Paper Talk
Arsenal are lining up an £80m bid for Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba, while Barcelona are targeting Southampton's Morgan Schneiderlin.
Manchester United forward Robin van Persie is doubtful for Saturday's clash with Sunderland because of the foot injury that saw him leave Swansea on crutches last weekend.
Nigeria will try to persuade Liverpool starlet Jordon Ibe, 19, to commit his international future to them rather than England.
Liverpool forward Raheem Sterling says he is on the verge of signing a contract extension at Anfield.
Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini is looking to upset Chelsea and Manchester United by jumping in and signing Real Madrid midfielder Koke.
Burnley are weighing up a move for 22-year-old Norway international midfielder Fredrik Ulvestad who is a free agent.
Rotherham boss Steve Evans is Peterborough United's number one choice to replace Darren Ferguson.
Former Wigan and Brentford boss Uwe Rosler has spoken to Barnsley about becoming their new manager.
The Premier League's match delegate Steve Greaves reported after the Chelsea and Burnley match that under-fire referee Martin Atkinson got all his decisions correct. Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho was left fuming after Nemanja Matic was sent off for reacting to a tackle by Ashley Barnes and the Blues had two penalty appeals turned down.
Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen, 24, claims Brendan Rodgers's side may actually have improved since the departure of striker Luis Suarez.
Southampton manager Ronald Koeman has laid into Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal by claiming his Dutch compatriot instils fear into the United team.
Newcastle manager John Carver blocked the sale of striker Papiss Cisse to Al Ahli in the United Arab Emirates two weeks ago.
Chelsea are tracking Valencia's Spanish under-16 ace Carlos Badal.
Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen insists Brendan Rodgers' team have been boosted this season on the back of striker Luis Suarez moving to Barcelona.
Charlton have signed West Ham midfielder Alou Diarra, 33, for the rest of the season after an injury-hit two seasons at Upton Park.
Sheffield United want to sign Blackpool striker Steven Davies - who played under Blades boss Nigel Clough at Derby - on loan with view to a permanent deal in the summer.
Meanwhile, Blades teenage striker Diego De Girolamo, 19, is wanted by Sunderland after rejecting a new deal with the Sky Bet League One club.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has played down a visit by Lionel Messi and team-mate Gerard Pique to a casino prior to their Champions League trip to Manchester City.
David Beckham's 15-year-old son Brooklyn has been left disappointed after failing to secure an Arsenal scholarship although the youth coaches still feel he can make the professional grade at another club.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has refused to defend Lionel Messi and Gerard Pique who are reported to have visited a late-night casino before their flight to Manchester in Monday.
Manchester City's Samir Nasri says they have nothing to fear as they prepare to face Barcelona in the Champions League tonight.
FIFA's 2022 taskforce, in charge of recommending dates for the World Cup in Qatar, is set to recommend the tournament be held in November and December.
Southampton boss Ronald Koeman has accused Manchester United counterpart Louis van Gaal of ruling by fear.
BBC
TRANSFER GOSSIP
Former Barcelona defender Eric Abidal believes former team-mate Lionel Messi, 27, may be tempted to leave the Nou Camp for a new challenge - with Paris St-Germain a possible destination. (TF1 - French).
Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini hopes to scupper Chelsea and Manchester United's plans to sign Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke, 23. (Daily Star)
Arsenal are ready to make an £80m offer for Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba, 21, as Barcelona eye Southampton's Morgan Schneiderlin, 25. (Daily Express)
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal was desperate to sign Borussia Dortmund's Germany defender Mats Hummels, 26, last summer, according to fellow Dutchman Ruud Gullit. (Manchester Evening News)
Former Celtic, Hibernian and Scotland forward Derek Riordan, 32, is set to make a comeback with Scottish League two side East Stirlingshire. (The Scotsman)
Former Sunderland striker Jozy Altidore, 25, says he was not forced out of the club in the deal that saw Jermain Defoe arrive from Toronto in the January transfer window. (Sunderland Echo)
Reports in Spain claim Liverpool want to sign Juventus striker Alvaro Morata, 22, to boost their forward options for next season. (Metro)
Newcastle manager John Carver blocked the sale of striker Papiss Cisse to Al Ahli in the United Arab Emirates two weeks ago. (Daily Mirror)
OTHER GOSSIP
Liverpool forward Raheem Sterling, 20, says he is close to agreeing a new deal at Anfield . (Daily Star)
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has played down a visit by Lionel Messi and team-mate Gerard Pique to a casino prior to their Champions League trip to Manchester City. (Daily Mail)
Match delegate Steve Greaves reported that referee Martin Atkinson got all his decisions right in Chelsea's controversial match against Burnley. (Sun - subscription required)
Nigeria will try to persuade Liverpool youngster Jordon Ibe, 19, to commit his international future to them rather than England. (Daily Express)
The use of video technology to overturn refereeing decisions during a game could move closer this weekend when the game's rule-makers decide whether it can be used in an official match. (Daily Telegraph)
Former Everton Championship-winning striker Andy Gray says he thinks the Toffees could be drawn into a relegation fight. (Talksport)
Southampton manager Ronald Koeman says Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal puts fear into his own team. (Daily Mirror)
BBC Match of the Day pundit Kevin Kilbane made a complaint to the FA about alleged chanting from West Ham fans that mocked the disabled. (Daily Mail)
Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen, 24, claims Brendan Rodgers's side may actually have improved since the departure of striker Luis Suarez. (Sun - subscription required)
BEST OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Former Burnley captain and Scotland international Steven Caldwell, 34, is embracing life with Toronto FC in the MLS as he shows via his Instagram account.
Wales and Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey expressed his sympathy via Twitter at the death of long-serving Wales kitman Dai Williams.
Hull City captain Curtis Davies tweeted his delight at picking up a cup - in the shape of a special gift from a supporters' club where the defender, 29, was guest speaker.
AND FINALLY...
Brooklyn Beckham, 15, is set to be released by Arsenal but his brothers Romeo, 12, and Cruz, 10, will stay on at the Gunners' academy. (Daily Mail)
It seems wrestling moves are the current fashion in football. Following Shab Khan's 'body slam' on a Stockport player, a steward wrestled a Liverpool fan to the ground to stop him joining in with Reds players as they celebrated their second goal at Southampton on Sunday. (Guardian)
A Brazilian player had to be taken to hospital after being bitten on his arm by a police dog during a game. (Guardian)
Guardian Rumour Mill
Nick Miller
The Rumour Mill has seen and heard plenty of funny things in its time. It has seen Daniel Kitson, Stewart Lee, Sarah Millican, Eddie Izzard and Sara Pascoe perform comedy sets that have made it ache with laughter. It has seen a man with a full drink in hand run into a glass door, believing it to be open, spilling said drink down a new white shirt*. It has seen a dog wearing a ruff. It has a friend who once bought their mother a theatre ticket as a birthday present. It has been told the tale of an injured player at Leyton Orient who, in the absence of a stretcher, was taken from the field on a hostess trolley which he then, rather inevitably, fell off.
Still, there’s something to rival those tales of hilarity this morning, specifically the notion that Arsenal could make a whopping £80m offer for Paul Pogba. Even in this time of financial flexibility at the Emirates, when Arsène Wenger is no longer quite so petrified to open his club’s wallet, waft away the moths and count out the pound notes, the idea of Arsenal firstly shelling out that sort of cheese is pretty funny, but equally amusing and implausible is the idea that a team with even more money muscle will just let them do it and not double whatever they’re offering the Frenchman. Still, it says here that’s exactly what they’ll do, but it also says they’re only looking at Pogba because Barcelona are in for Morgan Schneiderlin, so make of all that what you will.
Also up there in the comedy stakes is the prospect of Manchester United signing Stefan Savic, a man presumably already close to their hearts after his hapless performances across town. However, he has seemingly got his act together enough to be a live target for Louis van Gaal’s boys, while Barcelona are keen too. Imagine: two clubs of the history, prestige, support and trophy records of Manchester United and Barça duking it out for Stefan Savic. United are also scouting Braga midfielder Rafa, but that’s not nearly as funny, so we’ll pretend we haven’t seen that one.
One man who could well be handed a card marked “do one” from Old Trafford is Ángel Di María, currently £60m-worth of flattering to deceive after an opening few games in which he looked like some form of transcendental being sent to teach us mortals about the ways of football. PSG are loading up a big truck with cash and heading for Calais as they plan to replace Ezequiel Lavezzi, although given that their back-up targets are Eden Hazard and Marco Reus, they perhaps won’t be crying themselves to sleep if Plan A doesn’t come off.
