Leeds - Swansea

Leeds suffered a shock at the opening day (1-2 Derby), but bounced back very fast. Seven points in next three games are more than decent achievement. A point away at Nottingham, home win vs. “old friends” Millwall and away win at Watford gave them strong wind in the back in their high ambitions. Main problem is defense line where Schmeichel is covering all the holes. However, great attacking potential and Grayson’s high-tempo style of play make from them a serious play-off contender. Leeds had 59 goal attempts - 31 of them on target - and hit the woodwork 7 times! They still miss Snodgrass and Paynter, but made some good signings (Faye, Nunez, Clayton and my favorite Ross McCormack).

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Swansea seem still suffering from Sousa’s departure. And while at home look safe (won all three competitive games), on the road can’t keep a clean sheet (both league defeats, Hull and Norwich 0-2). I don’t think they’ll have a chance to join the race for a play-off spot and mid table position is the place where they’ll probably finish the season. However, boss Rodgers has big worries about missing players. Midfielder Darren Pratley is suspended, another midfielder Tom Butler is injured as well as strikers Beattie and Pintado. All four are important players. Swans were beaten on their last 6 visits to Leeds and their only away victory at Elland Road was a 2-1 win in 1949.

 

Leeds are maybe the best organized club in the second tier, have good squad quality and fans’ support. Elland Road should be a fortress this season and I really like these odds.

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Bet: Leeds -0.25

Odd: 2.05 Canbet

Stake: 8/10
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Probably one more.
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Watford - Leeds United

Watford made a decent start, with an opening win at Norwich (3-2) and two draws (Coventry at home and Hull away). They’re hard working, fighting team, but beside that in my opinion they don’t have to offer too much and still remains as main contenders for relegation. Boss Malky Mackay has a headache about some of his key players. Striker Danny Graham has a groin problem and he’s doubtful. Skipper Eustace, Lee Hodson and Martin Taylor have some injuries, but are expected to play. Watford have won only two of the 10 previous league matches between these clubs.

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After shocking defeat vs. Derby in the first round, Leeds bounced back with a draw at Nottingham and a home win vs. Millwall. Simon Grayson has a decent squad and personally wouldn’t be surprised to see them in play-off, eventually. Biggest problem is back four and Kasper Schmeichel is usually forced to cover all the holes (he’s doing it great btw.). Good midfield and very strong attacking potential. Paynter and Snodgrass will be out for a while, but club signed excellent Ross McCormack from Cardiff and he could have his debut. Leeds have only lost once at Vicarage Road, 0-1 in March 1990.

 

This will be surely a tight affair. I’m surprised with these odds (expected same for both sides). I think Leeds will win this one, but leave some space for a draw.

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Bet: Leeds +0.25ah
Odd: 2.09 188bet
Stake: 7/10
 
That's it for today, lads. Good luck!
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Sunday's gossip column

BREAKING GOSSIP

Birmingham manager Alex McLeish has admitted that his chances of signing Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko are all but over. (Sunday Mercury) 
Middlesbrough are bracing themselves for a second, take-it-or-leave-it £7m bid from Manchester City for winger Adam Johnson. (Sunday Sun) 

