Wednesday newspapers (includes West Ham)

[Alan]

"BBC England winger Jadon Sancho is increasingly likely to leave Manchester United in the January transfer window, with Borussia Dortmund keen on bringing the 23-year-old back to the Bundesliga. (Sky Germany) Everton and England Under-21s centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite, 21, is on United's list of targets for the next transfer window. (Mail) Frank Lampard is open to speaking to Rangers about their vacant manager position as the club starts the process of finding a permanent replacement for Michael Beale. (Telegraph) Argentina legend Lionel Messi, 36, has reportedly decided he will move back to his first club, Newell's Old Boys, when his contract with Inter Miami ends in 2025. (Mirror) Leeds, Leicester and Burnley have written a joint letter to Everton's prospective new owners, 777 Partners, that they intend to sue the club for £300m if they are found guilty of breaking Premier League spending rules. (Mail) Chelsea are favourites to sign Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen, 24, from Napoli next summer, with Brighton's Evan Ferguson, 18, and Brentford's Ivan Toney, 27, also among their attacking targets. (Caught Offside) Tottenham could sell Danish midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg if they get an offer of £28m, with Juventus the frontrunners for the 28-year-old. (Gazzetta Dello Sport - in Italian) Spurs are monitoring Portugal winger Jota's situation, with the 24-year-old still not registered at Saudi club Al Ittihad having joined from Celtic in the summer. (90 min) Paris St-Germain say Xavi Simons is a huge part of their future amid interest from Manchester City and Barcelona for the 20-year-old midfielder. (90 min) Barcelona will reportedly listen to offers for all first-team players as the club are still operating above the 270m euros (£234m) La Liga-imposed annual spending limit. (Sport - in Spanish) Croatia midfielder Luka Modric, who has been linked with a move to Inter Miami, could leave Real Madrid as the Spanish club feel the 38-year-old is no longer operating at his best. (Football Espana) Bayer Leverkusen's Dutch left-back Jeremie Frimpong, 22, is set to sign a new deal with the German club, pushing up the transfer value of a player attracting the attention of Manchester United and Real Madrid. That could also benefit his former club Celtic, who have a 30% sell-on clause. (Daily Record) Sky Paper Talk DAILY TELEGRAPH Frank Lampard is open to speaking to Rangers about their vacant manager position as the club starts the process of finding a permanent replacement for Michael Beale. Chelsea full-back Ben Chilwell is set to miss at least two months because of a hamstring injury that he suffered last week in a blow to Mauricio Pochettino and England. DAILY MAIL The Premier League's introduction of an automatic offside system has been affected by their contract with ball supplier Nike, whose products have yet to be extensively trialled with the new technology. Crystal Palace have been dealt a major blow amid fears Eberechi Eze is set to miss six weeks with a hamstring injury. Lionel Messi is closing in on a return from injury after he was seen carrying out individual sessions at Inter Miami's training base on Tuesday. Eden Hazard will once again grace the football pitch this month after announcing his return to football - for a charity match. DAILY MIRROR The Premier League could decide to replay Tottenham Hotspur's game with Liverpool - if an appointed commission rules that the match officials breached the Laws of the game when it came to ruling out Luis Diaz's goal. Former Manchester United star Zlatan Ibrahimovic has questioned Erik ten Hag's future at Old Trafford amid the club's escalating crisis. Wolves sporting director Matt Hobbs claims he threatened to part with his own money to ensure the club completed a deal for star centre-back Max Kilman. DAILY STAR Manchester United coach Benni McCarthy has revealed what a day working under 'frightening' Erik ten Hag is like. SCOTTISH SUN Frank Lampard is the bookies' favourite to become the next Rangers manager. James Bisgrove has pulled out of Rangers' trip to Cyprus to front the search for a new manager. There's been a surprise visitor to Celtic training ahead of the Champions League clash with Lazio - former Hoops defender Charlie Mulgrew. DAILY RECORD Sam Allardyce says he would be honoured if Rangers asked him to become their manager. Craig Moore admits he has skin in the game but gave a glowing endorsement of Kevin Muscat becoming the next Rangers manager. Ryan Lowe has responded to the news he is on Rangers' radar to succeed Michael Beale in the Ibrox hotseat, admitting that managing the Ibrox side is a ""fantastic opportunity"". Fears over the severity of Kieran Tierney's injury could be well founded with the defender reportedly ruled out for between 10 and 12 weeks with a muscle tear. The Athletic Ings’ West Ham goal drought: How long before Moyes turns to Mubama as second choice? By Roshane Thomas There are many reasons why a forward will be taunted by opposition fans, but for Danny Ings the greater concern has to be the West Ham United supporters who felt compelled to join in. When the 31-year-old failed to score with a straightforward chance in the third-round Carabao Cup win over Lincoln City of League One a week ago, home