Football gossip column: Neymar, Mahrez, Batshuayi, Aguero, Fosu-Mensah

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Paris St-Germain will try to sign Barcelona and Brazil forward Neymar, 24, in a deal worth up to 222m euros (£200m). (Goal), external

Manchester United's Dutch full-back Timothy Fosu-Mensah, 18, has agreed a new four-year contract at Old Trafford. (ESPN), external

Manchester City want to sign 13-year-old Celtic playmaker Karamoko Dembele, who has appeared for the Hoops' Under-20s side. (Sun), external

AC Milan are monitoring Michy Batshuayi's situation at Chelsea with the 23-year-old Belgium striker yet to start a league game for the Blues since his £33m summer transfer. (Mirror), external

Leicester forward Riyad Mahrez, 25, has confirmed Arsenal tried to sign him in the summer but the Algeria international says he has no regrets over staying at the King Power Stadium. (Canal+ via ESPN), external

Manchester City forward Sergio Aguero, 28, will have a scan for a calf injury picked up during a training session with Argentina. (Daily Star, external)

Image source, Daily Star
Image caption,

Wayne Rooney dominates Tuesday's back pages, including this one from the Daily Star

West Ham's Turkey winger Gokhan Tore, 24, has been ruled out for five weeks with a leg injury. (Sun), external

Manchester United target Isco, the 24-year-old Spain midfielder, has hinted he may leave Real Madrid at the end of the season. (Manchester Evening News), external

Monaco's France full-back Djibril Sidibe, 24, has revealed he rejected a move to Arsenal. (ESPN), external

Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, 29, will return from a groin injury to face Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday and will be fit for next week's match against Manchester City in the Champions League. (Mundo Deportivo via Reuters), external

Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker has described Bastian Schweinsteiger's treatment by Jose Mourinho as "perverse" after the 32-year-old former Germany international was exiled from the Manchester United first team. (Kicker via the Independent), external

Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho feels fellow Brazilian Gabriel Jesus, 19, will have no difficulty in adapting to life at Manchester City when the new signing arrives in January. (Manchester Evening News, external)

Former Aston Villa boss Remi Garde, 50, has said he would return to England "under better conditions" and said the Villa Park job "looked like a trap" in hindsight. (TF1 - in French), external

USA manager Jurgen Klinsmann, 52, has hit back at new Swansea manager Bob Bradley, 58, who accused the German of "jockeying" for his national team job before he was sacked in 2011. (Goal), external

Manchester United are open to the idea of safe standing at Old Trafford, similar to what has been incorporated at Celtic's Parkhead.(Daily Mail), external

Hull City caretaker manager Mike Phelan could lose some of his backroom staff to former boss Steve Bruce who is close to joining Aston Villa. (Hull Daily Mail), external

Meanwhile, Premier League side Hull are ready to make forward Abel Hernandez, 26, the highest earner at the club in bid to ward off January suitors.(Mirror), external

Barcelona have been scouting 20-year-old Las Palmas defender Mauricio Lemos. (Marca in Spanish), external

Former Celtic manager Ronny Deila, 41, has been linked with the Norway job alongside 43-year-old ex-Manchester United forward Ole Gunnar Solksjaer.

Best of social media

Cristiano Ronaldo has mocked former Manchester United team-mate Rio Ferdinand's regime in a post on his Instagram. (Rio Ferdinand Instagram), external

Image source, @Cristiano
Image caption,

A few hours later, Ronaldo was helping his Portugal side beat Faroe Islands 6-0 in a World Cup qualifier

Juventus full-back Patrice Evra has the cure for the Monday blues. The France international has filmed himself on Instagram , externalasking "why people hate Mondays" before singing along to the Marvin Gaye classic Ain't No Mountain High Enough.

And here's compatriot Moussa Sissoko, external of Tottenham celebrating France's 1-0 World Cup qualifier win in Netherlands with his team-mates.

Image source, Moussa Sissoko

And finally...

Former Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn had "no idea who James McClean was" before he signed his Republic of Ireland compatriot for the north-east club in 2011. (Sky Sports), external

Manchester City's academy players are apparently not allowed to play in colourful footwear - only black - in a bid to keep them grounded. (Daily Mail, external)

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