Eleven days of the January Transfer Window left and the football world wonders – when will the merry-go-round finally kick into life?
Like a game of chess, top managers are watching their opponents carefully with one stellar signing likely to kick off a chain of events – the question is, will City be part of it if and when it does?
The early indications are that the Blues will have a quiet window, though Turkish Football.com still believe Joleon Lescott could be moving to warmer climes.
They report: “Beşiktaş will make a final offer for Manchester City defender Lescott according to Lig Tv.
“The Black Eagles have been closely linked with Lescott over the transfer window and the England international is free to speak to clubs this month, with his contract set to expire at the end of the season.
“Lescott is also reported to be close to reaching an agreement with West Ham.”
The MEN’s transfer gossip column suggests one or two deals could be in the offing as they write: “Things have been largely quiet at the Etihad Stadium. But that's not to say that things won't heat up - with all manner of names still being linked with moves to City this month.
“Here, we round-up the latest rumours doing the rounds.With Southampton thrown into chaos by Nicola Cortese's departure, Manuel Pellegrini is looking to capitalise by capturing young left-back Luke Shaw.
“Another youngster, Diego de Girolamo of Sheffield United, could also be on his way to the club this month if interest from United is seen off.
“This next report claims that one such deal is already done - with Nigerian starlet Chidiebere Nwakali having allegedly agreed to a move.
“But nobody will be making way in Pellegrini's squad, with the Chilean eager to retain the likes of Jack Rodwell.”
Away from idle gossip, Pablo Zabaleta has hailed the contribution of team-mate Yaya Toure as key to City’s challenge for four trophies this season.
The Daily Star carry the story, reporting: “The former Barcelona star has now scored 14 goals this season to compliment his power, pace and ability to dominate midfield like few others can.
“Zabaleta reckons he is the complete player and someone who can lay claim to being the best in his position in the world on current form.
“He said: ‘He’s one of the main players in the team. He’s really good going forward. He’s scored 14 goals this season and for a central midfielder that’s fantastic.
‘Yes probably he’s one of the best in the world. He’s a complete player. He’s been really good for us, he can create things from the back.
‘We’ve been surprised by his free-kicks too, he’s scored four or five - you can’t ask for any more.’”
Zabaleta: It's so easy for Aguero
Pablo Zabaleta feels "very lucky" to be playing alongside his fellow Argentinian Sergio Aguero at Manchester City.
Aguero has wasted little time getting back into his goalscoring groove after a month on the sidelines, coming off the bench to strike in his first two comeback matches.
Despite missing eight games with a calf injury suffered in December, the 25-year-old already has 21 goals to his name this season.
It says much for free-scoring City's attack that he was hardly missed during his absence, with Alvaro Negredo and Edin Dzeko maintaining the prolific output, but Aguero's return was still enthusiastically welcomed.
Manager Manuel Pellegrini hailed Aguero as the world's third-best player behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo before his injury and Zabaleta does not disagree.
Right-back Zabaleta said: "I'm really happy to see him back.
"He needs to get back to his best in a physical way because he's been out for a month, but he took 30 seconds (actually 50) to score a goal when he came back against Blackburn and, on Saturday, 20 minutes.
"It's so easy for him.
"Every time we talk about good strikers, Sergio is one of the best in the world.
"Probably Messi and Ronaldo at the moment are in a different world, but I think Sergio is one of the best and we are very lucky to have him in the team."
Nevertheless, it is clear City have the firepower to cope without Aguero, if necessary.
City have now scored 103 goals this season as they chase glory in four competitions.
Negredo has been as prolific as Aguero, having also scored 21, while Dzeko has netted 16 and Yaya Toure 14.
Negredo was the only one of that trio not to score in Saturday's 4-2 win over Cardiff in the Barclays Premier League, but he might be excused after bagging seven in his previous four games.
Zabaleta said: "In football you have to be prepared for when someone important is missing or suspended.
