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Alan 1:16 Sun Jan 13
Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

BBC

Manchester United are considering an approach for England boss Gareth Southgate as they continue to search for Jose Mourinho's permanent successor. (Sunday Telegraph)

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone, whose contract with the Spanish club expires in 18 months, is also on Manchester United's shortlist to become their next manager. (Sunday Mirror)

Tottenham have put a £310m price tag on England striker Harry Kane with Real Madrid rumoured to be interested in the 25-year-old. (Sun on Sunday)

Arsenal have told Juventus they will have to pay £18m to sign midfielder Aaron Ramsey in January if the Italian club do not want to wait to sign him on a free transfer when the 28-year-old's contract runs out in the summer. (Sunday Mirror)

Real Madrid will bid for Chelsea forward Eden Hazard, 28, and Tottenham midfielder Christian Eriksen, 26, in the summer when the pair will have a year left on their contracts. (Sun on Sunday)

Tottenham are willing to match Paris St-Germain's offer for Netherlands midfielder Frenkie de Jong in order to sign the 21-year-old as a replacement for Christian Eriksen. (Sunday Express)

West Ham will make another offer for Newcastle midfielder Jonjo Shelvey, 26, after having a £10m bid rejected. (Sunday Express)

Manchester United captain Antonio Valencia, 33, is set to leave Old Trafford when his contract expires in the summer. Inter Milan are interested in signing the Ecuador international. (Sunday Mirror)

AC Milan are preparing a move to sign Manchester United and Belgium midfielder Marouane Fellaini, 31. (Mail on Sunday)

Chelsea have enquired about Paris St-Germain midfielder Adrien Rabiot. The 23-year-old France international is also a target for Barcelona. (L'Equipe - in French)

Juventus have rejected Chelsea's offer of swapping Spain striker Alvaro Morata, 26, for the Old Lady's 31-year-old striker Gonzalo Higuain. (Calciomercato)

Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho has decided to stay at Barcelona despite reportedly being unhappy at the Nou Camp. Manchester United are interested in bringing the 26-year-old former Liverpool man back to the Premier League. (Mundo Deportivo - in Spanish)

Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi, 18, wants the Blues to let him leave the club this week with Bayern Munich set to seal his signature. (Mail on Sunday)

Chelsea and Brazil winger Willian is a target for Chinese Super League club Dalian Yifang. The 30-year-old is also wanted by Barcelona. (Sunday Mirror)

Manchester City are considering a move for Napoli and Brazil midfielder Allan, 28. (Tuttomercato - in Italian)

Arsenal will finalise the signing of Barcelona midfielder Denis Suarez, 25, next week with the clubs set to settle on a loan deal with a permanent option. (Mundo Deportivo - in Spanish)

Everton have placed a £20m price tag on Turkey striker Cenk Tosun, 27. (Liverpool Echo)

West Ham may make a move for Bournemouth and England striker Callum Wilson, 26, if Austria forward Marko Arnautovic, 29, leaves the club. (Mail on Sunday)

Newcastle have been told they must stump up 12m euros (£10.7m) if they want to sign AC Milan and Uruguay midfielder Diego Laxalt, 25. (Calciomercato)

West Ham midfielder Pedro Obiang is a target for Fiorentina. The 26-year-old Equatorial Guinea international wants to return to Italy having previously played for Sampdoria. (Mail on Sunday)

Wolves' Brazilian striker Leo Bonatini, 24, is in talks with Greek side PAOK. (Mail on Sunday)

Manchester City and Wales midfielder Rabbi Matondo, 18, has rejected the offer of a new contract. (Sun on Sunday)

Leeds are considering a loan move for Arsenal's Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, 26. (Mail on Sunday)






Mail

West Ham 1-0 Arsenal: Declan Rice exposes weakness at the heart of shot-shy Gunners with first Hammers goal as Samir Nasri provides assist

West Ham came out on top and took a narrow 1-0 victory against London rivals Arsenal on Saturday
Youngster Declan Rice opened the scoring on 48 minutes following an assist from midfielder Samir Nasri
Nasri was playing against his former club after signing a short-term deal with the Hammers last month
The result saw the Hammers momentarily move up to joint-seventh place, level on points with Leicester

By Rob Draper

Arsenal's Head of Football Raul Sanllehi made a candid remark last autumn. As his team chalked up a 22-match unbeaten run, he observed: 'Performance has probably not been at the level of the results.'

