BBC
Former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel would be interested in taking over as England manager if Gareth Southgate leaves after the World Cup in Qatar. Tuchel, 49, has rejected offers from two unnamed Premier League clubs since being sacked by Chelsea in September. (Telegraph - subscription required)
Tottenham are interested in signing RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol. The 20-year-old Croatian, who was linked with Chelsea in the summer, last month extended his contract with Leipzig until 2027. (Football Insider)
Chelsea expect to complete the signing of RB Leipzig and France forward Christopher Nkunku, 24, before the start of the World Cup. (Bild via Metro)
Chelsea are also prepared to pay Borussia Dortmund 100m euros (£86.3m) for 19-year-old England midfielder Jude Bellingham, but the Bundesliga side want at least 120m euros (£103.6m). (Bild - in German)
Lazio president Claudio Lotito says Manchester United will not sign the Italian club's Serbian midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, 27, for less than £105m, adding: "every month the price goes up". (Il Messaggero via Mail)
Paris St-Germain have strongly denied claims that they used a third party to launch a social media smear campaign against France striker Kylian Mbappe, 23. (Goal)
Arsenal are planning on opening new contract talks with Switzerland midfielder Granit Xhaka, 30, after the World Cup. (Football Insider)
Netherlands midfielder Frenkie de Jong, 25, wants to leave Barcelona. (Sport - in Spanish)
AC Milan have offered 23-year-old Portugal forward Rafael Leao a new contract in an effort to ward off interest from Chelsea. (Gazzetta dello Sport - in Italian)
Joao Santos, the agent of Chelsea and Italy midfielder Jorginho, has said they both prioritise the 30-year-old staying at Stamford Bridge beyond the end of his contract. (Tuttomercatoweb via Football London)
Atletico Madrid have no intention of selling Portugal forward Joao Felix in January despite the 22-year-old's frustration at playing a bit-part role in recent weeks. (Relevo - in Spanish)
England manager Gareth Southgate will offer his full support to Manchester United and Three Lions centre-back Harry Maguire before the World Cup in Qatar, despite the 29-year-old's struggles at club level. (Mirror)
Former Wolverhampton Wanderers boss Nuno Espirito Santo is targeting a return to management in Europe but would be attracted to take up a position at Molineux again. (Mail)
Newcastle are weighing up a potential move for Vasco de Gama's Brazilian midfielder Andrey Santos, 18. (Mail)
Sky Paper Talk
DAILY MAIL
Kylian Mbappe is at the centre of PSG's squad split with players angry at his privileged role.
Jurgen Klopp and Didi Hamann's friendship is 'over', reports in Germany claim, with the ex-Liverpool midfielder saying he 'doesn't really understand' his countryman's attack on him.
Premier League players and agents are not happy after being ordered by HMRC to provide evidence of involvement in transfers as far back as 2018.
Thomas Tuchel 'has turned down job offers from two unnamed Premier League clubs' since his departure from Chelsea.
N'Golo Kante could be ruled out of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after relapsing from his hamstring injury, according to reports.
Newcastle United are pursuing Vasco de Gama's highly-rated teenage midfielder Andrey Santos.
Juventus' decision to go on a training retreat following their disastrous defeat to Maccabi Haifi has divided the squad, according to reports.
Nuno Espirito Santo is targeting a return to top-level European football barely three months after joining Saudi Arabian club At-Ittihad.
Eddie Jones has confirmed that he intends to carry on coaching until the 2027 World Cup - as he prepares for his final year in charge of England.
THE TIMES
Dan Ashworth says Newcastle's targets are to catch Manchester City, develop the academy and qualify for Europe so they can attract top talent - all while adhering to FFP rules.
Thomas Tuchel would be interested in taking charge of England after the World Cup if Gareth Southgate were to step down.
Azeem Rafiq has been forced to deny fresh allegations that he used antisemitic and homophobic language during his playing career, calling them a "coordinated campaign of lies".
DAILY STAR
World Cup chiefs are planning 'sober tents' for boozed-up fans in Qatar.
Brazil star Walace escaped a £100k supercar wreckage before it bursts into flames.
England fans have begged the FA to replace under-fire boss Gareth Southgate with Thomas Tuchel after the German made it clear he would be interested in the post.
Chelsea are poised to name ex-Manchester City super scout Joe Shields as their new director of recruitment.
THE SUN
Gary Lineker has slammed the referee selling the £2.5-3m valued match ball from Diego Maradona's 'Hand of God' goal against England.
Cristiano Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes has been spotted meeting Barcelona chiefs at a restaurant in the city.
Chelsea want to sign Konrad Laimer in a triple raid of RB Leipzig next summer, according to reports.
Bosnian keeper Tarik Karic has arrived for a Manchester United trial - just a month after his 17th birthday.