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Spurs striker Robbie Keane could be on his way to Sunderland after Black Cats manager Steve Bruce made a £9m offer for the Tottenham forward.(News of the World) 
Keane's arrival at the Stadium of Light could signal the departure of Sunderland striker Kenwyne Jones to Liverpool. (Sunday Mirror) 
Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun is set to quit Liverpool after becoming disillusioned with life at Anfield. (News of the World) 
Wolves' £4m bid for Stephen Hunt has been rejected by Hull City who say the winger is staying put. (Sunday Mirror) 
Wolves and Fulham are battling it out to sign Egypt striker Mohamed Gedo, who has impressed at the Africa Cup of Nations.(Sunday Mirror) 
Manchester United striker Michael Owen could be on his way out of Old Trafford in the summer having failed to impress manager Alex Ferguson.(Sunday Mirror) 
Manchester City are set to pip Inter Milan to the signing of Parma's £7m midfielder McDonald Mariga.(Mail on Sunday) 
Sunderland are poised to sign Crystal Palace defender Nathaniel Clyne.(Sunday Mirror) 
Wigan look to have won the race to sign Crystal Palace's £2.5m-rated striker Victor Moses.(Mail on Sunday) 
Thierry Henry looks set to leave Barcelona in the summer with the Spanish giants tracking Valencia's David Silva or Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery to fill the left side of their attack. (Mail on Sunday) 
Arsenal manager has revealed he has £30m to spend with Valencia's David Villa and Bordeaux's Marouane Chamakh on his wish list.(Mail on Sunday) 
Wenger is also keeping tabs on Real Madrid winger Pablo Sarabia, who is a free agent at the end of the season. (News of the World) 
Both of Barcelona's presidential candidates have put Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas top of their wanted list.(News of the World) 
Tottenham are trying to sign Manchester United keeper Ben Foster after a move for Portsmouth stopper Asmir Begovic fell through on Saturday. (News of the World) 
Fiorentina are lining up a loan move for Tottenham striker Roman Pavlychenko.(News of the World) 
West Ham are interested in taking Spurs right-back Alan Hutton on loan. (News of the World) 
Rangers have rejected a £3.5m offer from Sunderland for Algeria defender Madjid Bougherra. (News of the World)
Celtic have upped their bid for Preston North End central defender Sean St Ledger by a third to £3m. (Sunday Mail) 
Cardiff City sources say Celtic will have to pay more than £5m if they want striker Ross McCormack. (News of the World/Sunday Herald)
Cardiff City striker Ross McCormack says he would be interested in a switch to Celtic should the club he supported as a boy make an approach. (Sunday Mail) 
Celtic are locked in talks with Real Mallorca over the transfer of defender Ivan Ramis after increasing their offer to £2m. (Sunday Mail)
Celtic are closing in on a loan deal for Fulham forward Diomansy Kamara, who worked with manager Tony Mowbray at West Brom. (Sunday Mail)


OTHER GOSSIP

Juventus have agreed terms with Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez for him to manage the Serie A club next season. (The Independent) 
Manchester City defender Wayne Bridge is set to give up his England career following the John Terry allegations. (Sunday Mirror) 
Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney is set to ignore interest from Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid and sign a new four-year contract worth £24m in the summer.(Sunday Express) 
Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin Van der Saar is closer than ever to his club after he was allowed three weeks off to care for his wife after she had suffered a brain haemorrhage just before Christmas.(Sunday Mirror) 
Portsmouth narrowly avoided becoming the first Premier League club to go into administration after raising vital funds from the sale of defender Younes Kaboul to Tottenham on Saturday.(Sunday Mirror) 
But Pompey chief executive Peter Storrie has revealed that the cash-strapped club are only weeks away from going bust.(News of the World) 
Striker Robin van Persie is to hand Arsenal's title push a boost with a return to fitness from his ankle injury in March rather than April or May as feared. (Mail on Sunday) 
West Ham midfielder Kieron Dyer has been given a month to prove his fitness or face being forced into retirement.(News of the World) 

AND FINALLY

Wayne Rooney is at the centre of a legal battle over his future earnings and will appear in court on Monday to defend himself against a multi-million-pound lawsuit. (Sunday Mirror)
www.bbc.co.uk

Sheffield United - Cardiff City

After they made an encouraging start to this campaign, Sheffield United's results have come up short in recent weeks and Blades find themselves on 13th place. They noticed last win in steel-city derby (3-2) more than a month ago. Since then, two home draws (Ipswich 3-3, stoppage time equalizer and Doncaster 1-1) and three away defeats (Swansea 1-2, Scunthorpe 1-3 and Blackpool 0-3). Main reason for this sinking is recent injury crisis, ten regular players are sidelined and Blades currently can not resist against any opponent in second tier. Also, fact they have 13 new players comparing with previous season shouldn’t be forgotten. To make the things even worse, took care the only forward Darius Henderson who got a knock and he’s doubtful for the game. Club have signed free-agent striker, Henri Camara, he will probably start the match, but his fitness isn’t on proper level and the question is how much he can really help. While they’ll have a lots of problems to score against tough side as Cardiff surely is, defense line looks extremely shaky conceding six goals in last two encounters. Considering their current situation, I’m absolutely sure they would accept one point today.