"It was great to see him back again but Edin and Negredo have been doing really well without him.
"Sometimes the competition between them is all about scoring goals.
"It doesn't matter who plays, it's all about doing well for the team."
Zabaleta also rates City's talismanic midfielder Toure among the game's elite.
The Ivorian is enjoying an outstanding season by his own high standards.
Zabaleta said: "He's scored 14 goals this season and for a central midfielder that's fantastic.
"Yes, he's probably one of the best. He's a complete player."
Yet for all the attention on City's attack, Zabaleta did admit frustration that they conceded twice to bottom-of-the-table Cardiff, ending a run of three successive clean sheets.
The 29-year-old said: "It's nice when you see we've scored so many goals but as defenders we talk about clean sheets.
"That's something we need to improve. At this stage of the season, to keep a clean sheet in games is crucial.
"We know that any time we can score, so it's important to be a balanced team."
Aguero will expect to be fully match-fit to go head to head with that other Argentina star, Messi, when City take on Barcelona in the Champions League next month.
Zabaleta is friends with the pair of them but has not spoken to Messi since the draw for the last-16 of the Champions League was made last month.
He said: "No I haven't, but maybe I will speak to him a few days before that game. We will see."
Edin Dzeko puts prizes ahead of plaudits
Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko insists his side’s remarkable goal-spree will count for nothing if they finish the season without any silverware.
Dzeko scored City’s landmark 100th goal of the season as Manuel Pellegrini’s team took their tally for the current campaign to an incredible 103 with a 4-2 win over Cardiff at Eastlands on Saturday.
The result kept second-placed City within a point of leaders Arsenal at the top of the Premier League, one of four competitions they remain in contention to win this season.
With their title challenge firmly on course, City can turn their attention to the formality of booking a place in the League Cup final against Manchester United or Sunderland.
After thrashing struggling West Ham 6-0 in the semi-final first leg, Tuesday’s return at Upton Park is another opportunity for City to showcase their attacking talents to an increasingly captivated football world.
But Bosnia star Dzeko says seeing out the tie in business-like fashion is more important because City are focused on winning prizes rather than earning plaudits.
“It is definitely a great achievement but we want to win something. That will be much better than these 100 goals,” Dzeko said.
“We still have a lot of games to play and we will score a lot more goals but we want to win something as well.
“We are still in all four competitions and we will see what will happen. The key is just to try to win every next game.
“I am very happy that I am the one who scored the 100th goal.
“I am enjoying it at the moment. The team is playing amazing football.
“We are scoring a lot of goals. We just have to keep going like this.”
City’s blistering first leg display means Pellegrini can rest several of his key players if he wishes.
But, given City’s impressive strength in depth, the Chilean is certain to be able to send out a strong line-up regardless of who he leaves out.
In contrast to City’s buoyant mood, Sam Allardyce’s Hammers head into the second leg at a low ebb after Saturday’s 3-1 loss against Newcastle put them back in the relegation zone.
With the pressure mounting on Allardyce, the West Ham boss has been working all hours in a bid to bring in new signings, but he has so far been unsuccessful and, on Sunday, he ruled out a move for Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen. “I think under the circumstances at Arsenal, in the position that they’re in, in the Champions League and cup matches, they’ve had to use him as soon as any of the two defenders have been injured,” he said.
“So I don’t think there’s any chance we’ll get somebody of his quality. It would be nice if we could.
“I’ve had targets and I haven’t got one yet apart from Roger Johnson, so I’ll keep going and hope we get some.”
Silva making City tick
Manchester City scored their 100th league goal of the season on Saturday against Cardiff City and whilst much of the praise has gone to their strike force it could be argued that David Silva has been the key component. It cannot be a coincidence that his return to form has resulted in the sides’s magnificent form of late.