Cristiano Ronaldo is set to attend the Ballon d'Or ceremony for the first time in five years.
DAILY MIRROR
Newcastle will refuse to sell Bruno Guimaraes to Real Madrid in January, despite significant interest.
THE ATHLETIC
Clearlake Capital's Jose E. Feliciano says Chelsea have the opportunity to double their revenue.
Marcelo Gallardo announced that he will not return to coach River Plate after his contract ends in December.
Everton defender Yerry Mina will miss Saturday's trip to Tottenham Hotspur after suffering a minor injury setback.
Rangers defender Ben Davies is being assessed for an injury complaint after the 7-1 defeat by Liverpool.
DAILY EXPRESS
Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly is reportedly preparing to go all out for Borussia Dortmund star Jude Bellingham next summer.
Liverpool hold renewed hope of signing Kylian Mbappe after Paris Saint-Germain's wantaway forward previously held a meeting with Reds owner John W Henry on his private jet.
THE GUARDIAN
Qatar's emir has thanked Vladimir Putin for Russia's great support in organising the 2022 World Cup and said he is "proud" of the relationship between the two countries.
DAILY RECORD
James Tavernier has said sorry to the raging Rangers fans who demanded better after another Champions League hiding.
John McGinn revealed he could have been a Hearts star had Tynecastle boss Robbie Neilson followed up an initial phone call before the midfielder left St Mirren for Hibs in 2015.
SCOTTISH SUN
Lee Johnson fears Ryan Porteous will be hounded out of Scottish football.
DAILY TELEGRAPH
The Gallagher Premiership could be reduced to 10 teams in response to the growing financial crisis gripping the English domestic game.
Mail
West Ham 2-1 Anderlecht: Hammers qualify for Europa Conference League knockout stages after first-half strikes from Jarrod Bowen and Said Benrahma... before holding off a late charge after Sebastiano Esposito's penalty
West Ham beat Anderlecht 2-1 in the Europa Conference League on Thursday
Said Benrahma got the Hammers off to the perfect start in just the 14th minute
The Algerian forward's free kick flew into the top left corner to make it 1-0
Jarrod Bowen then doubled the ascendancy with a good finish on 30 minutes
The home side held off a late charge after Sebastiano Esposito's late penalty
However injuries to Angelo Ogbonna and Craig Dawson will worry David Moyes
By Kieran Gill
With a strike that can only catch the eye of a certain national team manager, Jarrod Bowen all but ensured West Ham will reach the Europa Conference League’s round of 16.
They are not confirmed as topping their group but with West Ham needing only a point from their two final games – against Danish side Silkeborg and FCSB of Romania – manager David Moyes knows it would take a Devon Loch-esque collapse from here.
Bowen bagged his third goal in four games since the international break in which he was an unused England substitute, a scorching strike to follow up Said Benrahma’s free-kick opener.
The Algerian forward's set piece goal was hit with deadly accuracy into the bottom left corner
They were two moments of beauty in a match that risked being overshadowed by ugliness with Anderlecht’s fans ripping plastic seats for use as missiles and throwing flares at the home support.
In better news, Bowen can now say he is West Ham's all-time top European scorer with six goals, level with Johnny Byrne and David Cross, and Moyes said afterwards: 'Hopefully he can score a few more. He looks a threat every time we play him.'
Jarrod Bowen doubled the lead for David Moyes' side with a strike from the edge of the box
Thursday night's win means West Ham are guaranteed to finish second in their group at least, which would send them into a two-legged play-off for the round of 16.
Moyes doesn’t want that, having already complained about his club’s silly schedule.
Though keen for the win, he made eight changes last night. That included bringing in Flynn Downes, the 23-year-old midfielder who is getting better with every game and is a threat to Tomas Soucek’s starting spot in the Premier League.
One battle worth watching last night was Lucas Paqueta against Amadou Diawara. Anderlecht’s midfield enforcer was not happy last week when Paqueta showcased some silky skills after coming on as a substitute, feeling it was an arrogant attempt at winding them up.
Diawara warned he would ‘not tolerate’ such showboating and within 30 seconds, Paqueta was on the ground after being tripped. The Brazilian was a lively part of a fluid front three and it was his pass to Benrahma which led to an opportune free-kick being won, 25 yards from goal.
