Friday newspapers (includes West Ham)

[Alan]

"BBC Crystal Palace are expected to open initial talks about a new contract with 25-year-old England winger Eberechi Eze, whose current deal runs until 2025. (Athletic - subscription required) Manchester United are willing to sell England winger Jadon Sancho, who they bought for ¬£73m from Borussia Dortmund, in a cut-price deal in January. (Star) Tottenham are to trigger an option in 31-year-old South Korea forward Son Heung-min's contract which will extend his deal by a further year until 2026. (Telegraph - subscription required) Bayern Munich will compete with Real Madrid to sign Chelsea captain and England full-back Reece James next year. (Fichajes - in Spanish) Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah is set to leave the club in January, with the 24-year-old English defender keen on a move to Bayern Munich after rejecting Nottingham Forest. (Fabrizio Romano) Barcelona boss Xavi has agreed a one-year contract extension until 2025 in a deal which has the option to be extended by a further 12 months. (ESPN) Juventus have joined Liverpool, Paris St-Germain, Bayern Munich and Tottenham in the race to sign 22-year-old France midfielder Khephren Thuram from Nice. (90min) Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United are interested in Norway and Club Bruges winger Antonio Nusa, with the 18-year-old valued at around ¬£30m. (Express) Manchester United players are still angry at the treatment of former goalkeeper keeper David de Gea, after the Spaniard, 32, was allowed to leave on a free transfer in the summer. (Sun) Former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann, 36, is close to reaching an agreement to become the new Germany manager. (Fabrizio Romano) Liverpool are ready to contact the representatives of Spain midfielder Thiago Alcantara and Cameroonian defender Joel Matip, who are both 32, to discuss new deals. Both players are out of contract next summer. (Caught Offside) Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku split from representatives Roc Nation shortly after the 30-year-old moved to Roma on loan from Chelsea this summer. (Telegraph - subscription required) A number of Premier League sides, including Wolves, Everton and Nottingham Forest are ready to make a move for Michail Antonio if the 33-year-old Jamaica striker fails to agree a new deal with West Ham. (Football Insider) Fulham manager Marco Silva admits he ""cannot control"" where Portugal midfielder Joao Palhinha's future lies, amid reports that Bayern Munich will pursue a deal for the 28-year-old in January. (Standard) Tottenham have parted company with chief scout Leonardo Gabbanini prior to the club's anticipated appointment of a new sporting director. (Guardian) Barcelona will prioritise a contract extension for Netherlands midfielder Frenkie de Jong, despite the 26-year-old's current deal not expiring until 2026. (Sport) Barcelona president Joan Laporta says the club's financial recovery will be complete ""sooner than expected"". (90min) Sky Paper Talk DAILY MIRROR Manchester United are ready to sell Jadon Sancho to the highest bidder in the January transfer window after Erik ten Hag decided to cut his losses. Steven Gerrard has admitted he would have stayed at Liverpool had he known Jurgen Klopp was on the way. THE SUN Manchester United stars are still seething at the way dumped goalkeeper David De Gea was treated. Farhad Moshiri is so desperate to sell Everton he is willing to accept an offer in instalments. DAILY MAIL Sean Dyche is set to benefit from 777 Partners' protracted attempts to buy Everton as the club are unlikely to have the funds to sack their manager until a takeover is completed. Harry Arter is determined to see out his contract at Nottingham Forest after failing to come to an agreement to end his stay at the City Ground. Tottenham chief scout Leonardo Gabbanini has left ahead of further structural changes at the north London club. Burnley star Anass Zaroury is backing an aid effort to help Moroccans in the wake of this month's devastating earthquake in the country. THE EXPRESS Chelsea are reportedly waiting to learn whether they can proceed with plans to redevelop Stamford Bridge after making an offer to purchase a plot of land situated next to the stadium. THE ATHLETIC Crystal Palace are expected to open initial talks with Eberechi Eze over a new contract. Stuart Dallas returned to Leeds training on Thursday after almost 18 months out with a serious knee injury. The Premier League's crackdown on time-wasting this season has stretched the playing time of the average match by almost 12 minutes, resulting in more action, more cards and more goals. FIFA is at the centre of escalating tensions with the Kroenke family, the owners of Los Angeles' SoFi Stadium, over the terms of the agreement to be a host venue at the 2026 men's World Cup. Sweden captain Kosovare Asllani says her side are planning a joint show of support with the Spain Women's team in their meeting on Friday as Spain prepare for their first match since Luis Rubiales kissed Jenni Hermoso after the World Cup final. Scott Munn officially started work as Tottenham's new chief football officer on Thursday. THE TIMES Europe's Ryder Cup players have been practising with their team-mates' golf balls in an attempt to avoid the last-minute pairings reshuffle that affected the build-up in 2021. DAILY TELEGRAPH Tottenham will spare themselves another summer of uncertainty over their star player by triggering an option to extend the contract of Heung-Min Son. Roc Nation Sports has parted company with Romelu Lukaku in what represents another blow for the Chelsea striker, who is on loan at Roma. Paris Saint-Germain are projected to receive the most of any club