The Blue Birds hold the third place on the table with just a point less than league leaders WBA. After the good start of the season, club fell in injury crisis and noticed five competitive defeats in six games! When injury list started to decrease, results became brighter. Cardiff have three wins (Derby 6-1, Watford 4-0 and Coventry 2-0) and a draw (Crystal Palace 1-1) in last four games. But, the most important thing is manager Dave Jones should have a strong squad to choose from, with a lot of his players now available again. His “key of the keys” Ross McCormack is fully fit and ready, defender Kevin McNaughton, midfielder Mark Kennedy and striker Warren Feeney are also available. Only missing player is midfielder Kelvin Etuhu who could be fit and back in training after the next international break. Excellent striker Michael Chopra is the leading scorer in the division with 11 goals, and United face another goal threat in midfielder Pete Whittingham, who has scored six times in the Welsh side's last five matches. Win at Bramall Lane would boost team confidence and maybe launch them on the top. 

I don't agree with the bookies that favor the home side and see the value here. Even if United don’t have injury problems (injury catastrophe sounds more appropriate), Cardiff would be at least equal. Instead more reasons for away win, I'll say few words about my concerns here. It’s a derby clash which usually means very nervous game. Cardiff have three players sent off so far, which is the most by any club. Many recovered players at visitors’ side could make a damage to the team balance that have noticed good run even without them. Also, home ground and the fact the both sides wouldn’t be unhappy with undecided outcome force me to cover a draw instead going on clear away win. Dnb is arround 2.20, even +0.25 on Cardiff is well paid.

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One more later.

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Cardiff City - Derby County (tuesday)

After very promising season start that announced a battle for promotion, Cardiff have now lost four of their last five Championship matches and have dropped out of the top six. All started with underestimation of Doncaster (0-2 on the road), then Newcastle (0-1 home), QPR (0-2 home) and last one vs. Sheff.Wed. (1-3 away). It’s symptomatic they conceded most of those goals in the opening period of the game, or the second half. Manager Dave Jones talks about inconsistency, more likely it’s lack of confidence. At last round they improved the performance, two goals for Cardiff were disallowed (public opinion is one was clear), big defensive errors, two goals at the start of both periods and one more defeat that caused alarms started ringing at City Stadium. So, if they want to keep their dream about promotion, have to wake up and stop the losing streak. Better opponent for that they probably couldn’t wish. Beside long time injured Ross McCormack and Kelvin Etuhu, boss Jones can not count on midfielder Joe Ledley who got a red card at Sheffield and unfit right-back Kevin McNaughton. Skipper Stephen McPhail returns in the squad.

Like the hosts, Derby also had a bad run of results with four consecutive defeats (Nottingham Forest, Sheffield United, Barnsley and Crystal Palace). Manager Nigel Clough is stubborn with his 5-4-1 formation that still hasn’t been well accepted from the players. Two started wins against clubs from the bottom side of the table (Peterborough and Plymouth) gave some hope for a bright future, but mentioned bad run brought the push the problems on the surface. In the previous round, they finally noticed all three points against Bristol City (1-0). Visitors from Bristol were at least equal 55 minutes, then defender Jamie McCombe got two yellow cards for two minutes. Rams started to dominate and thankfully to Gary Teale’s late strike noticed a win. However, team is consisted of mediocre players who shouldn’t be capable to achieve anything more than middle of the table. And some experienced players like Lee Hendrie and Paul Dickov haven’t brought anything positive. The Rams can get something from the games against bottom clubs, or sometimes to surprise “middle class”, but I doubt they can cause serious problems to the top Championship clubs (like raging Cardiff). New on-loan signing, Swedish defender Fredrik Stoor, will probably make his debut.

