Gossip column: Advocaat, Sterling, Drogba, Mbabu, Barry

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Sunderland manager Dick Advocaat is understood to be considering quitting the club after Saturday's home game against West Ham, having become disillusioned with life on a limited budget. (Guardian), external

Image source, Daily Star
Image caption,

The Daily Star lead with Arsene Wenger not pursuing a move for Anthony Martial because he did not think Monaco would sell him

Advocaat has already told Sunderland's backroom staff he is ready to leave, with former Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson in the frame to replace him. (Daily Mail), external

Burnley boss Sean Dyche is also among the contenders to take over from the Dutchman at the Stadium of Light. (Daily Mirror), external

Monaco received a bid higher than the £36m that Manchester United paid for Anthony Martial from an unnamed club in the summer, but the teenager wanted to move to Old Trafford. (Manchester Evening News), external

Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling, 20, claims he never told England manager Roy Hodgson that he would not be able to play in the Euro 2016 qualifier against Estonia last year because of tiredness. (Guardian), external

Spurs striker Harry Kane, 22, will take care of team-mate Dele Alli when they link up with Hodgson's England squad next week after the 19-year-old received his first senior call-up. (Sun- subscription required), external

Everton midfielder Gareth Barry, 34, who has made 569 Premier League appearances, says he wants to chase down Ryan Giggs's mark of 632 - and admits that he has a glass of wine or beer after a game.(Daily Mail), external

Newcastle United manager Steve McClaren says the club were looking to send out Swiss defender Kevin Mbabu on an emergency loan just days before the 20-year-old starred at left-back in his Premier League debut against Chelsea. (Newcastle Chronicle), external

Defender John Terry, 34, is set to be recalled by manager Jose Mourinho for Saturday's Premier League game against Southampton. (Daily Telegraph), external

Image source, The Times
Image caption,

The Times sport section front page leads on Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger's tense press conference with journalists

West Brom manager Tony Pulis says Crystal Palace boss Alan Pardew should become England coach after Roy Hodgson. (Times - subscription required), external

Manchester United defender Chris Smalling, 25, has credited his recent form to manager Louis van Gaal's intensive training methods. (Daily Express), external

Chelsea are planning to make a £29m bid for 18-year-old FC Porto midfielder Ruben Neves next year. (Evening Standard), external

Former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, 37, was voted Major League Soccer player of the month after scoring seven goals in his first six games for Montreal Impact.(Montreal Gazette), external

Best of social media

Image source, Cristiano Ronaldo

How do you celebrate scoring 500 career goals? If you're Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo you grab a whole load of trophies, put your best tie on and pose with your team-mates for a photo on Facebook., external

Think you can score a free-kick, bending the ball up and over the wall, into the net? Could you do it blindfolded? Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata can - and he's posted a video, external to prove it.

And finally...

Watford captain Troy Deeney, 27, says he looks for two-for-one bargains at the supermarket despite picking up a multi-million pound salary with the Hornets. (Daily Star), external

Stoke City playmaker Bojan Krkic impressed Great British Bake Off judge Paul Hollywood as he won the club's 'best baker' competition for a triple-layer, strawberry-and-cream sponge creation. (Independent), external

Manchester United fan and Russian cosmonaut Alexey Yakovlev sent his beloved team's flag up into orbit on the International Space Station. Why? To bring some "space energy" to the club. (Daily Mirror), external from (Red News), external

The Jersey Combination League will no longer make public any big defeats for under-14s and younger age groups in case the losing players become demoralised. League bosses have also asked coaches to try to stop their players scoring too many times in one-sided matches. (Sun - subscription required), external

Liverpool midfielder James Milner, 29, rues the fact that the @BoringMilner parody account of him on Twitter has got about 450,000 more followers than his charity foundation account.(Times - subscription required), external