in guaranteed earnings from this season‚Äôs Champions League group stages despite never having won the competition. James Anderson's international career looks set to continue into a 23rd year after he was offered a new deal in a batch of central contracts that includes around 20 multi-year deals. THE GUARDIAN The Premier League is confident of finally agreeing a deal to increase financial redistribution to the EFL after a meeting between executives of the leagues and club officials this week. EVENING STANDARD Marco Silva admitted he ""cannot control"" where Joao Palhinha's long-term future lies, amid reports Bayern Munich will continue their pursuit of the player in the January transfer window. DAILY RECORD Winger Nemanja Jovic is reportedly on Celtic's radar as he weighs up his next move - and the Scottish champions may already have their answer after the player's agent broke his silence. SCOTTISH SUN Aberdeen hit out at a ""small minority"" of their own fans after missiles including a lit flare were thrown at Eintracht Frankfurt fans during the Europa League clash in Germany. Guardian Mohammed Kudus makes his mark to help West Ham overcome TSC Jacob Steinberg Mohammed Kudus marked a fine performance against TSC with a second-half goal. Photograph: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images After making the mistake of being too passive either side of half-time, this turned into a useful exercise for West Ham. It is rare for David Moyes‚Äôs side to dominate possession and they needed to be smart after a dreadful error from Angelo Ogbonna handed TSC Backa Topola a lead to defend at the start of the second half. The pressure was on, particularly as TSC are the weakest team in Group A, and West Ham responded. They moved the ball at greater speed, stretched the play and made a winning start to their Europa League campaign after puncturing TSC‚Äôs defence with their ability to load the box and overwhelm opponents with James Ward-Prowse‚Äôs threat from a dead ball. What a start Ward-Prowse has made to his time in east London. There were two more assists for the midfielder here, which will delight Moyes. The manager fought to bring Ward-Prowse in from Southampton in the summer, reasoning that his clever passing and set-piece prowess would improve his side, and can take immense satisfaction from how West Ham have recovered from selling Declan Rice to Arsenal for ¬£105m. Shrewd reinvestment has them dreaming. Ward-Prowse has had an immediate impact, providing efficiency and experience, and this victory was also notable for an incisive full debut from Mohammed Kudus on the right flank. Kudus, who is still getting up to speed after joining from Ajax, did not hide when West Ham fell behind. The Ghana forward kept bursting into dangerous positions and, having forced the own goal that brought Moyes‚Äôs side level with 24 minutes left, went on to make it 2-1 by opening his account for his new side with a glancing header from a Ward-Prowse corner. The hope for Moyes is that creative talents such as Kudus turn West Ham into a more artful side. Never happier than when they are absorbing pressure and waiting for opportunities to strike on the break, this was a different kind of test for them. TSC, intent on smothering and spoiling as they adjusted to playing in Europe for the first time, had done their homework. There was no chance of them pushing up during the first half. The plan was to sit back and make West Ham play in front of them. It worked well for long periods, with the visitors twice threatening to snatch the lead as half-time approached, though West Ham could not be accused of a lack of endeavour. Not once has Moyes treated these Thursday night assignments as an inconvenience. Playing in Europe has been an enriching experience, not least when Jarrod Bowen was running through to settle last season‚Äôs Europa Conference League final, and Moyes has always sent his side out with the right attitude. ames Ward-Prowse continued his fine form since joining West Ham in the summer. Photograph: DeFodi Images/Getty Images There are obvious benefits to Moyes leading West Ham into three consecutive European campaigns for the first time in their history. There is depth to the Scot‚Äôs squad and it initially seemed that West Ham would overwhelm TSC. The Serbian leaders were anything but expansive. Yet the problem for West Ham, who visit Liverpool on Sunday and made nine changes, was that they failed to strike when they were on top. Danny Ings and Thilo Kehrer tested Nikola Simic before Konstantinos Mavropanos, who was handed his debut in central defence, headed narrowly wide from a corner. Where TSC were effective, though, was in minimising Lucas Paquet?°‚Äôs influence. They squeezed the midfielder‚Äôs space and others in claret and blue had to step up. Sa?Ød Benrahma needed more consistency on the left, Ings more tenacity up front, and Pablo Fornals could not complain about being replaced by Michail Antonio in the 61st minute. West Ham were behind at that stage, TSC punishing a lack of urgency when Petar Stanic dispossessed Ogbonna at the start of the second half. The Italian, the last defender, could do nothing to stop Stanic running through to beat Lukasz Fabianski with a firm finish. Now West Ham had to stay calm. The entrance of Antonio made a difference, stretching TSC and making space on the flanks. Five minutes later Benrahma perked up, twisting and turning before crossing from the left. Kudus attacked the ball and Nemanja Petrovic turned it into his own net. It was not long before West Ham led. The aerial barrage wore TSC down and Kudus took advantage of poor marking by heading in Ward-Prowse‚Äôs corner. Tomas Soucek, on as a substitute, made the scoreline look more emphatic by scoring