Monday's gossip column

BREAKING GOSSIP

Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti has told Sky Italia that he hopes coach Fabio Capello can break his England contract after the World Cup to join the Champions League winners. Moratti also ruled out Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez as a possible successor to Real Madrid-bound Jose Mourinho at the San Siro. "I've always thought Rafa Benitez was good but he is tied to Liverpool," he said. (Reuters)


TRANSFER GOSSIP

Chelsea have paved the way for midfielder Joe Cole's departure from Stamford Bridge by formalising their interest in Liverpool's Yossi Benayoun. (The Guardian) 
Benayoun is confident the move will go through and claimed that Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti "wants me for next season". (The Daily Telegraph) 
Rangers are still waiting to see if Liverpool will make an improved offer for 18-year-old defender Danny Wilson after the Ibrox club rejected an initial £2m bid from the Reds.(Daily Mail) 
Blackburn are considering a swoop for Rangers striker Kris Boyd, who is set to leave the Scottish Premier League champions as a free agent.(The Sun) 
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is reportedly interested in signing £12m-rated teenage Barcelona forward Bojan Krkic.(caughtoffside.com) 
And the Red Devils have contacted Brazilian side Santos about the possibility of taking 20-year-old midfielder Paulo Henrique Ganso to Old Trafford.(Daily Mail) 
Arsenal have joined Aston Villa in the battle to sign Wigan's Colombian striker Hugo Rodallega, who the Latics value at £10m.(Daily Mirror) 
The Gunners have made an inquiry about the possibility of signing England midfielder Joe Cole from Chelsea. The Stamford Bridge outfit, meanwhile, remain interested in acquiring Shakhtar Donetsk's £15m-rated Croatian right-back Darijo Srna. (Daily Mail) 
Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill is also targeting Ajax's 22-year-old right-back Gregory van der Wiel, the young player of the year in the Netherlands, because out-of-favour Habib Beye and Luke Young, who is eyeing a move to West Ham, are set to leave Villa Park this summer.(Daily Mirror) 
Villa and Sunderland have joined Birmingham in the race to sign Fulham striker Bobby Zamora. (The Sun) 
Neil Lennon will be promoted from interim boss to permanent manager at Celtic on Tuesday and will immediately set his sights on acquiring Hull playmaker Jimmy Bullard, Cardiff's midfielder Joe Ledley and Stoke wide man Liam Lawrence.(Daily Record)
Paddy McCourt, though, may be on his way out of Parkhead, with Premier League new boys Blackpool interested in the 26-year-old Northern Ireland midfielder.(The Sun) 
Barcelona will renew their chase of Liverpool midfielder Javier Mascherano. However, their big-money pursuit of Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas could scupper their plans to sign the Argentine, who the Reds value at close to £30m.(Daily Mail) 
Bordeaux ace Yoann Gourcuff, France's first-choice playmaker in the World Cup, is being lined up as a £21.8m replacement for Fabregas at the Emirates. (The Sun) 
Manchester City are considering a move for 21-year-old Athletic Bilbao midfielder Javi Martinez, who made his senior debut for Spain in their 3-2 World Cup warm-up victory over Saudi Arabia in Austria on Saturday.(Daily Mail) 
Fulham could snap up versatile Hungarian international midfielder Daniel Tozser from Belgian club Racing Genk for about £2.5m.(Daily Mail) 
Southampton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin, 19, is a £1m target for French team St Etienne. (The Sun)

OTHER GOSSIP

Former Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate and ex-Milton Keynes Dons boss Paul Ince are both in contention for the managerial vacancies at Portsmouth and Notts County.(Daily Mail) 
Russia's 2018 World Cup bid chief Alexei Sorokin has branded fans of rival bidders England "the utmost hooligans". In the wake of ex-Football Association chairman Lord Triesman's controversial claims that Russia was involved in bribing referees, Sorokin said his bid team "are in a state of information war" with England.(Daily Mirror) 
Inter Milan owner Massimo Moratti will make a formal approach to Fabio Capello's representatives on Monday, just as the FA holds emergency talks with the England manager in a bid to shore up the Italian's future. (Daily Mail) 
Republic of Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni claims he turned down the chance to become Celtic boss three months ago. (Daily Express) 

