TRANSFER GOSSIP
Real Madrid are preparing a £60m move for Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney, who is their top summer transfer target, and will pursue him in the same way they chased Cristiano Ronaldo last season.(Daily Star)
Liverpool are set to sign Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy next week and also hope to bring in his Real Madrid team-mate Rafael van der Vaart on loan until the end of the season.(The Sun)
As well as Van Nistelrooy, Reds boss Rafael Benitez is poised to bring in Atletico Madrid winger Maxi Rodrigez on loan - but he will have to offload striker Andriy Voronin first to free up space on the club's wage bill and hopes to sell him to CSKA Moscow or Dynamo Moscow in a £1.5m deal.(Daily Telegraph)
Voronin is set to join German side Hertha Berlin, who he played for on loan last season, in a permanent £2.5m deal.(The Sun)
Tottenham are poised to make a £12m January swoop for Manchester City right-back Micah Richards, while City will bolster their defence by signing Sol Campbell on a short-term deal and spending a total of £25m on West Ham's Matthew Upson and Borussia Dortmund's Neven Subotic.(Daily Express)
Birmingham are close to wrapping up a £2.5m deal for Sporting Gijon midfielder Michel and are set to make a £3.5m bid to sign midfielder Craig Gardner from Aston Villa. (Daily Mirror)
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has ruled out making another bid for Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh. (The Sun)
Wenger is confident of beating Tottenham and Everton to sign Chamakh when he becomes a free agent in the summer after being told there is no chance of buying the Moroccan in January - but the Gunners boss is also considering buying another striker this month and is interested in Wolfsburg's Edin Dzeko and Toulouse's Andre-Pierre Gignac.(Daily Mirror)
Hull City boss Phil Brown hopes to agree a loan deal with Manchester City striker Felipe Caicedo, who is currently on loan at Sporting Lisbon.(The Sun)
Cash-strapped Portsmouth's hopes of raising money by selling players in the January transfer window have been hit by a lack of interest in their players. (Daily Telegraph)
Portsmouth's hopes of selling former Tottenham midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng to Blackburn for £4m could be scuppered by a Fifa rule preventing players from playing for more than two clubs in the same season.(The Times)
Burnley boss Owen Coyle fears Portsmouth's financial crisis could ruin his hopes of keeping on-loan Pompey striker David Nugent at Turf Moor.(Daily Mirror)
Tottenham will recall midfielder Jamie O'Hara when his loan spell ends at Portsmouth this month and send him on loan to another Premier League club.(Daily Mail)
Birmingham have made an offer of more than £3m for Peterborough striker Aaron McLean, who has been watched by scouts from a host of other Premier League sides.(The Sun)
Tottenham have agreed a deal to sign Brazilian international midfielder Sandro from Internacional but may have to wait until the summer for him to arrive at White Hart Lane.(The Times)
Middlesbrough boss Gordon Strachan looks like being priced out of a move for Celtic striker Scott McDonald after being told the Australian international would cost him £3.5m.(Daily Mirror)
Celtic are interested in Blackburn striker Benni McCarthy, who would be allowed to leave Ewood Park for £2.5m.(Daily Mail)
Sheffield United have turned down Newcastle's £1m bid for centre-back Matt Kilgallon.(The Sun)
Crystal Palace must sell teenage winger Victor Moses this month to ease their financial problems and will accept £3m for the 19-year-old - who is being trailed by Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham, Arsenal, Birmingham, Wigan, Everton and West Brom. (Daily Mail)
OTHER GOSSIP
Burnley boss Owen Coyle, who ruled himself out of the running for the vacant Bolton job earlier this week, is set to make a dramatic U-turn and will leave the Clarets to take charge at the Reebok Stadium.(The Sun)
Crystal Palace manager Neil Warnock is desperate to get the Bolton job, and Wanderers will turn to the former Sheffield United boss if they fail to land Coyle.(Daily Express)
Sacked Preston boss Alan Irvine is on the shortlist to become Sheffield Wednesday's next manager, along with former Bolton manager Gary Megson.(The Sun)
Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill insists winger Ashley Young is not a diver. (Daily Mirror)
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger will rest most of his first team in Sunday's FA Cup tie against West Ham, and says "winning the League is more important". (The Sun)
AND FINALLY
Middlesbrough boss Gordon Strachan says taking on mega-rich Manchester City in Saturday's FA Cup third round is like using a water pistol in a machine-gun battle.(The Sun)
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