In a side that boasts so much attacking ability it is always going to be tough for one individual to really stand out. With Sergio Aguero’s brilliance, allied with Alvaro Negredo’s wonderful debut season in England and Edin Dzeko’s remarkable goal return, Manchester City are treating most of the other teams in the Premier League with disdain. They have scored six goals against Arsenal and Spurs, four against Manchester United and many, many more against seemingly everyone else in their path.
The freedom the new manager Manuel Pellegrini has allowed them to play with has certainly had an impact and the confidence level of the players has had a massive affect. The return to form of Aguero, Silva and Yaya Toure cannot be overlooked either; whilst none of them had bad seasons last time out they fell well below the standards they have set themselves previously.
The spine of the team is often talked about in football and those three are essential to City. Two years ago when they won the title all three had stunning seasons but last season due to injuries and possibly complacency they struggled to reach those levels. Toure could often be seen strolling through games and Aguero lacked fitness at crucial stages and the season was one of underachievement.
There is no doubt that Silva can also be looked at for under performing last season. He simply didn’t look fit enough for large chunks of the season and he looked burnt out. With his International obligations as well as competing with City on both domestic and European fronts he just didn’t have the energy levels to reach the top of his game. His passing was not as precise as normal and his movement was laboured and predictable.
However, this season he seems fully fit and has been running the strings in City’s midfield. His ability to play in between the lines in the opponents half of the pitch means he is incredibly tricky to pick up. As he drifts around he pulls the opposition defenders with him which in turn creates space for his teammates. With the pace that Pellegrini has available to him this space can then be exploited by the likes of Jesus Navas, who is also having a superb debut season in England.
With all of their pace and physical prowess a diminutive playmaker in Silva’s mould becomes the final piece of the puzzle. Having three strikers all in form and all scoring goals is very rare thing but City have managed it thus far. When you then through in Fernandinho and Toure as the midfield enforcers, who are both physically and technically outstanding, Silva becomes the integral part of the side.
His strength on the ball for someone so small is phenomenal and since arriving in the Premier League he has become more physically tough. The way in which he shields the ball against several defenders at once is very impressive and he rarely squanders possession. In recent games he has been everywhere on the pitch which makes him so hard to defend against, especially when he arrives late in attacks.
At this moment it is almost inconceivable to think that City will not become Premier League champions for the second time in three seasons. They appear to have overcome their erratic away form and are simply steamrolling everyone in their path. The plaudits have been going to their strikers of late but it is Silva who is making the difference. If he can remain fit and in this form until the end of May it looks like being another memorable season for ManchesterCity.
Jovetic finally ready to show Man City fans a glimpse of his talent
The Montenegro forward has had a frustrating time at the Etihad Stadium since his summer move but he could finally be ready to put it behind him.
Making bold predictions about the availability of Stevan Jovetic hasn't worked out too well so far this season so make sure you whisper it – but he could be back in the Manchester City squad against West Ham on Tuesday night.
But we've been here before. After picking up a calf injury at Newcastle in October, the 24-year-old looked like he had timed his comeback perfectly to coincide with Sergio Aguero's own lay-off.
The stage was set for the Montenegrin forward, signed from Fiorentina for £22m in the summer, to start at Leicester in the Capital One Cup and make a case to be Aguero's replacement.
But somewhere between the 6-3 win over Arsenal – when Aguero suffered his own calf injury and Manuel Pellegrini claimed Jovetic was fit to take over – and the trip to Leicester, Jovetic picked up a stomach complaint.
He didn't play at the King Power Stadium in December and hasn't been seen since. Instead it was Edin Dzeko who impressed against Leicester, scoring twice, keeping his place alongside Alvaro Negredo while Aguero returned to fitness.
Since then, Jovetic's illness has morphed into a hamstring injury, a similar problem to the one that prevented him making his City debut until September.
But Pellegrini said at his press conference on Friday that Jovetic is 'close' to a comeback. Jovetic, meanwhile, went one better and announced through his Instagram account he would be 'back on Tuesday'.
