TRANSFER GOSSIP
Everton have bid £8m for Newcastle central defender Steven Taylor in a move which could pave the way for Joleon Lescott to leave Goodison Park for Manchester City.(The Daily Star)
Franck Ribery is believed to be keen to leave Bayern Munich which could encourage Chelsea and Manchester United to increase their efforts to sign the French winger. (Times)
Aston Villa have moved to bolster their defence by putting in a £5m bid for Manchester City centre-back Richard Dunne. (Daily Express)
Damien Duff could be another player to leave Newcastle as Wolves and Fulham battle it out for the left-sided midfielder. (Daily Mirror)
Manchester United scouts were casting their eye over Argentine striker Sergio Aguero in his country's 3-2 win over Russia on Wednesday.(The Sun)
Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce has told chairman John Williams to provide the funds to sign former Real Madrid defender Michel Salgado.(Daily Mirror)
Sunderland are planning a triple swoop for Pompey keeper David James and defender Sylvain Distin as well as Lucas Neill, who is out of contract at West Ham. (Daily Mirror)
Bolton boss Gary Megson says the club took out an £8m escape clause in the contract of Gary Cahill when the defender recently signed a new contract. (Daily Mail)
Middlesbrough striker Tuncay Sanli is set to join Fenerbahce on loan. (Daily Mirror)
But Wolves and Everton are interested in the Turkey striker as well and could get him for about £6m. (Independent)
Cardiff, Derby, QPR and Sheffield United are all chasing Gillingham striker Simeon Jackson. (Daily Mirror)
OTHER GOSSIP
Liverpool striker Fernando Torres says the Reds will have no excuses if they do not win the Premier League this season.(The Sun)
Liverpool's new £20m signing Alberto Aquilani may be sidelined with an ankle problem but he insists he is not injury prone. (Daily Star)
Blackburn midfielder David Dunn (on photo) says the Ewood Park side are planning to "kick lumps" out of Manchester City's stars when the two sides meet in the Premier League on Saturday. (The Sun)
Fiorentina may make an official complaint to Uefa over Manchester United signing Italy Under-16 captain Michele Fornasier. (Independent)
Birmingham owners David Gold and David Sullivan may try to buy West Ham if they sell Birmingham to Carson Yeung.(The Sun)
The Magpies could also have a manager in place by next Monday as Joe Kinnear is set to return to take charge of the Championship club.(Daily Express)
.
AND FINALLY
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is famed for his classic "I didn't see it" phrase when it comes to questions about his players committing fouls but the Frenchman says he has sometimes lied to protect his players. (Times)
www.bbc.co.uk