AND FINALLY

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard is keen to retain penalty-taking duties for England, despite missing from the spot against Japan on Sunday.(Daily Mirror) 
Millwall chairman John Berylson has revealed his debt of gratitude to former Manchester City boss Sven-Goran Eriksson, who convinced Kenny Jackett, the man who guided the Bermondsey side to promotion to the Championship, to become Lions manager when the pair were working together at Eastlands.(Daily Mirror)

www.bbc.co.uk

Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool

Atletico Madrid will take a slender Europa League semi-final first-leg advantage to Anfield next week thanks to a ninth-minute strike from former Manchester United front man Diego Forlan.
In truth, however, the hosts will be regretting several opportunities they missed to add to their advantage. 
Liverpool, perhaps tired after their gruelling journey by land across Europe, will be grateful that they will not have to recover from a two or three-goal deficit following a poor game only redeemed by two good saves by goalkeeper Pepe Reina. 
Both sides went into the match missing key strikers and opted for a lone man up front with Atletico's Argentine international Kun Aguero suspended while injury denied Liverpool's Fernando Torres the chance to play against his former club. 
Atletico initially seemed to suffer the least from the absence of one of their key players. 
The Spanish side decided to test their visitors from the whistle and it quickly became apparent that the Liverpool back four were not sure how to deal with ex-Arsenal man Jose Antonio Reyes and Simao operating down the wings, with Jose Manuel Jurado playing just behind Forlan. 
Just nine minutes into the game, Jurado floated a cross to Forlan's head but, despite hardly making any contact, the Uruguayan international got a second chance when the ball fell to his feet and he poked it past Reina. 
The Liverpool defence recovered from the initial shock and gradually started to pick up their men but little creatively was coming out of the midfield with captain Steven Gerrard having another indifferent game.
They were, however, unfortunate not to level when Yossi Benayoun beat Atletico goalkeeper David de Dea - but his effort was wrongly ruled out for offside. 
But both sides were failed to make the best of their first-half free-kicks and corners with each team guilty of poor passing from set pieces as well as when going forward. 
Finally, Liverpool started to come into the game with 10 minutes to go before half-time with, for the first time, Dirk Kuyt starting to find his range from out on the right flank. 
However, Atletico almost went two in front four minutes before the break when their Czech defender Tomas Ujfalusi stripped Daniel Agger of the ball on the right side of the box and skipped past two weak challenges before, trying ambitiously to score from a narrow angle, putting the ball into the side of the net. 
Atletico had another good chance just before the hour but a great save from Reina denied Simao, whose thunderous volley from an Ujfalusi cross looked on its way into the top corner. 
Despite Benitez swapping the ineffective David Ngog for Netherlands winger Ryan Babel after 63 minutes, the Dutchman fared little better with the chances he was offered, squandering an excellent opportunity in front of goal four minutes after getting on the pitch. 
The impressive Ujfalusi had another good effort with a rasping left foot shot 15 minutes from the end but Reina again showed why he is almost certainly going to be in Spain's World Cup squad, despite the plethora of options available to Spanish coach Vicente Del Bosque. 
The final minutes saw Liverpool - who have became the first English club to play in 16 European semi-finals - becoming increasingly desperate. 
And Atletico responded with some crude challenges which saw Valera get a late yellow card.
www.bbc.co.uk

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

Tuesday's gossip column

TRANSFER GOSSIP

West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola insists the club will not be forced to sell striker Carlton Cole in January, despite interest in the £20m-rated player from Manchester United and Liverpool.(The Sun) 
Chelsea have dropped out of the running to sign Benfica's Ángel Di María after balking at the £36m asking price, leaving the way open for the Argentine winger to join Manchester City next summer.(Daily Telegraph) 
Birmingham's £4m bid for Standard Liege's Serbian striker Milan Jovanovic has collapsed, leaving Manchester United, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Everton to battle it out for his signature.(Daily Mirror) 
Sunderland manager Steve Bruce is willing to listen to offers for defender Anton Ferdinand and Spurs are believed to be preparing a £6m bid. (Various) 
Manchester City have moved a step closer to signing QPR's Raheem Sterling after the young forward notified Rangers of his desire to leave.(Daily Mirror) 
Nottingham Forest are planning a £3m move for Tottenham defender Gareth Bale.(Daily Mirror) 