Pellegrini was slightly more cautious after the win over Cardiff on Saturday – perhaps remembering what has gone before – insisting the striker would 'maybe' be ready to play some part against West Ham.
“We will see how he works,” said Pellegrini.
“On Monday we will decide. I will think about that. We have to play there. The semi-final is not finished. Of course we have made an important step but we must see which players will play and the way we will do it.”
It would appear to be the perfect time to reintroduce Jovetic into the first team.
Leading 6-0 in the two-legged semi-final, City should only have to turn up at Upton Park to secure a place in the Capital One Cup final.
Then it's Watford at the Etihad Stadium in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday. They are two games where Pellegrini might think there's an opportunity to rest key players ahead of a run of five games which includes Tottenham away, Chelsea at home and Barcelona at home.
City have have been spoilt by the success of their four summer signings. Negredo has scored 21 goals in 32 games while Fernandinho has kept getting better and better next to Yaya Toure in the centre of midfield. Jesus Navas has had competition from David Silva and Samir Nasri but has added blistering pace to City's slick, attacking machine.
But Jovetic is perhaps the one City fans were most looking forward to seeing.
Even in just five appearances he's shown flashes of what he can do with two goals against Wigan in the Capital One Cup in September.
But after forging a reputation as an intelligent goalscorer in Serie A, they want to see for themselves what all the fuss is about.
Provided he's wrapped up in cotton wool between now and Tuesday, they should just get a chance at Upton Park.
Manchester City have stepped up their pursuit of Sheffield United striker Diego de Girolamo in an attempt to out-manoeuvre their Premier League rivals.
The 18-year-old, who has come through the League On side’s ranks since the age of seven, is a hot property in the January transfer market with Liverpool, Manchester United and Everton all reportedly interested.
City have previously shown an interest in the youngster at the start of his professional career and tried to sign him then, but de Girolamo opted to sign with the Sheffield side at the end of October 2012.
De Girolamo, although born in the UK is eligible to play for Italy through his father and has made six appearances for the national Under-18 side, scoring three goals. He has though not made any appearances for his club this season he has made three appearances since making his professional debut and has yet to find the net.
Borussia Dortmund and Manchester City would be interested in Real Madrid's Diego Lopez should the 32-year-old goalkeeper decide to leave the club. Bild
MORE BITTER ARSEY BOLLOX
Why Refs Are Now Biased in Favour of Man City and Not Man United
An Alternative View on Why Refs Are Now Biased in Favour of Man City and Not Man United
The constant down-playing of Arsenal’s chances forced me to pen this earlier this season. At the time, the question on the lips of every football pundit and the media was whether Arsenal were contenders for the EPL title. At that point in the season, Arsenal were leading the league, as they have done long before then, but the consensus was that the team would ultimately falter, hence the constant and near unanimous questioning of their credentials.
On the contrary, Manchester City and (to a less extent Chelsea) are expected to run away with it. Every pundit and their dog were just so convinced that City are going to win it.
Of course, this was not based on any kind of evidence other than the amount of money that the blue side of Manchester had spent. At the time of writing the linked post, Manchester City had lost to Cardiff City, Aston Villa and Sunderland. It is true that those were away defeats but potential EPL winners don’t lose those kinds of games. Arsenal on the contrary were passing all the series of ‘tests’ that the media and our own ‘non-existent’ AAA kept putting before the team. But still, Arsenal weren’t contenders while Man City were. At this point, one could see the look of embarrassment on Gary Lineker’s face as his MoTD ‘expert’ panels ruled out Arsenal one after the other.
At the end of the same article (sorry that I keep referencing the piece but its concluding part is germane to this piece), I noted that the officials don’t live in a media free bubble. They hear what we all hear and like many, even among Arsenal’s own supporters, are influenced consciously or sub-consciously by it.
