Paper Talk: Bayer reject £22m Chelsea bid; Sandro snubs Man Utd

Chelsea look likely to pip Man Utd in the race to sign a £80million-rated Juventus star, while Tottenham are battling Everton for a Hamburg striker, according to Wednesday’s papers.

 

CHELSEA BOOSTED AS MAJOR TARGET SIGNALS INTENT

Chelsea are in pole position to bag Juventus defender Alex Sandro from under the noses of Manchester United, according to reports on Wednesday.

The Brazil left wing-back has reportedly told Juve he wishes to leave the Serie A champions for the Premier League, with the Blues seeing a £50million bid turned down for him in the summer.

United’s quest to sign a new left-back had seen Jose Mourinho also linked with Sandro in recent weeks – but The Sun claims the former Porto defender will turn his back on any approach from the Red Devils in order to push through a move to Stamford Bridge.

However, any deal for Sandro will come at a cost with the report claiming Juve want an eye-watering £80million for the 26-year-old.

That would represent a world-record fee for a defender, but it seems Chelsea are ready to push the boat out to land their man, who has been a long-term target ever since Antonio Conte took charge at the Bridge.

 

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AND THE REST

Long-term Manchester United target Antoine Griezmann, 26, is set to leave Atletico Madrid for Barcelona in the summer (The Independent)

Tottenham and Everton have joined the list of clubs keeping tabs on Hamburg’s teenage striker Jann-Fiete Arp (Daily Mirror)

West Ham could sign Reading defender Liam Moore in January. The Hammers ran the rule over the 24-year-old in Monday’s draw with Cardiff (Daily Mirror)

Mauricio Pochettino will keep his players focused on Brighton by picking a full-strength team for Wednesday’s match (Daily Mirror)

Jermain Defoe is set to go head to head with Marcus Rashford at Old Trafford on Wednesday – but does not regard him as a rival for a World Cup 2018 place (Daily Mirror)

Arsenal have already agreed a £35.3m deal to sign Sevilla’s 28-year-old anchorman Steven Nzonzi in January

Chelsea have been rebuffed in a £22m move for Bayer Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey (Daily Mail)

Rafa Benitez has set a deadline of Friday for Mike Ashley to tell him how much money he will have to spend in January (Daily Mail)

Paris Saint-Germain full-back Thomas Meunier, 26, linked with a transfer to Manchester United in recent months, has hinted on Twitter that he would welcome a move to Old Trafford (Daily Express)

Cristiano Ronaldo said he is excited at being reunited with Gareth Bale on the pitch, indicating that he wants him to stay at the Bernabeu (Daily Express)

Chelsea are weighing up a January bid to try to hijack Liverpool and Arsenal’s interest in Monaco star Thomas Lemar as the club consider ways of increasing head coach Antonio Conte’s options (Daily Telegraph)

Manchester City are moving closer to securing Gabriel Jesus to a new, enhanced long-term contract (Daily Telegraph)

Mohamed Salah is likely to be the next Liverpool star rested after Jurgen Klopp revealed the Egyptian’s controversial substitution against Everton was precautionary due to a ‘little’ hamstring issue (Daily Telegraph)

Alan Pardew is set for a transfer summit with West Bromwich Albion’s hierarchy on Friday after confirming his interest in Danny Ings (Daily Telegraph)

Claude Puel has issued a firm defence of his record at Southampton and insisted his “boring” reputation is undeserved, ahead of his return to St Mary’s (Daily Telegraph)

Wolves winger Ben Marshall is a target for Cardiff City and Sheffield Wednesday (Daily Star)

Aston Villa, Fulham and Wolves all want Bournemouth striker Lewis Grabban, who is currently on loan with Sunderland (Daily Star)

Liverpool forward Daniel Sturridge will ponder a move abroad next month in a bid to save his World Cup hopes with Valencia and Real Betis keen (The Sun)

Nadiem Amiri: Is a target for Liverpool and Tottenham

Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham are tracking Hoffenheim and Germany under-21 midfielder Nadiem Amiri (The Sun)

West Ham are prepared to offload teenager Reece Oxford in a permanent deal to Borussia Monchengladbach (The Sun)

Manchester City defender Danilo is wanted by old club Porto on loan for the remainder of the season (The Sun)

Manchester United starlet Scott McTominay is wanted by a host of Championship clubs on loan next month (The Sun)

Nigeria will be allowed to play in the World Cup next summer despite playing an ineligible player during qualifying – their 1-1 draw with Algeria was turned into a 3-0 defeat but did not affect their position (The Sun)

West Ham boss David Moyes is considering a January move for Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere (The Guardian)

Pep Guardiola believes he may have to sign a defender in the January transfer window or Manchester City could be “in trouble” (The Guardian)

Sam Allardyce has cancelled Everton’s Christmas party after telling his players their form this season is no cause for celebration (The Guardian)