Elsewhere in Manchester, City are makin’ plans. Specifically, they’re makin’ plans for Koke, the Atlético Madrid midfielder who decided to buck the trend when half of their title-winning team were contemplating getting the hell out of Dodge last summer and stayed where he was. It’s possible he made this decision because Diego Simeone just stared at him and slowly shook his head –would you actively displease him? No, of course you wouldn’t. You value your skin and major organs. City will chuck Stevan Jovetic into the deal, which seems akin to offering a toaster as a “sweetener” when you’re haggling over the price of a Mercedes, while United (them again) have the more attractive part-exchange candidate in the shape of Juan Mata.
In another part of Lancashire, Raheem Sterling is apparently not phased by word that Liverpool are hanging their nose over Juventus forward Álvaro Morata like he’s a particularly appetising-looking cheesecake in a shop window. Yer man Sterling is “close” to signing a new co ntract at Anfield apparently, which will ward off the predatory likes of Real Madrid because that’s exactly how these things work.
Finally, sometimes when a footballer or former footballer says a thing, we can give it a little more weight because of their standing in the game, their past experience, their understanding of the sport that lends them a little more gravitas. That is even more acute when it’s someone with perceived “insider” knowledge – a player discussing a former team-mate, for example. However, sometimes they’re just whistling in the wind like the rest of us, speculating and guessing at what might happen even though they have little idea themselves. Make your own mind up into which camp Éric Abidal’s assertion that Leo Messi could leave Barcelona for PSG falls, but y’know ... just keep all that in mind.
* Yes, dear reader, that man was of course the Rumour Mill.
Guardian
Kevin Kilbane reports West Ham fans to FA for mocking the disabled
• West Ham fans alleged to have sung offensive chant about Harry Kane
• Kilbane: ‘The FA have informed me they will investigate it thoroughly’
• West Ham: zero-tolerance if fans found guilty of antisemitic singing on train
The Football Association has promised a thorough investigation into allegations that West Ham United fans at White Hart Lane for Sunday’s Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur used language that was derogatory and insulting towards people with learning disabilities.
The allegation has been made by Kevin Kilbane, the TV pundit and former Republic of Ireland international as well as a patron of the Down’s Syndrome Association. His 10-year-old daughter, Elsie, has Down’s syndrome.
He was not at the game but was informed of the chants by Andy Merriman, a Tottenham season-ticket holder and author, whose daughter, Sarah, also has Down’s syndrome. Merriman was ghost writer of Kilbane’s autobiography, Killa. “It was very clear and sadly it appeared to be from a large number of West Ham fans in the ground,” Kilbane told the Mirror and the Mail. “This was not isolated to a handful of people.”
Over the weekend a video surfaced apparently showing West Ham fans on a train to the same game singing antisemitic chants. The club responded to that controversy by promising that “if any individual is found to have behaved in an inappropriate way … they will face the strongest possible action, including the option of a life ban from the Boleyn Ground.”
According to Kilbane during the game they sang that “Harry Kane talks like a mong and plays like one too”, using a derogatory term for people with learning disabilities.
“I am sure they understand they are causing offence,” said Kilbane. “You cannot sweep it under the carpet and label it as ignorance. It is visible and clear and, like racist or homophobic chanting, it is intended to cause offence. I want to be able to take my kids to football matches and when Elsie gets older she will understand about her condition and I would not want her to hear that kind of chanting. If her sister Isla heard it, she would be devastated too, as my friend’s sons were.
“I spoke to him and he was extremely upset and I felt I had to report it. No family should have to put up with it at football matches.
“It is also extremely offensive towards Harry Kane, who is only a young lad, starting out in the game and who does not deserve that kind of disgusting abuse just because he is a footballer.
“This is a wider society problem, not just a problem with football, and idiots are using football as a tool to show their ignorance and discrimination.
“I have spoken to the FA and they have assured me they will investigate it thoroughly. In all my time playing and watching football I have never heard this before. Hopefully we can do something to make sure it isn’t again and this awful chant does not spread.”