A lot has been said about Man United losing their fear factor but that is not really the problem. Man United’s performance on the field has degenerated. The media, after many, many poor performances and loss of points, finally stopped bigging them up and voilà, Moyes is now reduced to complaining about the officials, who like the rest of the population have stopped believing in their invincibility and thus have stopped favouring them. But can anybody recall the number of questionable calls in their favour at the beginning of the season, before it was finally realised that they’ve lost it? Penalties from Ashley Young dives anyone?
For me, it has always been the media (pundits, commentators, journalists, MoTD panelists etc) who are more responsible for perpetuating bad officiating than anyone else. Not the players; not the managers; not the fans; not even the referees. It’s the media!
Anyone notice how they’ve stopped showing replays of off side calls against Arsenal since that Man City game? The British media collectively are a very annoying pest but a very powerful and influential one too. They love to play the kingmakers. They are now doing in the premier league what they’ve always done in politics.
Man City are the new Man United. Untold Arsenal is well known, positively or negatively, for focussing on officiating in the league. Many commentators, in my opinion, have the motives of the officials wrong. I keep hearing stuff about ‘Oilers this’, ‘Oilers that’ but did Man City just became beneficiaries of an Oil Sheik? Haven’t they had the same owners for about 5 years now? Did they just learn how to use their oil money to influence results? Why didn’t they do this last year when basically the same Man United team ran away with the league? Why did it take a last minute goal for them to win the league on goal difference 2 years ago? Shouldn’t their oil money had bought them something less dicey?
It is possible that the officials are being induced with oil money to favour Man City but unfortunately, there is no proof.
Are the refs favouring Man City? I believe so based on strings of bad officiating in games involving them but with the victims of the bad calls always being their opponents. But there is no way to prove that they are buying their results. To continue to suggest so would lose us the support of other fans who might also believe, like us, that there is something fishy about officiating but uncomfortable with accusation of corruption without proof.
My position on this matter is based on the team that used to enjoys such benefits: Manchester United. But then nobody ever talked about ‘oil money’, we just assumed that they were in the pockets of Alex Ferguson. And many of them were indeed intimidated or enamoured with the Scotsman. While I agree with the notion (that Ferguson owned the refs), on the other hand, I think that Man United got everything they wanted because of a very compliant media. While the officials might have been intimated by or just loved Ferguson, the British press worship the ground that he walks on. His team was treated with the same reverence. I used to joke that Manchester United is adopted by the English in lieu of their national teams which are perpetual failures at all levels and across genders.
The media have a new darling in Manchester City. They might not have a manager named Alex Ferguson but they have something that the media worship even more than a great personality: MONEY. For all their bluster against and mocking of moneyed people, the British media do their fair share of sucking up to the rich, until they fall from grace by either going broke or being involved in scandals.
There is also the new religion-like belief that it is money and money alone that wins championships. The routine is: you get loads of money (source’s integrity is irrelevant), you spend them on players, you win trophies. I wonder why they don’t just hand over the league title and other cups to the club with the biggest transfer kitty. But then clubs like Wigan, Swansea, Birmingham City etc appear once in a while to make a mockery of this mind-set. At least in the cups.
There is no doubt in my mind that Man City are being favoured but, in my opinion, it is because they are the new anointed team of the media. Of course, I could be wrong but I can at least back up my notion in terms of the coronation-like coverage of Man City compared to Arsenal and even Chelsea. Arsenal, on the other hand, get shafted from time to time by the officials who seem not to like us very much but they only do this because there is always little to no blowback from the media. Two good goals from Arsenal got chalked off for wrong off side calls and all the media ran with was how much thrashing Arsenal got. Newcastle lost a goal to a bad call and it was given enormous coverage. The media seem to love Man City with the same intensity with which they hate us.
I still believe that we are going to win the league. Although Man City’s improved away performances and all the help from the officials are making this difficult for many, including at Untold, to believe. I don’t begrudge those who panic, I just hope that they can keep such to themselves and not spread disbelief among the less panicky Gooners. The team is defiant about their chances. The least that we the supporters should do is back them up, not with wimpy, panicky doubtful moans but loud and vociferous roar of: Yes We Can!