This is not a “to be or not to be” game for the hosts, but another failure would seriously shake their title ambitions. Following their statements to the press, it seems they’re all conscious of the situation and I expect the well response and convincing win. Pinnacle offer 1.92. Home win and handicap as a gamble.

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Plymouth Argyle - Cardiff City

Despite two more than decent displays, Plymouth remain as one of the serious contenders to relegate. The team haven’t been seriously upgraded and just because the fighting spirit and slight touch of luck, they have two points on the balance. At the first round, they surprised Crystal Palace on the road, taking the lead in the first half and defending the rest of the game, grabbing a point (1-1) at the end. In the previous round, oppositely, they were chasing the result after the half-time. The Pilgrims attacked favorited QPR and got another point in the last minute of the game, by own-goal visitors’ defender Kasparss Gorks! But it is obvious, they lack in quality and boss Paul Sturrock will have a difficult task to keep the club in second tier. Few days ago, club signed Alan Gow from Rangers (worth 200 000 UK Pounds) and hope he’ll shake off a calf injury and get international clearance to play. If he does, midfielder is set to play alongside on-loan Celtic striker Cillian Sheridan, who could get his first start. Skipper Carl Fletcher and defender Kristian Timar are returning in team after injuries. Argyle have not won in six league outings, drawing four and losing two since beating Coventry 4-0 at Home Park on 11 April.

Last season, Cardiff finished one place below the play-offs and that form shows signs of continuing into the new campaign. In the first round, they wished a welcome to new-comers Scunthorpe United with four goals in the net (4-0). Second round brought a trip to Bloomfield Road and hard game against Blackpool. Michael Chopra scored early for a lead, but hosts equalized twenty minutes later. In the rest of the game both sides had few opportunities on wet pitch to notice a win, but 1-1 remained. However, decent result stayed in the shadow of few injuries. The worst situation is with excellent Ross McCormack who faces six to eight weeks out after injuring his hamstring. Boss Dave Jones even took a time for a joke, saying “we're happy because nobody will want to buy Ross now” (meaning on interest of some Premier League teams). Beside him, at the same game defender Paul Quinn has survived a scare over a knee injury and could be back in action against Bristol City on Sunday, while midfielder Stephen McPhail is ready to play after being taken off as a precaution when he felt his hamstring. Gabor Gyepes has shaken off a knock he got playing for Hungary last week. Some youngsters like Adam Matthews (who came on as sub against Plymouth) will get the chance, but anyway visitors are favorites here.

Pilgrims noticed two points against very strong opponents, but tonight will face surely the strongest from those. Fatigue is a big enemy to their fighting attitude and simply I don’t think they can be lucky three times in a row. On the other hand, in each of the past two seasons, Cardiff have drawn more than half of their away league matches - 12 from 23 and instead clear away win I’m covering a draw with Asian handicap. So, 2 AH(0), (or 2 DNB), 1.82 at Pinnacle.

One more later.

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Tuesday's gossip column

BREAKING GOSSIP

Valencia are in talks to sell David Villa to Barcelona but not for less than 50m Euros (£43m).(Marca in Spanish) 

