Friday’s news and transfer rumour gossip.
Manchester City are set to sell 31-year-old Yaya Toure next summer and replace him with either Juventus’s Paul Pogba, 21, or Everton 20-year-old Ross Barkley – (Scunthorpe Telegraph)
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is set to make a January move for Manchester United defender Chris Smalling, 24 – (Daily Mirror)
Dutch duo Virgil van Dijk of Celtic, 23, and Aston Villa’s 29-year-old captain Ron Vlaar are also on Arsenal’s defensive shopping list –(Daily Mail)
Fabian Delph has told Aston Villa he has no plans to sign a new contract and is set to leave the club in the summer, with Liverpool, Everton and Tottenham all interested in signing the 24-year-old midfielder – (Daily Telegraph)
Serie A side Fiorentina, who already have Manchester City’s Micah Richards in their ranks, are lining up a shock loan swoop for Arsenal and England winger Theo Walcott, 25 – (Daily Express)
Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham are continuing to monitor 23-year-old Bayern Munich winger Xherdan Shaqiri, 23, who is unhappy after failing to become a regular at the German club – (Daily Star)
Real Madrid are lining up a move for Manchester United keeper David De Gea, 23, and are confident of landing him, especially if the Reds fail to qualify for the Champions League – (Daily Star)
Meanwhile, United’s January move for Real Madrid’s left-sided midfielder Fabio Coentrao, 26, looks in serious doubt after Bayern Munich’s David Alaba – a target for Real – picked up a long-term injury during the German team’s win over Roma – (Daily Express)
Manchester City will attempt to lure Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola to the Etihad to replace Manuel Pellegrini if the club’s poor form continues – (Daily Mirror)
Liverpool defender Glen Johnson, 30, may decide to retire from international football after being left out of Roy Hodgson’s latest England squad – (Daily Telegraph)
Reds manager Brendan Rodgers admits he faces the sack if he gets too many big calls wrong at Anfield – (Guardian)
Manchester City legend Denis Law says his old club must battle harder if they are to succeed in the Champions League – (Daily Mirror)
Millwall will make history when they face Brentford in a one-off camouflage kit as part of the 100th anniversary of the First World War – (Sky Sports)
Ross Barkley can have the same impact on the England set-up as Paul Gascoigne, according to Roy Hodgson – (Daily Mail)
Aston Villa skipper Ron Vlaar says the players share the disappointment felt by the fans over the current run of six defeats and that the team is missing injured midfielder Fabian Delph – (Birmingham Mail)
Manchester United vying with Valencia to sign Benfica midfielder Enzo Perez, 28 – (Marca – in Spanish)
Valencia’s 21-year-old striker Paco Alcacer, a reported target for Chelsea and Arsenal, says he has no desire to leave his current club – (AS – in Spanish)
Former Tottenham midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng, 27, is set to dash hopes of a Premier League return by extending his contract at Schalke until 2017 – (Bild – in German)
Paris St-Germain striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, 33, is set to return to action after resuming training following his injury lay-off – (AS – in Spanish)
Wayne Rooney recited a poem about how much he loved playing for his country after England were knocked out of the 2002 Under-17 European Championships – (Daily Telegraph)
CSKA Moscow defender Pontus Wernbloom says Manchester City are vulnerable in defence and it is “obvious” how opponents can beat them – (The Independent)
Meanwhile, the Home Office has hit back at claims by CSKA that a Manchester airport official tried to sabotage the Russian club’s chances of victory over City by denying Serbian striker Zoran Tosic entry to the UK – (The Times – subscription required)
Liverpool are pushing to sign Real Madrid sensation Isco in January after making him a ‘priority’ signing for the new year – (Metro)
Arsenal are reported to have sent a scout to watch Slovenian hot prospect Petar Stojanovic in action during the week – (Daily Mirror)
Wilfried Bony is set to sign a new contract with Swansea and snub interest from Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham – (Daily Star)