Sanllehi, a football man schooled at Barcelona, could see that Arsenal were winging it. There were some good moments undoubtedly and the 4-2 win over Tottenham represented Unai Emery's zenith thus far in England.

Yet Sanllehi could see that winter was coming. On a grey, cold day at the London Stadium amidst the post-Christmas gloom, Arsenal confronted the reality of a bleak midwinter. Whether they have hunkered down and put away enough reserves to sustain them is highly debatable.


Declan Rice remained composed when the ball was cut back by Samir Nasri and rifled it into the goal to put West Ham ahead


Midfielder Rice unleashed a passionate celebration after breaking the deadlock just after the restart of the second half


Rice was mobbed by captain Mark Noble and his West Ham team-mates as scenes got lively at the London Stadium

Twenty-two matches unbeaten has turned into three wins in eight, during which there have been four defeats, including this one.

With Mesut Ozil not even making the bench – three full backs were deemed a better back-up option – they looked a club hamstrung by past decisions.

Such money as there was has been spent. Now they talk about nicking a loan signing. Fourth place is slipping away. Manchester United will likely overhaul them soon for fifth, having been eight points adrift less than a month ago.

They haven't won away from home in the Premier League since beating Bournemouth in November. That's another throwback to Arsene Wenger's last season, when they won just four games away from home.

Put simply, Emery won't ever build a solid foundation on a defence of Shkodran Mustafi, Sokratis and Laurent Koscielny, who is still recovering his poise after six months out.

You can't expect to dominate a midfield with Matteo Guendouzi, understandably waning in his first season at the age of 19, and the erratic Granit Xhaka.

There is a deficit of quality at Arsenal and owner Stan Kroenke won't be funding a spending spree any time soon. So, unless there are outstanding prospects in the academy, it's going to be a long and slow clamber back to being a top-four team again and require some particularly shrewd buying and selling.

'We couldn't control the match like we wanted, conceded Emery afterwards. 'We had some chances but not enough for winning.

Maybe the first twenty minutes when we created some chances was when we could start thinking about winning this match, but after that it was difficult because over 90 minutes we didn't impose all the things we wanted.'


Sead Kolasinac threw himself into every challenge during the contest and later picked up a yellow card


Manager Manuel Pellegrini was in constant dialogue with Arnautovic as he looked to get his tactics across

As such, whatever your views are on Ozil, you might think he might have made the bench. Things must be pretty bad for him not even to merit twenty minutes at the end of the game.

'I think we have enough players to win today and impose our game plan and our tactical plan and quality against them,' was Emery's assessment. 'Maybe for this match, some attacking players can help. But I think we had enough with these players. We win with him, we lose with him. I think it's not one player that is saying we can't win or lose.'

That Arsenal were poor was clear. What shouldn't be overlooked was that West Ham were good. Specifically Declan Rice, 19, and one of the players of this season, was very good. Arsenal had started out with a 3-4-3 formation, seemingly a cautious default after their mauling at Liverpool: it looked more like 5-2-3 at times. As such, Guendouzi and Xhaka were utterly outclassed and overwhelmed in midfield by Declan Rice and Mark Noble.

'He is very strong in aerial duals, he is strong one versus one, he has a good technique and he demonstrated that in the goal he scored,' said Manuel Pellegrini of Rice.

'So I'm sure that we are seeing a top player soon for West Ham and also for the national squad that he decides to play for. Maybe in this position he can score more goals but the second step for him to continue improving is to try to have a good view of all the pitch.'

Yet there was an additional painful reminder of the past for Arsenal in Samir Nasri. He has returned from an 18-month drug ban, before anyone gets too misty eyed about his first Premier League game since August 2016, but there were some delightful moments which suggested this may be a risk worth taking. 'He is a top player and when he has more minutes and he is 100 per cent he will make a difference for us,' said Pellegrini.


Nasri got plenty of the ball in the opening stages of the match, and was heavily marked by the Arsenal midfield

As for the unsettled Marko Arnautovic, he was having that game where he does nothing and then produces one touch to convince you he is irreplaceable.

It came in the 33rd minute, where he burst into life, running in behind the Arsenal back three. The ball looked too far beyond him to be controlled, but with one exquisite touch he brought it down and set up Nasri, who held the ball up for Felipe Anderson to shoot from the edge of the box. The Brazilian struck it well enough but wide.