Keep the faith.
World Cup 2014: Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero can shine in Brazil
By Tim Vickery
Federico Insua is one of those number 10 playmakers that Argentine football produces in such quantity.
With a nice left foot and a good range of passing he is an interesting player, although at 34 his best days are now behind him.
He was not quite good enough to impose himself on the European game - he had disappointing seasons in Spain, Germany and Turkey - but he has been a strong club player in Argentina, where he currently turns out for Velez Sarsfield.
Federico Insua
Age: 34
Playing career: Argentinos Juniors, Independiente, Malaga, Boca Juniors, Borussia Monchengladbach, Club America, Necaxa (loan), Bursaspor, Velez Sarsfield.
International: 14 caps for Argentina, no goals
And he was considered good enough to win a few international caps. All in all, he is a thoroughly inoffensive player - but even so I find it hard to forgive him because Insua robbed me of one of those perfect moments that football occasionally throws up.
I have often remarked the greatest pleasure in covering South American football is the opportunity to catch global stars on the way up, to have the privilege of a sneak preview of a youngster taking his first steps on the road to global stardom.
One of the most outstanding members of my club is Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero, who first came onto my radar screen exactly nine years ago - playing for Independiente in a pre-season tournament against San Lorenzo. I caught him on television while up in Colombia for the South American Under-20 Championship, where a certain Lionel Messi was making a name for himself.
I had heard of Aguero ever since he made his debut 18 months earlier just a few days past his 15th birthday. He had subsequently played a handful of games and scored a couple of goals. The fact he was getting games at such an age made me suspect he was one of those cases of prodigious physical development - a strapping adolescent six-footer. Of course, he was nothing of the kind.
What immediately stood out was his ability to combine. He was quickly involved, along with Insua, in a move that led to a goal, playing a quick one-two with the left-back.
And then there was his stocky build, acceleration and ability to work in reduced spaces, which helped set up another goal when his shot took a deflection.
This was certainly a player worth watching. An instant comparison cried out to be made; physically and technically there was a similarity with the outstanding Brazilian striker Romario, a point that was stressed by Aguero's coach, the great Cesar Luis Menotti.
The goals kept flowing in 2005. In the middle of the year he was called up for the World Youth Cup in Holland, where he roomed with Messi - the pair forging an understanding that was quickly recognisable on the pitch.
I wrote a piece on Aguero for a magazine, wondering if he might sneak into the senior squad for the World Cup in Germany in 2006.
He did not. But he was included for Argentina's first game after the tournament - a friendly against Brazil played at Arsenal's newly-opened Emirates Stadium at the beginning of September.
Twenty minutes into the second half he came off the bench to make his international debut. He had just joined Atletico Madrid. Insua had also left Independiente, first to Boca Juniors and then to Borussia Monchengladbach. But the pair still knew each other's game.
Deadly strikeforce
Lionel Messi: 83 caps, 37 goals
Sergio Aguero: 47 caps, 21 goals
Aguero received the ball on the left side of the penalty area. He twisted, turned, and in the manner now familiar to Premier League defenders, saw and found space where none had appeared available. He dinked a delightful, subtle little chip across the face of goal which was sitting up and begging to be blasted into the back of the Brazilian net.
Insua had read the situation, and moved into position. He seemed sure to score a goal which no-one in the stadium would forget, least of all me, who had followed Aguero over the previous year and a half. But Insua snatched horribly at the shot, the ball looped apologetically wide and the perfect moment was lost.
This was a moment, though, that would have been special solely for its aesthetic beauty. After all, it was only a friendly, and Argentina were losing 2-0 at the time (Kaka would complete the scoring with a magnificent solo third).