MATCH FACTS
West Ham (3-4-3): Areola 6.5; Johnson 7, Ogbonna 6 (Dawson 22, 6) (Soucek 75, 6), Cresswell 7 (Rice 64, 6); Coufal 7, Lanzini 7, Downes 7.5, Emerson 7; Bowen 8 (Scamacca 64, 6), Paqueta 7 (Fornals 45, 6), Benrahma 7
Subs (not used): Randolph, Hegyi, Coventry, Forson, Potts, Scarles
Scorers: Benrahma (14), Bowen (30)
Booked: Paqueta, Downes
Manager: David Moyes 7
Anderlecht (3-5-2): Van Crombrugge 5.5; Debast 5.5, Delcroix 5.5 (Hoedt 79), N’Diaye 5; Murillo 5, Arnstad 5, Diawara 5 (Sadiki 45, 6), Verschaeren 5 (Vertonghen 66, 6), Amuzu 5 (Stroeykens 66, 6); Silva 5 (Stassin 79), Esposito 5
Subs (not used): Verbruggen, Coosemans, Raman, Ishaq, Ait El Hadj, Sardella, Leoni
Booked: Arnstad
Manager: Felice Mazzu 5
Referee: Willy Delajod 6
Telegraph
Fans clash as West Ham close in on next round of Europa Conference League
The victory at home puts David Moyes' men top of their group with four wins from four
West Ham 2 RSC Anderlecht 1
By John Aizlewood, at the London Stadium
West Ham all but secured a place in the last 16 of the Europa Conference League after cruising past a wretched Anderlecht, although the win was marred by crowd trouble.
Had Group B rivals Silkeborg failed to beat FCSB, West Ham would have been confirmed in the knockout stage.
They now need just a point from the visit of the Danish side and trip to FCSB in Romania to guarantee the last-16 place without the inconvenience of a play-off.
“We need a point,” said David Moyes, the West Ham manager. “But the big thing was always to be in Europe after Christmas.”
The winning margin was slender, but West Ham won the most one-sided 2-1 imaginable without needing to break sweat. Their dominance was complete until the 89th minute, when they gifted their opponents a penalty – Ben Johnson clattering into Sebastiano Esposito, the Italian on loan from Inter Milan.
As the game reached its conclusion, there were disturbances after an Anderlecht supporter invaded the pitch and sections of the noisy away support threw seats and flares and attempted to confront the home fans.
Police officers were injured as fans ripped up seats Credit: GETTY IMAGES
“I saw nothing,” shrugged Anderlecht coach Felice Mazzu, although a club spokesman later said: “We do not tolerate this behaviour, we strongly condemn it and we apologise to West Ham.”
“Credit to the club,” said Moyes, “but I didn’t have any interest in it. Nobody should have an interest in it and it’s not something we should be talking about.”
An underwhelming ninth in the Belgian first division, Anderlecht are the palest of shadows in comparison to the swashbucklers who defeated West Ham in the 1976 Cup-Winners’ Cup final. Where Rob Rensenbrink and Francois Van der Elst once stood, now they have Wolves loanee Fabio Silva, the £35 million misfit without a goal on English soil since May 2021.
West Ham made the early running, picking probing and tempting the Belgians into giving away cheap free-kicks on the edge of the area. In the 14th minute, nature took its course when Amadou Diawara crudely felled Said Benrahma. Faced with a wall that would have passed no building inspections, Benrahma curled the ball through it. The joy was tempered only by Silkeborg already being two ahead as they cruised to a 5-0 victory.
No matter, West Ham were soon two up themselves. Emerson gambolled down the left, untroubled by anything so much as a challenge. The Italian-Brazilian rolled the ball into the path of Jarrod Bowen. Moussa Ndiaye played “After You, Alphonse” and Bowen gratefully swept home to become West Ham’s joint-top European scorer alongside Johnny “Budgie” Byrne and David Cross.
Even after the introduction of some big guns, home thoughts had long turned to Southampton on Sunday, when West Ham’s somnambulant approach brought the punishment of Esposito’s penalty – “a very poor decision,” said Moyes. Johnson appealed for a Var review, although Var is not available in the Conference. It served as a reminder that danger lurks everywhere in Europe.
Match details
West Ham United (4-3-3): Areola 6; Coufal 6, Johnson 6, Ogbonna 6 (Dawson, 22, Soucek, 75), Cresswell 6 (Rice, 63); Downes 6, Lanzini, Emerson 7; Bowen 7 (Scamacca, 64), Paqueta 6 (Fornals, HT), Benrahma 7.
Subs not used: Randolph (g), Hegyi (g), Soucek, Coventry, Forson, Potts, Scarles.
Booked: Paqueta, Downes.
RSC Anderlecht (4-5-1): Van Crombrugge 6; Debast 6, Delcroix 6 (Hoedt, 79) Ndiaye 6; Murillo 6, Diawara 6 (Sadiki, 59), Verschaeren 5 (Vertonghen, 67), Esposito 6 5, Arnstad, Amuzu 5 (Stroeykens, 66); Silva 4 (Stassin, 79).
Not used: Verbruggen (g), Coosemans (g), Raman, Ishaq,, El Hadj, Sardella, Leoni.
Booked: Arnstad.
Referee: Willy Delajod (France).