and away areas of the crowd alike chorused, “F***ing useless”. It summed up Ings’ night. Since joining West Ham in January for £15million from Aston Villa, the former England international has registered three goals in 29 appearances. It is now 174 days since he last scored. It is a signing that has not worked, that may never work and could stall the development of homegrown fellow striker Divin Mubama; after that Ings miss, the visiting enclosure at Lincoln’s Sincil Bank stadium chanted the 18-year-old’s name. The England Under-19 international has only played 24 minutes of first-team football this season, with manager David Moyes viewing Ings as his second-choice forward after Michail Antonio. Mubama played the final 25 minutes against Lincoln but was not in the matchday squad for the past three league fixtures against Manchester City, Liverpool and Sheffield United. His progress with the under-21s has stalled too, having only played in games against Sunderland and Southampton for Steve Potts’ side. Although it is challenging for young players to transition from the under-21s to first-team football, Mubama is supposed to represent West Ham’s future. The teenager was voted the club’s young player of the year in 2022-23 and scored in the first two pre-season games in Australia this summer, against Perth Glory and Tottenham Hotspur. “I think Divin has given us something to think about,” said first-team coach Billy McKinlay. “The gaffer said in Australia that he was really pleased with his contribution, so he’s had good exposure. What we always say is, ‘You’ve got your opportunity and it’s really important you take it, because you don’t get too many’. He’s been really impressive, so it’s really important he keeps it going.” Moyes backed up the sentiment. “He’s a young centre-forward and it’s a very hard role to play, being a young player, for many different reasons but we like him a lot,” Moyes told Sky Sports. “We hope that we can continue to develop him. We’ll get him minutes and get him playing as often as we can. At the minute, he’s doing as well as anybody, so why not? “But again, this is the time of the season where it’s a bit easier. The pressure isn’t on. The games have got no great meaning to them in pre-season, except you’re getting yourself ready and fit.” Last season, Mubama showed he can shine when the spotlight is on him. He made six senior appearances and became West Ham’s youngest first-team scorer (at 18 years, four months and 19 days) since Freddie Sears in 2008 with his goal in March, against AEK Larnaca in the Europa Conference League round of 16. He was the main marksman in West Ham’s Youth Cup victory (the under-18s equivalent of the FA Cup), the first time they have won that tournament since 1999, and was the competition’s top scorer with eight goals. Mubama was supposed to benefit from West Ham’s failure to sign a striker this summer. The club tried to get Elye Wahi, who later joined Lens from fellow French club Montpellier for £30million and Youssef En-Nesyri, who stayed at Spain’s Sevilla. Hugo Ekitike of French champions Paris Saint-Germain and Gift Orban of Belgium’s Gent were also linked with moves to the London Stadium. When West Ham posted the starting line-up against Lincoln on their Instagram account, the most liked comment was: “I hope we see Mubama get a few minutes tonight.” He is already a fan favourite and the clamour for his involvement will grow stronger the longer Ings continues to struggle when he gets a game instead. Ings has played 200 minutes across seven appearances this season, yet still no goals have come. The striker, whose contract expires in the summer of 2025, was signed to provide competition to Antonio and Gianluca Scamacca (who has since moved on to Italian side Atalanta). On paper, it made sense: West Ham were in a relegation fight, had the second-worst total of 15 league goals scored and Antonio and Scamacca were misfiring. Moyes had made two previous attempts to sign the ex-Liverpool, Southampton and Burnley forward, while manager of Spain’s Real Sociedad and in his first spell at West Ham. It was third time lucky in January. At the point Ings left Villa, he was their top scorer for that season with six goals. There was encouragement within weeks when he scored twice for his new club in a 4-0 win over Nottingham Forest. It was Ings’ fourth West Ham appearance, and the compliments followed. “When we signed him, I knew straight away what we were bringing in,” said then captain Declan Rice, who joined Arsenal for £105million in July. “He is a born goalscorer and I told the boys before the game that he will score goals if we give him chances.” “History never lies,” said defender Angelo Ogbonna. “Ings has always been a top scorer wherever he plays and his experience in the Premier League is one that can help everyone, even the young lads in the dressing room. He’s very bright in the box. I can describe him like a fox. Even in training, he has that sharpness.” But Ings hasn’t scored in the Premier League since that day. He has struggled to fit into Moyes’ 4-2-3-1 system and no longer seems a viable alternative to Antonio. It has not been the signing many at West Ham had hoped — and Ings’ performance against Lincoln highlighted why it might be time to turn to Mubama."

[Texas Iron]

CHEERS...

[bill green]

Thanks Alan 12:23 Wed Oct 4

[Thanks Alan]

Thanks Alan