One of the great hopes for the World Cup this summer is that Aguero can be involved in something of similar appeal at a moment when there is much more at stake. And, of course, this time his left-footed partner should be a little more reliable that Federico Insua.
Aguero and Barcelona playmaker Messi will be on opposing sides in the next phase of the Champions League, but come the World Cup their partnership will have its biggest opportunity to shine.
It is perhaps surprising that it took Argentina so long to build their attack around the Messi-Aguero combination. For years the water was muddied by a perceived need to accommodate Carlos Tevez.
Since his antics (moaning about his position and missing a vital penalty) in the 2011 Copa America, Tevez has been out. Argentina's originally ailing 2014 World Cup qualification campaign got its kick-start from the moment - at half-time away to Colombia - Aguero was introduced.
He and Messi transformed a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 win, and there was no looking back. Some of their interpassing since then has taken place at such speed and finding such interesting angles that it makes one wonder if this is what it was like when Pele and Coutinho were working their one-twos with Santos in the early 60s.
If Messi and Aguero can produce something of that calibre in the land of Pele a few months from now then we really are in for a treat - some magic moments which will more than make up for the one ruined by Insua.
[spoiler]
[/spoiler]Paris St-Germain are set to offer Newcastle up to £26m for Yohan Cabaye, 27, and the France midfielder wants to return to his homeland. Daily Telegraph
Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata, 21, has ruled out moving to Arsenal, Liverpool or Tottenham in January, instead opting to stay at the Bernabeu. Daily Express
West Ham boss Sam Allardyce says he would be keen to take defender Thomas Vermaelen, 28, from Arsenal but admits a deal for the Belgian is unlikely. Metro
Liverpool are ready to make a formal bid for Basel's 21-year-old Egyptian winger Mohamed Salah, who has been valued at £12m by the Swiss side. Daily Telegraph
Swansea City are hoping to sign former Wales U21 midfielder Rhys Williams, 25, from Middlesbrough in a £1.5m deal, as their injury crisis deepens. South Wales Echo
Stoke and Fulham both want to sign Aston Villa's Scotland international right-back Alan Hutton, 29. Sun
Crystal Palace are trying to sign Brondby's Denmark international forward Simon Makienok, 23. DSSC
Fulham have offered £4m for Swansea's Welsh left-back Neil Taylor, 24. Times
Sunderland striker Danny Graham, 28, could be set for a loan move to Nottingham Forest when he returns from a loan spell at Hull. DSSC
Liverpool are interested in Fulham's Swedish forward Muamer Tankovic, 18, whose contract runs out in the summer. Sun
Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke has travelled to London to finalise a new three-year deal worth £24m for manager Arsene Wenger.DSSC
Southampton manager Mauricio Pochettino will be offered a new "bumper" contract by Southampton owner Katharina Liebherr. Daily Mirror
Blackpool are set to sack manager Paul Ince and make midfielder Barry Ferguson, 35, player-manager. Daily Mirror
Liverpool's Brazilian midfielder Lucas, 27, could face a lengthy period of time on the sidelines after sustaining a knee injury in the 2-2 draw with Aston Villa. the Times
A consortium headed by former QPR chairman Gianni Paladini is set to make a takeover bid for Millwall. Sun
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says he is not "particularly interested" in signing Juventus' Mirko Vucinic, dismissing media reports about the Gunners' interest in signing the 30-year-old midfielder. Le Figaro
Swansea are interested in signing Spartak Moscow's Spanish midfielder Jose Jurado, 27. Izvestia
Former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has made £1m from sales of his book after it became Britain's fastest-selling non-fiction title. It sold more than 115,000 copies in its first week on sale in October, beating previous record holder Delia Smith. Daily Mirror
The hat-trick by Samuel Eto'o against Manchester United could prove both a costly and painful for one Chelsea fan after he vowed to get a tattoo of the player's face if he managed to score three times at Stamford Bridge. Metro
MORE BOLLOX SOON