OTHER GOSSIP

Los Angeles Galaxy and England midfielder David Beckham is struggling to be fit for his New Year move to AC Milan after needing three cortisone injections in his right ankle before Sunday's MLS Cup Final defeat to Real Salt Lake.(The Sun) 
Beckham is ready to move into club ownership after expressing his wish to buy a Major League Soccer team. He has the right to invest in a future franchise as part of his deal to join Galaxy in 2007.(Daily Mirror)
Liverpool midfielder Ryan Babel says he will leave the club in January if he is not given more opportunities in the first team by manager Rafael Benitez. "I have tried to talk to the manager but it isn't of any use," admitted Babel."(The Sun) 
Real Madrid forward Kaka has revealed that he turned down a move to Chelsea in the summer in order to complete his dream move to the Bernabeu. (Daily Mail) 
Bolton manager Gary Megson has rounded on some of his players, accusing them of trying to destabilise the club. The Trotters are currently in the Premier League relegation zone following three successive defeats. (Various)
Tottenham defender Jonathan Woodgate has admitted he has no chance of representing England at next year's World Cup in South Africa because of his persistent injury woes.(Daily Mirror) 
Ipswich have dismissed speculation that their manager Roy Keane is on the brink of being sacked. A club spokesman said: "The story in a national newspaper that our manager is about to leave is complete and utter nonsense.(Daily Mirror) 
Arsenal midfielder Alex Song has agreed to sign a new contract that will keep him at the Emirates until 2015.(The Sun) 

AND FINALLY

Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun has revealed that his recent injuries were treated by Serbian healer Marijana Kovacevic with human placenta. Benayoun's team-mate Glen Johnson, Arsenal's Robin van Persie and Chelsea's Frank Lampard have all recently been treated with what was believed to be horse placenta.(The Sun) 
Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe says that watching Spurs coach Clive Allen in action during his playing days on YouTube helped him claim his five-goal haul during the 9-1 win over Wigan on Sunday.(Daily Mirror)
www.bbc.co.uk

Monday's gossip column

BREAKING GOSSIP

Manchester City could be on the verge of establishing a link with French side AC Arles-Avignon which would see City loaning young players to the Ligue 2 outfit in order that they receive game time.(The Sun) 
Yossi Benayoun's agent maintains the midfielder is happy at Liverpool and not planning a summer exit to Manchester City. "It is a great compliment that there is interest from high level teams across Europe, but Yossi is very happy at Liverpool and only in the summer agreed a new four-year contract," said Ronen Kastav.(Virgin Media) 

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp is once again preparing to raid former club Portsmouth to sign England keeper David James for £1m in January. Since taking over at Spurs, Redknapp has signed Jermain Defoe, Peter Crouch and Niko Kranjcar from Pompey.(The Sun) 
European champions Barcelona are closing in on a January swoop for Manchester City forward Robinho, with sporting director Txiki Begiristain saying that the Brazilian is "a very interesting footballer and could play for us in the Champions League".(Daily Mirror) 
Former Arsenal defender Sol Campbell - who left Notts County in September after only one game - wants a short-term loan move to a Championship club to earn a Premier League return in January. (Daily Mirror) 
Stoke are lining up a move for Huddersfield's highly-rated goalkeeper Alex Smithies, but they may have to part with £3m in order to land the 19-year-old. (Daily Mirror) 
Manchester City are planning a shock January raid for Liverpool's Israeli midfielder Yossi Benayoun. (Daily Mail) 

OTHER GOSSIP

England coach Fabio Capello was refused a handshake by referee Damir Skomina after subjecting the official to a four-minute rant in the tunnel in the aftermath of England's 1-0 World Cup qualifying defeat to Ukraine on Saturday. Capello was incensed by the decision to send off Robert Green and the confusion caused by the ref's original incorrect decision to dismiss Rio Ferdinand in the 13th minute of the match in Dnipropetrovsk.(The Sun) 
Striker Emile Heskey concedes he may have to leave Aston Villa - for whom he has started only one Premier League game this season - in January to keep alive his hopes of a place in England boss Fabio Capello's squad for the 2010 World Cup finals.(The Sun) 
Chelsea and England defender John Terry has admitted he sledged former Blues teammate Andriy Shevchenko prior to the striker's penalty miss for Ukraine in their 1-0 World Cup qualifying victory over England on Saturday.(The Sun)
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is unlikely to escape a touchline ban, despite apologising to referee Alan Wiley for questioning the official's fitness.(Daily Mirror) 
Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo is confident he will be back on the pitch sooner than expected despite being told he faces around a month on the sidelines. Ronaldo limped out of Portugal's 3-0 World Cup qualifying victory over Hungary on Saturday and medical tests indicated he would be out of action for "three to four weeks". (Press Association)
Former Leeds boss Dennis Wise, who until earlier this year was executive director of football at Newcastle, and ex-Chelsea striker Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink are set to make dramatic returns to football - with non-League Chalfont St Peter and Woking respectively.(The Sun) 
Ipswich midfielder Owen Garvan says he fears he has played his last game for the club after revealing that manager Roy Keane has not spoken to him in recent weeks. Garvan has not featured at all in the last eight games for Ipswich, who sit bottom of the Championship without a league win yet this season.(Daily Mirror) 
Hong Kong tycoon Carson Yeung's new Birmingham regime begins today following his takeover at St Andrews and the new ownership team will sit down with Blues manager Alex McLeish this week to discuss their working relationship and potential transfer targets.(Daily Mirror) 
Tyneside businessman Barry Moat is set for crunch talks with Newcastle chiefs on Tuesday over his proposed £100m takeover of the north-east club.(The Sun) 
Liverpool owner Tom Hicks will allow co-owner George Gillett to sell his 50% stake in the club should the latter find a buyer. American Hicks, who is not interested in selling his own 50% stake in the club, has the right of veto over any proposed sale of Gillett's shares but he is willing to forgo this.(The Times) 
Huddersfield manager Lee Clark says he has no intention of selling star striker Jordan Rhodes, who has scored 11 goals since joining from Ipswich in the summer. "There is no price on Jordan's head," said Clark. "I don't have to worry about him being sold because we have a very wealthy owner."(Daily Mirror) 