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Tottenham want to sign former Arsenal midfielder Patrick Vieira and have opened talks with the Inter Milan player. Spurs could capture the Frenchman on a free transfer and pay-as-you-play deal. (Daily Mail) 
Manchester City are on the brink of signing Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor for £25m and wages of £130,000 per week. (The Sun) 
Or, the fee will be £30m and the Togo striker will pick up wages of £170,000 a week. (Daily Star) 
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger could use the cash from the sale of Adebayor to sign Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh. (The Sun) 
Chelsea captain John Terry wants the club to make him the highest-paid player at Stamford Bridge if he turns his back on Manchester City. Terry has been offered £250,000 a week by the Eastlands outfit. (Daily Star) 
Arsenal are set to poach 17-year-old Chelsea winger Frank Nouble after he turned down professional forms with the Blues. (Daily Mirror) 
West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola wants to sign Barcelona striker Eidur Gudjohnsen on a season-long loan deal. (Daily Star) 
Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso has told Reds boss Rafael Benitez that he wants to join Real Madrid - but stopped short of handing in a transfer request. (Daily Star) 
Aston Villa are aiming to complete a £24m double move for Tottenham striker Darren Bent and Middlesbrough winger Stewart Downing this week. (Daily Star) 
Villa are also set to bid £7m to land Leeds midfielder Fabian Delph, who is also wanted by Everton. (Daily Mirror) 
Hull are set to make a £10m raid on Cardiff to sign winger Joe Ledley and striker Ross McCormack. (The Sun) 
Sunderland have launched a £5m raid for West Ham centre-back James Collins. (Daily Mail) 
Marseille midfielder Lorik Cana says he will move to Everton and back out of a deal to join Hamburg if the Toffees make a last-minute £6m bid for him. (Daily Mail)
Fulham are on the verge of signing West Brom midfielder Jonathan Greening in a deal that will see them hand the Baggies £2.5m, plus winger Hameur Bouazza.(The Sun) 
Tottenham have offered £11m to sign Sheffield United full-backs Kyle Walker and Kyle Naughton.(Daily Mirror) 
Sheffield United are keen to capture Manchester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.(Daily Mirror) 
Everton boss David Moyes wants to take Port Vale teenager James Lawrie on trial. (Daily Star)
West Ham winger Julien Faubert is wanted by Bayer Leverkusen. (Daily Mirror) 
Fulham are also weighing up a move for South African midfielder Kagiso Dkigacoi, who currently plays for Golden Arrows. (Daily Star)
Everton have been offered Benfica midfielder Hassan Yebda for £3m. (Daily Mirror) 
Stoke are lining up a £750,000 bid for Southampton midfielder Adam Lallana in an attempt to beat Wolves to his signature. (Daily Star) 
Burnley are set to sign right-back Richard Eckersley after he turned down a new deal at Manchester United. (Daily Mirror) 
Leicester are closing in on £1.5m-rated Gillingham striker Simeon Jackson. (The Sun)
Newcastle defender Habib Beye has insisted he must leave the club in order to save his career - Blackburn are believed to be among those interested in signing him. (The Sun) 
Preston are ready to sign Norwich midfielder Darel Russell in a deal that could result in North End winger Simon Whaley going the other way. (Daily Star)
Burnley are set to tie up a deal for Hamilton full-back Brian Easton for an initial fee of about £400,000. (The Sun) 
Yeovil are giving a trial to striker Dean Bowditch, who has been released by Ipswich. (Daily Star)
Striker Lee Hughes is set for talks with Sheffield Wednesday and Doncaster after leaving Oldham. (Daily Star) 
Norwich have taken former Sunderland and Leeds striker Michael Bridges and ex-Rangers forward Chris Craig on trial. (Daily Star)
Bristol City are set to sign Derby defender Lewin Nyatanga in a deal worth about £500,000. (Daily Star) 
Stockport have handed former Manchester United midfielder Floribert N'Galula a trial as he looks for a move from Sparta Rotterdam. (Daily Star)

OTHER GOSSIP

Arabian billionaire Sulaiman Al Fahim is close to completing a takeover at Portsmouth after all the relevant checks were made. (Daily Star)
Stiliyan Petrov is the dressing room favourite to become Aston Villa skipper. Boss Martin O'Neill needs to choose a new captain following the sale of Gareth Barry and the retirement of Martin Laursen. (Daily Mirror)
www.bbc.co.uk

