All the top stories and transfer rumours from Friday’s national newspapers…
THE SUN
Erik ten Hag has blocked the sales of Anthony Martial and Donny van de Beek by Manchester United this summer.
Jules Kounde has thrown his £55 million move to Chelsea into doubt after turning up unannounced for Sevilla’s pre-season tour.
Chelsea new owner Todd Boehly and consortium investors are to sensationally rebuild Stamford Bridge one stand at a time. SunSport has been told that the new owners plan a staged rebuild of the Bridge, with the stands replaced and upgraded one by one.
Manchester United defender Raphael Varane has hailed team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo as a “legend” – and insists no one in the dressing room thinks the team is better without him.
Danny Welbeck has revealed his incredible body transformation ahead of the new season.
THE TIMES
Erling Haaland will have to wait until Saturday to make his first appearance for Manchester City, but Jack Grealish has predicted that his new team-mate will be “unstoppable” once he reaches peak fitness.
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Kevin Mbabu is one step away from joining Fulham from Wolfsburg and will travel to meet the club on tour in Portugal and undergo a medical. Fulham are also interested in signing the Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Sergio Rico on loan for a second time after his spell in 2018-19.
West Ham have blocked Issa Diop’s proposed move to Fulham after Nayef Aguerd, their new centre back, suffered an ankle injury in a 3-1 friendly defeat away to Rangers on Tuesday and could be sidelined for at least one month.
Aaron Ramsey has been left out of Juventus’s squad for the tour to the United States as the club attempt to terminate the midfielder’s contract, which has one year left.
DAILY STAR
Alexandre Lacazette looks set to miss Lyon’s next pre-season friendly after being attacked by wasps during training.
Manchester United’s flight from Melbourne to Perth was delayed after a military jet reportedly landed on the runway and blocked the plane.
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Brighton & Hove Albion could treble their money on Marc Cucurella after slapping a hefty price-tag on the Manchester City target.
Adebayo Akinfenwa has made a swift retirement U-turn after he was filmed playing for Hashtag United.
THE TELEGRAPH
Thomas Tuchel could be stuck with several unwanted players for the 2022-2023 campaign as top-flight clubs are reluctant to strike a deal with the Premier League giants for their out-of-form stars.
The German manager is said to be looking to offload Michy Batshuayi, Kenedy, Malang Sarr, Ross Barkley, Timo Werner and Kepa during the summer transfer window but there has been little interest in the Chelsea flops so far.
DAILY MAIL
Anthony Martial is staying at Manchester United after reviving his Old Trafford career this summer. Martial has scored three goals in as many games on tour in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo, and new manager Erik ten Hag has decided that he will not be sold.
Jack Grealish is so fired up this pre-season that he bolted straight back into Manchester City’s dressing room to check the footage of refereeing decisions in Wednesday’s friendly.
Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo is willing to take a big pay cut in order to exit Old Trafford this summer.
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Thomas Muller spared no time in denying Arsenal links after Bayern Munich’s 6-2 pre-season win over Wayne Rooney’s DC United.
Southampton are in talks to sign Bordeaux striker Sekou Mara. The highly-rated 19-year old has drawn attention from Premier League clubs such as Newcastle, Aston Villa and Leeds but Southampton have stepped in ahead of the rival competition.
DAILY MIRROR
Barcelona are reportedly set to launch one last attempt to snatch Sevilla star Jules Kounde from Chelsea this summer.
Barcelona want to hijack Chelsea’s pursuit of Jules Kounde
Mikel Arteta confessed he will need to offload a number of Arsenal players in order to get his squad down to a reasonable size ahead of the new season – with up to eight players facing the axe.
Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo insists the club already have a “wonderful squad” amid rumours linking them with Cristiano Ronaldo.
Manchester United transfer target Benjamin Pavard is not short of confidence and has already declared he is “more complete” than Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Spanish defender Marc Cucurella has been left “disappointed” with the price tag that Brighton have put upon his head amid interest from Man City, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
THE ATHLETIC
Graham Potter is reportedly looking to add former Hoffenheim star Florian Grillitsch to his Brighton squad ahead of the start of the season.
DAILY EXPRESS
Tottenham have reportedly failed in an attempt to swap Joe Rodon for Roma midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo. Antonio Conte also offered £25million in addition to the centre-back, however, this was rebuffed by former manager Jose Mourinho.
Timo Werner has been told to be grateful at Chelsea
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has admitted that he is struggling to understand Timo Werner’s recent suggestion that he would be happy to switch clubs in the not-too-distant future.
Tottenham ace Japhet Tanganga is reportedly drawing interest from Celtic, Bournemouth and Monaco, despite the fact his current employers have begun transfer talks with AC Milan over a move.
Reports in Portugal claim Liverpool are ready to start formal negotiations with Sporting over the signing of Matheus Nunes. The 23-year-old midfielder is among the hottest properties in European football right now, with Chelsea recently exploring a deal for the ace and Manchester City also watching him.
Chelsea have reportedly been informed by Barcelona in private talks that they can pip Manchester United to a deal for Frenkie de Jong. The Dutch midfielder has been linked with a switch to Old Trafford all summer, but a deal has failed to materialise after weeks of tedious negotiations – and the Blues could jump in.
THE SCOTTISH SUN
Rangers captain James Tavernier has agreed a new two-year deal with the Scottish giants.
Tavernier has two years remaining on his current deal and will be eligible for a testimonial with the Ibrox side in 2025.