AND FINALLY

Argentina coach Diego Maradona celebrated his side's last-minute winner against Peru in the crucial World Cup qualifier in Buenos Aires with a jubilant belly slide. Martin Palermo's goal, which secured a 2-1 win over Peru, lifted Argentina to fourth place, with a game to go in the South American group, from which the top four qualify.(Daily Star) 
The internet coverage of England's match with Ukraine - the first national team match to be shown exclusively online - has been hailed a success by Kentaro and Perform, the companies behind the transmission, after nearly half a million people subscribed to the programme. (The Guardian)
www.bbc.co.uk

Fiorentina - Liverpool

Fiorentina are performing well in domain Serie A. The main objective for this season is a spot for Champions League next year, they occupy 4th place, play well so far and it seems that target is reachable. At their home, Artemio Franchi, have all three wins (Palermo, Cagliari and Sampdoria) without a conceded goal. For domain frames, Viola have more than decent squad. Safe defence that doesn’t make too much errors, tough midfield and some quality strikers in front. But, also face two big problems. First, criterion that referees have in European games is much different than in Italy. Tougher tackles and less number of fouls usually put Italians in subordinate position. Especially when they play against English who are physically much stronger. Viola will have a lots of problems only to bring the ball on the opposite half and their biggest hope is some free kick, or individual efforts of their strikers. And here we come to the second big problem. Top striker and key of the keys, Alberto Gilardino, begins a two-match ban for elbowing Toulalan in Fiorentina's defeat by Lyon (0-1) two weeks ago. So, in front could be Adrian Mutu (in depression because the “Chelsea case”) and Stevan Jovetic, young Montenegrin striker who plays in excellent shape lately. So, free kicks and Jovetic will be the biggest (only, I think) threats to the visitors.

After disaster start in Premier League, Liverpool have been consolidated and started to play like title contender should. They’re in the run of six competitive wins in a row with 13 goals scored in last three Premier League games! Fernando Torres scored a hat-trick in Saturday's 6-1 victory over Hull and successfully sent a message to Florence. Rafael Benitez without a doubt wants to secure a progress in group as soon as possible and get a possibility to play with the fringe players and rest his keys. On the other hand, Liverpool still haven’t played against second strongest team in the group Olympique Lyonnais and possible failure in Italy could complicate the situation. This game has a big weight for the Reds and although they’ll have some hard games in next weeks in Premier (trip to Stamford at Sunday is the first) I don’t think Rafa will rest anybody tonight. Only missings will be midfielders Javier Mascherano (sick) and Yossi Benayoun who picked up a leg injury against Hull. The chance should finally be given to Ryan Babel, while Daniel Agger could return in defence line. 

Considering all facts that can be important for a win here, I give a clear advantage to Liverpool in all of them, except home atmosphere at Artemio Franchi. So, main question is how serious visitors will approach to this game. Win would open the door from the next round, while other outcome would bring a trouble and I think they’ll be very serious. I see 1.80 as a reasonable odd for this level of risk and everything more accept as a gift. Pinnacle offer 2.00. Away win.

Available free bets, bonus offers and promotions:
Expekt - First deposit bonus up to €35 / £25 for all new customers
Make your first deposit at expekt.com and we will immediately double your money up to max €35 / £25. Take these 3 easy steps to start profiting from sports betting: 1.Register an account with expekt.com here. 2.Deposit a minimum of €10 into your expekt.com account. 3.Send an email to 35eurbonus@expekt.com with your customer number and deposit amount included. The bonus amount up to €35/£25 will be added to your account within 48 h.