Monday's gossip column

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Real Madrid have still not given up in their pursuit of Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso, with the coach of the Spanish club Manuel Pellegrini insisting: "We are interested."(The Sun) 
And in a cheeky move for the Spanish international, Real have decreased their offer for the player by £3m to £22m.(Daily Mirror) 
Chelsea will hold intensive talks with captain John Terry as they fear the centre-back is ready to quit to join Manchester City.(Daily Mirror) 
However, the Blues will not increase England skipper Terry's wages in an attempt to keep him at Stamford Bridge.(Daily Mail) 
Carlos Tevez will complete a £25m move to Manchester City on Monday. The Argentine striker's move will leave Chelsea disappointed. (Daily Mail) 
Manchester United are moving closer to signing 20-year-old Brazilian midfielder Douglas Costa from Gremio. (The Times) 
Aston Villa look set to sign Middlesbrough winger Stewart Downing for £12m this week, raising questions over the future of Ashley Young at Villa Park. Striker Young is wanted by Tottenham, but they could lose out to Manchester United or Chelsea. (Daily Mail)
Villa may also be set to lose defender Zat Knight, with Wolves ready to join Bolton in a battle to sign him. (Daily Mail) 
Hull have inquired about Cardiff striker Ross McCormack after missing out on Fraizer Campbell, Michael Owen and Marc-Antoine Fortune. (The Times)
Portsmouth are interested in signing Tottenham right-back Pascal Chimbonda and are ready to pay £2.5m for him. (Daily Mail) 
Hull are hoping to hijack Ipswich's £3m move for Sunderland striker Daryl Murphy. (Daily Mail) 
Sunderland have made an increased bid of just under £6m for Wigan midfielder Lee Catermole, having had an initial bid of £4m turned down. (Daily Star) 
Middlesbrough winger Adam Johnson has been told there is no way he will be allowed to leave to join Chelsea. (Daily Mirror)
Sunderland boss Steve Bruce is set to switch his sights from Manchester City defender Richard Dunne to Tottenham centre-back Michael Dawson. (The Sun) 
Liverpool's young French midfielder Damien Plessis is wanted on loan by Cardiff - as a potential replacement for Joe Ledley, who has been linked to Everton, Hull and Stoke. (Daily Mirrror)
Hearts winger Andrew Driver is wanted by FC Twente manager Steve McClaren but the ex-England boss faces competition for the player's signature from Burnley. (The Sun) 
Tottenham want to sign Sheffield United full-back Kyle Walker - but they would allow him to stay with the Blades for the next year to continue his development. (Daily Mirror)
Celtic have told English Premier League clubs that goalkeeper Artur Boruc is not for sale. (The Sun) 
Nottingham Forest have tabled a £1.6m bid for Coventry defender Danny Fox. (Various)
Sunderland have been linked with Saint Etienne defender Efstathios Tavlaridis, who failed to break into Arsenal's first team back in 2001. (The Times) 


OTHJER GOSSIP

Portsmouth are ready to make Paul Hart their new manager - handing him the job permanently after his stint as caretaker boss last season. (Daily Mirror)
West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola insists captain Lucas Neil will be welcomed with open arms at Upton Park if he agrees a new deal with the Hammers, despite an unsavoury pay dispute. (The Sun) 
Hull midfielder Jimmy Bullard has told the club he will not be fit until October at the earliest. The 30-year-old injured his knee on his debut for the club last January.(The Sun) 
Arsenal legend and ex-Portsmouth boss Tony Adams has emerged as a surprise contender to be the next Southampton manager. (Daily Star) 
Veteran Teddy Sheringham, 43, is heading for a shock comeback to play for non-League side Beckenham Town in their FA Vase matches. (The Sun) 

AND FINALLY

Two brothers aged 18 and 21 have become England's youngest owners of a football club. Tom and Josh Mitchell will run non-League Dorchester Town after their father gave them the club. (Daily Mirror)
Manchester United have had to change their long-planned exhibition dedicated to Cristiano Ronaldo to a 'farewell' presentation. The 'Best Player In The World' display at Old Trafford went up as it was announced the winger was moving to Real Madrid. (Various)
www.bbc.co.uk