That was almost as exciting as it got in the opening half. Rice went close with a header on the stroke of half-time while Arsenal's best chances came when Sead Kolasinac drove into the box on 23 minutes but failed to either shoot or deliver a decent cut back. Matteo Guendouzi then struck a swerving shot with some force on 35 minutes, which curled just wide.

Arsenal's slackness cost them when they would fail to clear a Felipe Anderson corner on 48 minutes, allowing the Brazilian to drive back to the goal-line again and pull the ball back. Xhaka cushioned a soft header out to Nasri. Coolly he touched the ball to Rice, who in turn struck it cleanly, curling past Bernd Leno, his first goal for West Ham.

Emery brought on Aaron Ramsey and Lucas Torreira and reverted to a back four. Immediately improving. Kolasinac played in Aubameyang on 65 minutes and the Frenchman shot just wide. Alex Iwobi broke free on 66 minutes and did the same. However that flurry was the best Arsenal could manage, and it wouldn't get any better.






Guardian

Declan Rice’s sweet finish for his first West Ham goal downs Arsenal

Jacob Steinberg at the London Stadium

While body language experts debated whether Marko Arnautovic was waving goodbye or thanking the crowd for a warm round of applause after his substitution in the second half, it was a day when the limelight ended up shining on the local lad who has been earmarked as the leader of West Ham’s next generation.

After all the fuss over Arnautovic’s desire to take a lucrative offer from an unnamed Chinese club, the biggest roar here was reserved for the moment when a crisp finish from Declan Rice gave West Ham the edge over one of the blander Arsenal sides in recent memory.

They have a rich heritage of producing their own in these parts and there is no doubt that they have unearthed a gem in Rice, a youngster whose maturity continues to take the breath away.

To put his rise into context, the defensive midfielder’s first senior goal arrived two days before his 20th birthday. Rice’s latest immaculate display underlined why West Ham tied him down to a new long-term deal last month, not to mention why he is coveted by England and the Republic of Ireland.

Rice was everywhere, frustrating Unai Emery’s toothless side with a series of unfussy interventions, and it is unlikely that anyone in claret and blue will score a more popular goal this season.

“I am sure Declan will be a top player,” Manuel Pellegrini said. “He is very strong in the aerial duels and has good technique, as we saw with the goal he scored.”

The West Ham manager was just as delighted his side provided further evidence that his attacking approach is working. They achieved their first home win over Arsenal since 2006 with one of their most complete performances of the season, outplaying opponents with designs on qualifying for the Champions League. “I am pleased with the way we played,” Pellegrini said. “We tried to have an ambitious mind.”

Ever the showman, Arnautovic bleached his hair for the occasion. Yet this was a subdued performance from the Austrian, who went off with pain in his back for the second successive week, and the early threat emanated from Arsenal.

The visitors almost scored when Alex Iwobi played Alexandre Lacazette into space vacated by Angelo Ogbonna, only for Lukasz Fabianski to deny the forward with a fine stop.

Emery criticised his players for failing to impose themselves on West Ham and, following their manager’s recent admission that he has funds for only loan signings this month, it was impossible not to feel that Arsenal have got themselves into an unenviable bind when it comes to Mesut Özil. He did not even merit a place on a bench containing three full-backs and a 19-year-old forward, Eddie Nketiah, who has never started a Premier League game.

Özil is Arsenal’s biggest earner by a considerable distance. Was it not a luxury to travel to West Ham without a player on £350,000 a week? “The players that were here were the players that deserved to be at this match,” Emery said.

Yet Arsenal have taken two points from their previous five away games and their failure to score in the league for the first time since the opening weekend exposed their creative deficit.

West Ham were the stronger side in the final third, with Felipe Anderson’s quick feet causing problems and Samir Nasri determined to silence the constant taunts from the away end. The former Arsenal midfielder was influential in the No 10 role and produced the assist for Rice’s goal.

Slack defending led to the breakthrough in the 48th minute. Anderson skipped round a lacklustre challenge from Lacazette and when Granit Xhaka met the winger’s cross with a lazy header, Nasri fed a composed pass to Rice, who swept a shot high to Bernd Leno’s left.

Emery responded by replacing Xhaka with Aaron Ramsey and switching to a back four, Shkodran Mustafi making way for Lucas Torreira. There was a brief flurry from Arsenal, Iwobi threatening, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang firing over.

Those were isolated moments, though, and Aubameyang spent most of the game pining for the kind of service Özil could have provided.





