Scottish Gossip: Celtic, Dundee, Rangers, Hibernian, Ross County, Dundee United

FOOTBALL GOSSIP

Former Scotland boss Alex McLeish is close to re-launching his managerial career after the 57-year-old was offered the head coach job at Egyptian club Zamalek. (Daily Record, print edition)

Scotland's World Cup qualifier against Slovakia on 11 October will be played at Spartak Trnava's ground instead of the capital, Bratislava, which means the Tartan Army will be limited to 2,000 tickets in the 19,200-capacity stadium. (Daily Record, print edition)

Scotland striker Leigh Griffiths has targeted a new league goals tally for Celtic and has 12 games to score the 12 he requires to beat the total of 35 set by both Brian McClair and Henrik Larsson. (The Herald)

Kristoffer Ajer, the 17-year-old who agreed a £750,000 move to Celtic from Start last week, has rejected suggestions by Molde coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that he moved to Scotland purely for money, the midfielder saying he could have earned more by joining the academies at English Premier League or German Bundesliga clubs. (The Sun, print edition)

Kristoffer Ajer has rejected criticism of his transfer to Celtic from from fellow Norwegian Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

After helping Inverness Caledonian Thistle defeat Aberdeen but then losing to Celtic within five days, defender Gary Warren thinks the greater strength in depth of the Glasgow squad will ensure they beat the Dons to the Scottish Premiership title. (Daily Mail, print edition)

Hearts are tracking the progress of Greenock Morton left-back Mark Russell, but a fee of around £100,000 would be required to secure the 19-year-old who has a year of his contract left to run with the Scottish Championship club. (Daily Express, print edition)

Midfielder Gary Harkins, whose Dundee side hope to beat Dumbarton to reach the Scottish Cup quarter-finals, insists that their potential opponents are a "new club" following the liquidation of oldco Rangers four years ago, despite Scottish Professional Football League chief executive Neil Doncaster having backed the ruling that they are not. (The Scotsman)

Rangers striker Kenny Miller says his winning goal against Queen of the South - his 100th in Scottish league football - was lucky and was the result of "the slowest, highest shot that's ever been seen at Palmerston Park". (The Scotsman)

Rangers manager Mark Warburton expressed his relief after his team preserved their eight-point lead at the top of the Scottish Championship despite producing what he felt was their worst football of the season in their 1-0 win away to Queen of the South. (The Scotsman)

Hibernian manager Alan Stubbs insists he will not make changes for the sake of it but needed to freshen up his side for Sunday's win over Alloa Athletic because of a schedule of five games in 14 days. (Daily Mail, print edition)

After the 3-0 win over Alloa Athletic, Hibernian striker James Keatings says he was always confident that manager Alan Stubbs' decision to rest seven players ahead of a run of four games in 10 days would not backfire. (The Scotsman)

Greenock Morton left-back Mark Russell (right) is being linked with Hearts

The Scottish Professional Football League has vowed to have the Hampden Park pitch in a condition fit for the League Cup final despite the surface being rutted, bare in patches, heavily sanded and due to host two home games for Queen's Park before Hibernian face Ross County in less than three weeks time. There are no plans to lay a new surface. (Daily Record, print edition)

Following the 2-1 win over Hearts, Dundee United defender Gavin Gunning believes his side can still avoid relegation from the Premiership despite the 11-gap between themselves and second bottom Kilmarnock. (The Scotsman)

OTHER GOSSIP

Harlequins winger Tim Visser has joined the Scotland squad after recovering from the injury that kept the 28-year-old out of the Six Nations defeats by England and Wales and he should be available to face Italy in Rome. (Daily Mail, print edition)

After Saturday's 5-1 home defeat by Fife Flyers left Braehead Clan in fourth place in the British league, operations director Gareth Chalmers has told the Glasgow club's players to reignite their title hopes or forget any hopes of earning new contracts. (The Herald)

Dundee Wanderers staved off the threat of relegation with a 5-3 victory over Croatian side Mladost in the final match at the women's indoor European Club Champions Trophy at the Dundee International Sports Centre. (The National)

Catriona Matthew's tie for ninth at the Women's Australian Open in Adelaide was the North Berwick golfer's best performance on the LPGA Tour since she was eighth in the Kingsmills Championship in May. (Daily Mail, print edition)

Andrew Butchart finished 14 seconds behind Mo Farah in the 3,000m in the Glasgow Grand Prix, but the Scot believes he will one day defeat the world champion. (The Sun, print edition)