from another Ward-Prowse set piece with eight minutes left. The Athletic Mohammed Kudus has already proved why West Ham wanted to sign him so badly The ¬£38m summer signing from Ajax has wasted no time in having an impact for new club West Ham Roshane Thomas It was just past the half-hour mark against TSC Backa Topola when Mohammed Kudus showed why West Ham United were so keen to sign him this summer. The ¬£38million ($48m) signing from top Dutch side Ajax scored on his first start as the club marked their Europa League return with a 3-1 home win in last night‚Äôs group-stage opener, but it was a dazzling solo run in the 37th minute which served notice of his talents. Kudus received the ball from James Ward-Prowse, who would contribute two assists to the victory, and glided past five players to initiate a break for the home side: The TSC players tried in vain to retrieve possession from Kudus, but he held them off with ease: The move ended with him threading a pass to Thilo Kehrer, who cut inside, only for his shot to be blocked: Even so, in a game that lacked quality in its early stages, it was a moment which proved Kudus could be the difference-maker. The versatile forward had interest from Chelsea in the summer, but they stalled on finalising a move. Having missed out on winger Jeremy Doku, who joined Manchester City from French club Rennes, West Ham were so determined to get Kudus they kept coming back with offers until Ajax finally agreed to do business after the third one. During negotiations, Tim Steidten, their new technical director appointed earlier this summer, convinced the 23-year-old Ghana international he would develop into a key player for the east London club. Kudus signed a five-year deal, with the option of a further season, including a salary that is significantly higher than his one in Amsterdam. Before his home debut off the bench in Saturday‚Äôs loss to champions City, Kudus spoke about how he intends to impress in English football. ‚ÄúI like to entertain the fans as I think that is what football is about, and my dribbling ability, strength and finishing also,‚Äù he said. ‚ÄúThe fans should expect some entertainment!‚Äù Thursday‚Äôs performance ‚Äì following cameo appearances off the bench against Luton Town and then City ‚Äì suggests he intends to make good on his promise. Kudus has already proven popular off the field. One supporter travelled the 3,000 miles from Kudus‚Äô west African homeland to watch him in last night‚Äôs match, and he was rewarded for his efforts with an individual performance full of personality and flair. Kudus stepped up when manager David Moyes needed someone to provide that extra bit of quality, with West Ham having fallen behind against their little-known Serbian visitors, making their debut at the group-stage level of any of the three European competitions, just after half-time. ‚ÄúI thought Mo started the game really well and the team was playing well in the opening 20 minutes,‚Äù said Moyes. ‚ÄúHe came up with one, and maybe two, goals so I‚Äôm really, really pleased for him. ‚ÄúHe‚Äôs made a good start, we like him a lot and we‚Äôll edge him in when we get the opportunities in the right moments to do so. I‚Äôm pleased because we needed someone to come up with goals tonight and he was the one who did it. I couldn‚Äôt see where the goals were coming from up to that point.‚Äù The graphic below shows the number of take-ons and passes Kudus attempted over the 90 minutes. Notice how he wasn‚Äôt dispossessed. Kudus‚Äô ball retention impressed his manager and team-mates. ‚ÄúI‚Äôm happy for him because today he made a good start on home soil,‚Äù said midfielder Tomas Soucek. ‚ÄúI hope there are many more goals to come. I can see how strong he is and how strong he is on the ball. It‚Äôs very good for us that we can pass to him and he can keep the ball very well. He‚Äôs been here for a few weeks but he will show much more in the future.‚Äù Including a goal threat. In his three seasons at Ajax, Kudus scored 16 times in 65 Eredivisie matches, while he also has nine in 26 senior appearances for Ghana. This is a player who should provide competition for Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen, with the latter a doubt for Sunday‚Äôs third vs sixth trip to Liverpool. West Ham‚Äôs equaliser last night, just after the hour, came when Benrahma combined well with Kudus ‚Äî although the latter‚Äôs finish was ultimately ruled to be an own goal: A few minutes later, Kudus showed his aerial ability to convert a Ward-Prowse corner ‚Äì following Nayef Aguerd, Kurt Zouma and Soucek in scoring headers from the England international‚Äôs set pieces already this season after his summer move from relegated Southampton. That ultimately set up West Ham‚Äôs victory, and a satisfying return to Europe‚Äôs second-most-prestigious club competition, which they made the semi-finals of in 2021-22 before going on to win the third-tier Conference League last season. ‚ÄúWe showed a lot of good things today,‚Äù said Kehrer. ‚ÄúMaybe we made it a little more difficult than it needed to be but in the end we got the result we needed. Kudus is ready (to make his mark on this team) and he has a lot of qualities that we know will help us during the season. He shows good character and a good mentality in training. ‚ÄúYou can see in his game that he is very agile, strong, has a good balance and movement. He‚Äôs always dynamic and is dangerous offensively. I think there will be more goals to come.‚Äù Pre-match, Moyes spoke about Kudus needing time to adapt to life at West Ham. What we saw in the game suggested that may have happened quicker than expected. (Photo: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)"

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