Sir Alex Ferguson is set for a huge January transfer splurge. The Manchester United boss will offer footballing ne’er-do-wells Wes Brown and Louis Saha as well as £6m in cash for Spurs striker Dimitar Berbatov. (Various)

Newcastle boss Sam Allardyce is also looking at Brown after his contract extension belly-flopped when Sir Alex offered the injury prone 28-year-old defender a paltry £40,000 a week. (Various)

Patrice Evra also wants a new deal at the club but unlike Brown he is far more likely to be offered satisfactory terms. (The Sun)

'David Moyes has been told in no uncertain terms that his policy of taking Middlesbrough's best players is not appreciated'


Juande Ramos has fired back a Tottenham counter-offer saying that he doesn’t want injury-prone Brown foisted on him (he has enough crippled defenders already) and that nothing will happen unless Nani is included in any swap negotiations. (The Star)

Liverpool’s Jamie Carragher has told new England gaffer Fabio Capello that despite the Italian’s stated desire to bring back a couple of international retirees to the fold, he won’t be able to tempt him back into international football. (Various)

Despite being linked with Liverpool, Portsmouth midfielder Sulley Muntari claims that he is happy where he is and doesn’t want to move anywhere. (The Independent)

Chelsea and Man Utd are both scrambling to get their paws on Nicolas Anelka, but Avram Grant and the hulking Chelsea bank accounts are winning the race and will snap up the Frenchman for £10m. (The Sun)

Wigan’s Steve Bruce is after striker Jonathan Walters and is ready to give Ipswich £2m to secure his signing.Pompey boss Harry Redknapp is thinking of spending exactly the same amount on Strasbourg defender Habib Bellaid. (Various) (The Sun)

Bruce is also hoping to tie up Ecuadorian winger Antonio Valencia on a permanent deal from Villarreal. (Daily Star)

Aston Villa’s Martin O’Neill has £8m burning a hole in his pocket and is hot on the heels of Valencia defender Miguel. (The Mirror)

Everton boss David Moyes has been told in no uncertain terms that his policy of taking Middlesbrough’s best players is not appreciated, first Yakubu and now the Moyesiah wants some-time England winger Stuart Downing. But Boro big wigs have insisted that he will not be leaving in January. (Various)

Bolton’s ginger Mourinho Gary Magson is after 26-year-old Porto centre-back Bruno Alves to shore up his defence after admitting: “We've got issues at the back that are killing us." However, Big Sam Allardyce is also sniffing around Alves, and could try and hijack the deal (Daily Mail)

Meanwhile, Newcastle have beaten away Everton’s dogged interest in Swindon’s 17-year-old full-back Ben Tozer and will snap him up in January. (The Sun)

Eidur Gudjohnsen is being wooed by a trio of clubs desperate for his signature; Newcastle, West Ham and Manchester City are all after the Barcelona striker. (The Sun)

Arsene Wenger is set to lose one of his Arsenal youngsters with with Spaniard Fran Merida toddling off to Welsh magician Chris Coleman and his Real Sociedad side on loan. (The Sun)