoot of derision, but in truth it was more of a sceptical giggle, not entirely dissimilar to the one with which we first greeted speculation linking Micah Richards with the very same Serie A club. Fiorentina are also enquiring about the possibility of landing out of favour Liverpool striker Fabio Borini, who has become such an outcast at Anfield that he now gets picked for the stiffs side Brendan Rodgers sends out to face the hail of bullets that is an important showpiece event away from home against the European champions. If the Tuscany side are to land their man they will have to stave off interest from their Milanese rivals Inter.
And finally, in news that ought to prompt widespread shoulder-shrugs of indifference, “sources” close to Anderson have revealed that the portly Brazilian under-achiever with six months left on his contract “has vowed to fight for his future” at Old Trafford. With six months left on his contract, a very cynical transfer gossip column could interpret these unconfirmed reports as a tacit plea for the club to pay him off and leave him free to go elsewhere.
Mail
West Ham grab a double as Sam Allardyce and Diafro Sakho scoop Player and Manager of the Month awards
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce wins Manager of the Month
Diafra Sakho collects Player of the Month award
Hammers are currently fifth in the Premier League table
Sakho scored three Premier League goals in October
By Charlie Skillen
West Ham have struck a double in the Premier League player and manager of the month awards for October.
Sam Allardyce scooped the Barclays award for boss of the month, while Diafra Sakho has picked up the award for best player.
West Ham were unbeaten in October, with striker sensation Sakho netting in all three of their games.
West Ham's Diafra Sakho and manager Sam Allardyce with the Barclays Player of the Month and Manager of the Month awards
The Hammers kicked off the month with a 2-0 win over London rivals QPR, before wins over Burnley and champions Manchester City.
The pair easily beat off competition from the likes of Jose Mourinho and Sergio Aguero, who were both on the shortlists for this months awards.
Sakho, who scored three Premier League goals during October, is expected to return from a shoulder injury for Saturday's Premier League match against Aston Villa at Upton Park.
Goal
West Ham - Aston Villa Preview: Allardyce aiming to heap more misery on visitors
By Peter Hanson
Paul Lambert's men head into Saturday's clash off the back of six straight defeats in the Premier League, while the hosts could welcome back Diafra Sakho from injury
Sam Allardyce is keen for West Ham to heap further misery on Aston Villa in Saturday's Premier League clash at Upton Park.
Villa manager Paul Lambert has come under increasing pressure after a run of six straight top-flight defeats that has left his side just a point above the relegation zone.
There were plenty of positives for Lambert in last weekend's 2-1 loss to Tottenham, though, not least the fact Andreas Weimann's opener ended a barren run in front of goal that lasted 547 minutes.
However, the game swung on Christian Benteke's dismissal for raising his hand to Ryan Mason's face 25 minutes from time, and Spurs duly took advantage with late goals from Nacer Chadli and Harry Kane.
And Allardyce has called on his in-form side to extend Villa's poor run.
"We have to make sure we try and continue their poor run," he said. "He'll [Lambert] remember when they pulled off a result at Liverpool [Villa's last Premier League victory on September 13] and say that's what they're capable of, so I'd imagine it'll be a very difficult game."
Allardyce faced uncertainty over his own future during a difficult 2013-14 campaign and admits he has sympathy for Lambert's situation.
"Always [you sympathise], because there's a huge pressure that comes upon you when you lose so many games on the trot," he added.
"He must be wondering what he's doing wrong at the moment, because I watched the game against Tottenham last Sunday and thought how unlucky he was that he lost that game."
In contrast to Villa, West Ham are in fine form in the Premier League.
Three straight wins were followed by a battling 2-2 draw at Stoke City last weekend, and they sit fifth in the table.
Stewart Downing scored the equaliser in that match and the midfielder's excellent recent form has been rewarded with an England recall.
In a further boost for West Ham, striker Andy Carroll could return to their matchday squad.
The 25-year-old has not featured since May due to a heel injury, but he came through a behind-closed-doors fixture with Southend United unscathed on Wednesday.
Carroll will have to work hard to regain his place in the team, though.
Diafra Sakho has six goals in seven Premier League appearances for West Ham and Allardyce is hopeful he can play after missing the Stoke game with a shoulder injury, while defender Winston Reid (leg) could also come back into contention.
Villa too have received a fitness boost with the news Philippe Senderos could return from a three-match absence due to a thigh injury, but the game comes too soon for fellow defender Alan Hutton (ankle).
Lambert must also rejig his striking options with Benteke set to start a three-match suspension.