Wednesday's gossip column

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Barcelona are preparing a £50m bid for Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas but could face competition from Chelsea and Real Madrid. (Daily Star)
Real Madrid have signed AC Milan's Brazilian playmaker Kaka for a world record fee of £62m. (The Sun) 
Chelsea had come into the bidding for Kaka but failed with a late bid for the AC Milan forward.(The Times) 
However, Kaka's signature may not yet be completed and Chelsea could yet land the AC Milan forward if they improve on Real's offer. (Daily Star) 
If Chelsea do miss out on Kaka then they will prepare a £45m deal for AC Milan forward Alexandre Pato. (The Times) 
Chelsea will also look to sign Manchester City's highly rated 19-year-old striker Daniel Sturridge who is out of contract at Eastlands.(The Times) 
The Blues have also told striker Andriy Shevchenko, who is on loan at AC Milan, that he is needed back at Stamford Bridge next season. (Daily Star) 
Argentine striker Carlos Tevez is to reject the chance of staying at Manchester United, despite the Premier League champions looking set to meet the £32m asking price.(The Sun) 
Manchester City appear to be the favourites to land Tevez, with the 25-year-old's representative Kia Joorabchian claiming his client feels "humiliated" by United. (The Guardian) 
City will also target Barcelona forward Samuel Eto'o, Everton defender Joleon Lescott and Arsenal centre-back Kolo Toure. (Daily Mirror) 
Manchester City boss Mark Hughes will also prepare a £15m bid for Didier Drogba, if the Chelsea striker turns down the offer of a new contract. (Daily Express) 
Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun is ready to commit his long-term future to the club, having said in January he was ready to leave if he continued playing a bit part at the club. (The Sun)
However, Benaayoun could yet turn his back on Anfield, with Manchester City, West Ham, Atletico Madrid and Villarreal believed to be interested in the Israeli. (Daily Mail) 
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has pleaded with the club to bring Newcastle striker Michael Owen back to Anfield. (Daily Express)
However, Merseyside rivals Everton are weighing up a move for the former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker. (The Times) 
But Owen would have to take a 50% pay cut if he joined the losing FA Cup finalists. (Daily Telegraph)
Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez has launched a £15m bid to sign Valencia forward David Silva. (Daily Mirror) 
But the Anfield boss faces a fight to hang on to midfielder Javier Mascherano, who is wanted by Real Madrid. (Daily Mirror)
Despite appearing to have won the race to sign Kaka, Real Madrid will still go after Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo and will pay £75m for the Portugal star. (The Sun) 
Steve Bruce will sign Tottenham striker Darren Bent for £10m once he is confirmed as Sunderland manager. (Daily Mirror)
Bruce will be given £50m to spend on new players at the Stadium of Light.(The Times) 
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is tracking St Etienne midfielder Blaise Matuidi, who is valued at about £5m. (Daily Mirror)
Bolton are preparing a £6m bid for Tottenham midfielder Tom Huddlestone and are also keen on Portsmouth defender Sylvain Distin.(The Sun) 
Manchester United reserve goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak is attracting interest from Russian club Zenit St Petersburg. (Daily Mail)
Bolton hope to beat Blackburn to the signature of Portsmouth midfielder Sean Davis.(Daily Mail) 
Portsmouth striker John Utaka is being tracked by French clubs Rennes and Bordeaux. (Daily Star)
 
OTHER GOSSIP

Former Portsmouth manager Tony Adams has claimed that Celtic are lining him up to become their new boss following Gordon Strachan's departure. (The Independent) 
However, Celtic officials have reacted with astonishment to claims by Adams that he'll become their new boss. (Daily Record) 
Wim Jansen has firmly denied recommending Tony Adams for the post of Celtic manager, as the former England captain claimed. (Various)
In-demand Swansea manager Roberto Martinez is set to chose Wigan over Celtic. (Scottish Sun) 
Steve Bruce will insist that his assistants at Wigan, Eric Black and Nigel Spink, are offered contracts at the Stadium of Light, before he agrees to become Sunderland manager.(Daily Express) 
Swansea will ask for £3m compensation if manager Roberto Martinez leaves the club. Celtic and Wigan are reportedly interested in the Spaniard. (Daily Mirror) 
Port Vale look set to name Micky Adams as their new manager. (Daily Mirror)
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba looks set to commit his future to the Blues and sign a new three-year contract at Chelsea. (Daily Mirror) 
Anxious SPL clubs will hold crisis talks about their TV deal with Setanta, with growing fears the plug will be pulled on their £31m-a-year deal. (Daily Record)


AND FINALLY

Former Aston Villa captain Gareth Barry has written an open letter to the club's supporters apologising for his departure to Manchester City. (Daily Mirror)
www.bbc.co.uk