Telegraph

Declan Rice scores first West Ham goal as Arsenal fall to second successive Premier League away defeat

Ben Findon, London Stadium

Will Marko Arnautovic stay, can Samir Nasri recapture past glories, and where, exactly, was Mesut Ozil? Amid all the question marks over big-name performers, it was fast-emerging home-grown prospect Declan Rice who had the decisive say as West Ham deepened Arsenal's problems on the road.

Rice, who turns 20 on Monday, lashed home his first senior goal early in the second half to leave Arsenal without an away league success since the visit to Bournemouth last November. It was only West Ham's second league win in 22 atttempts against their near neighbours.

The future of the London-born defensive talent is already assured, Rice having recently signed a five-and-a-half year contract extension and his man-the-match performance was hailed by Manuel Pellegrini, the West Ham manager.

"Declan will be a top player. He improves in every game he plays," Pellegrini said. "He is very strong, good technique. I am sure he will be a top player soon."

Rice's international destination is less certain. He is eligible for either England or the Republic of Ireland but this was a red-letter day, another step on the way to wider recognition.

Just how much longer Arnautovic resides in east London remains to be seen. The Austrian striker appears to have set his heart on a move to Chinese Super League champions Shanghai SIPG, who are reportedy ready to double his wages.

West Ham have already rebuffed a £35 million offer from the Chinese but after Arnautovic's brother presented an impassioned case for the move to go ahead, the saga threatens to overshadow the forthcoming weeks.

It all has an echo of unhappy events two years ago when another West Ham icon, Dmitri Payet, forced through a move to Marseille that derailed the campaign under then manager Slaven Bilic.

Not that Arnautovic's West Ham sojourn is turning sour just yet. Cheered as his name was announced before kick-off, there was also warm appreciation for his first contribution, spinning the ball out to Michail Antonio on the wing.

There was no doubting his commitment to the cause either, his frustration all too visible when his attempt following some neat West Ham passing was blocked 15 yards out on the half-hour mark. But was that a wave of farewell when he saluted the gallery upon his 71st-minute substitution?

Pellegrini said: "We will see what happens in the next few days and I hope he will take the best decision. I have been in this position a lot of times in my 30 years but I am calm with nothing 100 per cent sure."

Another West Ham forward, Samir Nasri, endured a less friendly reception on his home league debut. His departure from Arsenal for Manchester City in 2011 has been neither forgotten nor forgiven by many Arsenal followers.

The 31-year-old's qualities remain undimmed, scaring Arsenal with a shot from a tight angle, teeing up Felipe Anderson, only for the Brazilian to drill wide, then laying on the only goal of the game. There were plenty of the old touches on show until his departure, to a standing ovation, 20 minutes from the end.

"He is a top player and when he is 100 per cent fit he will make a difference," said Pellegrini, who was in charge of Nasri during his time at Manchester City.

Despite training all week and being apparently ready to play, Mesut Ozil did not feature in Arsenal's travelling party, raising fresh questions about his role in manager Unai Emery's long-term plans.

"I decided the best players for this match but none of our players are for sale," Emery said. "Mesut has worked this week normally but we win with him and lose with him. The players in this match, they can win."

The Arsenal manager felt his side deserved a share of the spoils. "If you look at the chances in the match, maybe the result was not what we deserved."

Arsenal indeed create openings and should have moved in front after 22 minutes when Sead Kolasinac galloped in from the left but instead of shooting at a clear target, pulled the ball back, allowing the outstanding Rice to scramble clear.

Despite the many fascinating sub-plots, this was a London derby that took a while to burst into life. The first half was well-balanced but largely uneventful but within three minutes of the resumption, there was a dramatic breakthrough.

The home side had resumed positively and when Anderson's cut-back was only cleared as far as Nasri by Granit Xhaka, the newcomer promptly fed Rice who smashed home from 12 yards.

Emery shuffled the pack, replacing Shkodran Mustafi and Xhaka with Aaron Ramsey and Lucas Torreira and switching to a 4-3-3 formation.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alex Iwobi were both narrowly off target as the visitors displayed some sense of urgency but the men from the Emirates failed to score in the league for the first time since the opening weekend of the season on another awayday of deep frustration.





Mail

West Ham's Pedro Obiang eyed by Fiorentina... and the midfielder is keen to return to Italy this month

He joined West Ham from Sampdoria and has made over 100 appearances
But he is keen on a return to Italy after dipping in and out of the starting line-up
Pedro Obiang came on from the bench during West Ham's win over Arsenal

By Simon Jones

West Ham midfielder Pedro Obiang is wanted by Fiorentina.

