Friday's gossip column

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Barcelona defender Dani Alves has ruled out a move to Chelsea but has admitted to being flattered with their reported interest in him.(The Independent) 
Former Notts County director of football Sven-Goran Eriksson had planned on luring LA Galaxy and England midfielder David Beckham to Meadow Lane as a part of ex-owners Munto Finance's ambitious plans for the club. This was before the full extent of the financial problems at Notts became clear and Munto sold the club.(Daily Telegraph) 

OTHER GOSSIP

Manchester City defender Wayne Bridge quit England because of ex-Chelsea team-mate John Terry's failure to apologise over his alleged affair with his former partner, Vanessa Perroncel.(Daily Mail) 
England coach Fabio Capello will try to persuade left-back Bridge to change his mind and join the Italian's World Cup squad for South Africa this summer. (Various) 
Everton left-back Leighton Baines is likely to benefit from Bridge's decision to quit the national squad by being given a call-up to face Egypt in a friendly on Wednesday 3 March. First-choice left-back Ashley Cole is out after undergoing surgery on a broken foot.(Daily Star) 
Alternatively, Capello could turn to Aston Villa left-back Stephen Warnock, who has recovered early from a shin injury that threatened to end his season.(Daily Express) 
"Friends" of Terry claim Bridge has long been considered a "bottler" in the dressing room as the bad feeling between the pair shows no sign of abating.(The Guardian) 
Arsenal forward Theo Walcott is set to deputise for Tottenham's Aaron Lennon on the right wing for England's friendly against Egypt in five days time.(Daily Mail) 
Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand is definitely out of his side's Champions League second leg match at Old Trafford against AC Milan on 10 March.(Daily Mail) 
Bournemouth have been served another winding-up petition by Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs, with a hearing set for 31 March over an outstanding debt of £314,000 the club owes in tax.(Bournemouth Echo) 
Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez has returned from compassionate leave in Argentina following the premature birth of his second daughter, and is in contention to face Chelsea on Saturday. (Daily Mail) 
Roberto Mancini's tenure at Manchester City is coming under intense boardroom scrutiny for the first time after a run of two wins in eight matches. The Italian was only appointed to the City job in December last year.(Daily Mail) 
The Football Association is considering switching the majority of FA Cup matches to midweek to make it "more relevant".(Daily Mail) 
Neil Warnock has moved a step closer to becoming the new QPR boss after beginning compensation talks with current employers Crystal Palace. (Daily Mail) 

AND FINALLY

England boss Fabio Capello's World Cup worries for the summer tournament in South Africa mounted last night as it emerged the England WAGs are planning their own base-camp 15 miles from the squad's Rustenburg headquarters.(Daily Mirror)
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