Friday's gossip column

TRANSFER GOSSIP 

Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor and Russian international Yuri Zhirkov head a £50m hit list of summer transfer targets being considered by Chelsea as part of the deal to bring AC Milan manager Carlo Ancelotti to Stamford Bridge. (Daily Telegraph) 
Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has issued a hands off warning to the Spanish giants hoping to tempt Xabi Alonso out of Anfield. Real Madrid and Barcelona have been linked with the Liverpool ace, who nearly left last summer. (Various)
Benitez has also hinted Spanish side Valencia have wrecked any potential deal for forward David Silva. The Liverpool boss claims the 23-year-old is no longer a £20m target for Liverpool because officials leaked his interest in the player to the media.(Daily Mail) 
But if Liverpool are to end their wait for a league title they will have to do it within "a few years" or they will have to do it without Fernando Torres after the Spaniard said he would like to play in the Italian league one day. (The Independent) 
Manchester United's bid for glory on five fronts is unfolding against a backdrop of growing instability, with Carlos Tevez joining Cristiano Ronaldo in contemplating a future away from Old Trafford, possibly in tandem at Real Madrid next season. (The Times) 
Robin van Persie and Cesc Fabregas appear to have ruled out leaving Arsenal after Arsene Wenger's team reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. (The Times)
West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola wants to sign Swansea's Spanish right-back Angel Rangel as a replacement for out-of-contract Lucas Neill. Rangel, 26, has also been tracked by Manchester City with the Swans looking for £4m. (Daily Mirror) 
Aston Villa are lining up a £6m bid for Leeds' highly-rated youngster Fabien Delph. Boss Martin O'Neill wantes Delph, 19, to replace Gareth Barry if he joins Liverpool this summer. (Daily Mirror)
Blackburn are tracking 19-year-old Austrian striker Mark Arnautovic who plays for Dutch side FC Twente. (Daily Mirror) 
Derby defender Andy Todd, 34, is wanted by Australian club Perth Glory when he becomes a free agent in the summer. (The Sun)
Birmingham manager Alex McLeish is ready to make a £2m bid for Bolton defender Danny Shittu, 28, this summer. McLeish wants to bring the Nigerian international to St Andrews even if Blues do not get promoted. (Daily Express) 
Celtic are tracking Costa Rica international winger Junior Diaz, who plays for Polish side Wisla Krakow. (Scottish Sun) 
Scotland forward Ross McCormack has been told he will be allowed to leave Cardiff if they miss out on promotion to the Premier League. (Scottish Daily Mail) 
Aberdeen skipper Scott Severin has warned he could be the latest player to quit Pittodrie for an out-of-contract move to England. (Scottish Daily Express) 

OTHER GOSSIP 

Manchester City boss Mark Hughes will be given one more season to prove himself at Eastlands. (Daily Telegraph) 
Brazilian star Romario is in the frame to become QPR boss. Romario, 43, quit playing last year and had a brief spell in charge of Vasco Da Gama. (The Sun)
West Ham United will be taken over by a consortium of international banks in the coming weeks. Icelandic government-appointed officials running the stricken investment bank Straumur are set to to take control from Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson at Upton Park. (The Guardian) 
West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola wants Matthew Upson to sign a new contract. Upson, 29, has two years left on his contract and has hinted he wants European football before making a decision. (Various)
Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn insists he is 100% behind boss Ricky Sbragia. (The Sun) 
Arsenal's Champions League hero Theo Walcott is finally on the verge of signing a new contract that will make him one of the club's highest-paid players. (Daily Express) 
Fulham boss Roy Hodgson says highly-rated Norwegian central defender Brede Hangeland may stay at Craven Cottage. (Various) 
Pedro Mendes is stunned that his Rangers team-mate Kris Boyd is not in the running for the PFA Scotland Player of the Year. (Various) 
TV firm Setanta want to renegotiate their four-year £125m deal with the SPL, which is due to begin in 2010/11. (Scottish Sun)
QPR could be former West Ham boss Alan Pardew's next managerial port of call. (Daily Mirror) 
 
AND FINALLY 

Wayne Rooney made a fool of former Everton goalkeeper Neville Southall - when he was just 11 years old. The Manchester United striker was Everton mascot in 2002 and, while warming up with the Welsh goalkeeper, he continually chipped the ball over Southall's head into the net (The Sun).
www.bbc.co.uk