OS
Noble: 'Europe is still possible'
Mark Noble said a European spot is possible if West Ham perform like they did against Spurs
Midfielder Mark Noble said the Hammers can still finish in a European qualifying position if they play like they did against Tottenham Hotspur in their remaining 12 league games.
The Hammers stormed to a 2-0 lead, with Noble, who was captaining the team, playing an important role in both goals. First, Cheikhou Kouyate headed his third goal of the season powerfully past Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris before Diafra Sakho doubled their advantage in the second half.
However, Tottenham got a foothold in the game after Danny Rose's mistimed shot nestled in the far corner before Spurs were awarded a penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time, where Harry Kane was on hand to pull Spurs level at the second attempt after Adrian had saved the initial spot kick.
Speaking after the match, the 27-year-old midfielder said: "To be 2-0 up and not win is massively disappointing but I still think we played well.
"We put a lot of effort into the Manchester United game and then had nine men for 20 minutes away at Southampton, West Brom was one game too many really.
"But today was much better, we showed what we can do when we're all fully fit. If we play like that for the rest of the season we still have a great chance of Europe."
Having conceded a late equaliser against Manchester United on Sunday 8 February, the Hammers have lost ground on their rivals for a European qualification spot, drawing their last three league matches.
While clearly disappointed with the result, Noble insisted there were several positives for the Hammers as they prepare for their match with Crystal Palace on Saturday 28 February.
"That's four points dropped recently. But we played well, got a point away at Spurs and we'll move onto to the next game against Crystal Palace at home.
"It's a special game for me and the fans, I love playing in the London derbies. I was enjoying the game, I always love coming here. It was a good atmosphere and at 2-0 I thought we were fully in control. They didn't look like hurting us and if anything we had a good chance to wrap it up when Enner went close.
"I'm not sure what went wrong really, I think we probably invited too much pressure onto us and that made it difficult. I was too far away from the penalty so I don't know if it was or not. Last minute at White Hart Lane it's difficult to take."
Since former West Ham United manager Alan Pardew took over at Crystal Palace, they have won five of their nine games, including wins over Tottenham and Southampton.
Looking ahead to Saturday's game, another London derby, Noble is expecting a tough game: "It'll be nice to see Pards again. I watched their game against Arsenal and they played well.
"They're a good side with exciting players so it'll be tough but if we play like we did today, we have every chance of winning."
Bobby Moore OBE 1941-1993
West Ham United and England's finest-ever captain Bobby Moore OBE died on this day 22 years ago
Bobby Moore OBE, West Ham United's most famous player and England's 1966 World Cup-winning captain, sadly passed away on this day 22 years ago. The central defender made 646 league and cup appearances for the Hammers, scoring 27 goals.
Moore was born in Barking on 12 April 1941, making his debut for his local club in a 3-2 win over Manchester United at the Boleyn Ground as a 17-year-old on 8 September 1958. It was the start of a glittering career that is remembered fondly by football fans the world over.
As a West Ham player, Moore lifted the FA Cup in 1964 and the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1965. A year later, he was back at Wembley to complete an unforgettable hat-trick by lifting the Jules Rimet Trophy following England's 4-2 victory over West Germany.
Moore would go on to star at the 1970 World Cup finals in Mexico before moving to Fulham, for whom he played against the Hammers in the 1975 FA Cup final. Following his retirement, Moore moved first into management and then into the world of broadcasting before his life was cut short by cancer in February 1993. He was just 51.
Fellow Hammers legend Billy Bonds MBE recalls Bobby's memory fondly.
He said: "Mooro was an absolute icon. I respected a lot of team-mates and opponents down the years but he was the only person in my entire career, who made me feel that way.
"He was fantastic to me from the day that I arrived and I loved him as a player and as a person. Bobby Moore had a presence both off and on the field.
"There was no side to him at all and, having lifted the World Cup, he'd been the most famous person on the planet on that July afternoon at Wembley in 1966 but, despite all of that, Bobby wasn't the slightest bit lairy. Mooro treated everyone the same, no matter who they were.
"Bobby Moore wasn't a particularly good header of the ball and he wasn't very quick either but, boy, his timing was impeccable. He didn't need to be good in the air or fast because he could read the game so well - he always seemed to be in the right place at the right time to nick the ball off a centre-forward.
"And he was just so good at bringing the ball out of defence and starting attacks, too."