The 26-year-old joined from Sampdoria in 2015 and has made over 100 appearances for West Ham but has yearned for a return to Italy.

He has been in and out of the starting line-up this season, making 17 appearances, but was on the bench against Arsenal on Saturday and came on in the second-half.

West Ham have received offers before but they have fallen short of their valuation.

Obiang watched on as his team-mates managed an impressive victory against their London rivals Arsenal at lunchtime on Saturday.

Declan Rice — one of the players to leap ahead of Obiang in the pecking order — scored the only goal of the game, his first senior strike for the Hammers.




HITC

West Ham immediately fail with ambitious bid for Amadou Diawara

Olly Dawes

West Ham United have reportedly failed with a move for Napoli's Amadou Diawara.



According to Tuttomercatoweb, West Ham United wanted to land Amadou Diawara to replace Pedro Obiang – but were immediately snubbed by Napoli.

The Hammers beat Arsenal 1-0 on Saturday afternoon, in what may have been Obiang's final game for the club amid rumours of a move to Fiorentina.

If Obiang does go, then West Ham will absolutely need to bring in a midfielder to replace him, as they aren't exactly blessed with options in that area of the pitch as it is.

Now, Tuttomercatoweb report that, with Obiang set for a move back to Italy, West Ham did want a Serie A replacement in Napoli's Diawara.

However, Napoli boss Carlo Ancelotti allegedly said no immediately, reluctant to let the 21-year-old move on during the January transfer window.

The Guinean has been struggling for playing time under Ancelotti this season, starting just six Serie A games whilst making only four substitute appearances.

Amadou Diawara of SSC Napoli during the Serie A TIM match between SSC Napoli and Parma Calcio at Stadio San Paolo Naples Italy on 26 September 2018.

Formerly of Bologna, Diawara is a promising young midfielder with a bright future ahead of him, but he needs playing time – and right now, that isn't coming with Napoli.

West Ham seemingly tried their luck with an ambitious replacement for Obiang, but with Napoli and Ancelotti seemingly unwilling to do business, it's back to the drawing board for the Hammers.




Sport Witness

Player being pursued for transfer by ‘beautiful’ West Ham and Aston Villa

There’s a claim in the French media that West Ham United and Aston Villa are showing an interest in Le Havre defender Harold Moukoudi.



The 21 year old has been receiving attention from clubs across Europe, including the two English sides.

L’Equipe today report West Ham and Aston Villa are among a number of ‘beautiful’ foreign clubs tracking Moukoudi, including Sevilla, Borussia Dortmund, Wolfsburg and Napoli. French clubs Lyon, Saint-Etienne, Rennes, Nice have also been linked with the young central defender.

Both West Ham and Aston Villa could be looking to bolster their squads as they go into the second half of the season and the Frenchman looks to be an option.

It’s also claimed Moukoudi was close to a €8m move to England in the last summer transfer window but the club hasn’t been disclosed by L’Equipe.

Moukoudi has yet to feature for Le Havre in 2019 dur to his contract situation and the lack of a renewal.

The player is contracted to his club until June 2019 and subsequently can speak to foreign clubs with regards to a pre-contract agreement.

Exiled In Surrey 12:20 Mon Jan 14
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

chim chim cha boo 10:35 Mon Jan 14

Russ of the BML 11:09 Mon Jan 14
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Zion 9:51 Sun Jan 13

LOL

chim chim cha boo 10:35 Mon Jan 14
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan.

SDKFZ 222 10:50 Sun Jan 13
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Zion 9:51 Sun Jan 13

Haha, the irony!

Just as the supporters of WOOLWICH Arsenal constantly sang ‘You’re not West Ham anymore.’

Zion 9:51 Sun Jan 13
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

"What shouldn't be overlooked was that West Ham were good" says Rob Draper in the Mail; something he overlooks for until the 16th paragraph of his article...

Thanks Alan. Thalan.

Mex Martillo 9:48 Sun Jan 13
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan

Texas Iron 5:32 Sun Jan 13
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Cheers...

mallard 1:17 Sun Jan 13
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Thanks and God bless you Alan

Thanks Alan 1:17 Sun Jan 13
Re: Sunday newspapers (includes West Ham)

Thanks Alan