Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce is apparently on the brink of being sacked, with Alan Shearer waiting in the wings to replace him (various). If this happens it would be a very big gamble by Mike Ashley. You can't go from a comfy TV sofa to one of the hottest jobs in football and expect to succeed overnight (which is what the fans seem to demand in Newcastle).

Manchester City are leading the race to sign Dinamo Zagreb midfielder Luka Modric. The Croatia star is set to cost Sven-Goran Eriksson £20m (Daily Express). Interesting that City's name is often alongside the bigger spenders these days, a sign that that Sven and Co mean business.

Chelsea's Avram Grant could also move for Daniel Alves, Maicon Douglas and Nicolas Anelka in a sensational £50m spending spree (Independent). More of Roman's pocket money going down the chute? Do the Blues really need to be spending that much money?

'Robbie Savage and Roy Keane in the same dressing room - now that would be a good place to be a fly on the wall at half-time'


Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is in pole position to sign Barnsley keeper Heinz Muller for £1m (various). Ah, that's more like it. Wenger is the canniest of them all  - you can be sure he's had at least 57 scouts watching Heinz and that he will be worth every penny. You only have to look at Barnsley's good form this season in the Championship.

Sunderland have held talks with Blackburn midfielder Robbie Savage about a possible move to the Stadium of Light. Savage would cost Roy Keane around £1.5m (Daily Mail). Savage and Keane in the same dressing room - now that would be a good place to be a fly on the wall at half-time.

Everton boss David Moyes has placed a £25m price tag on Mikel Arteta to scare off Spanish giants Valencia (Daily Mirror). I can think of a few English clubs that would not be put off by that kind of price.

Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate will add Sheffield United's Rob Hulse to his squad for around £2.2m (Daily Mirror). The way things are going for Southgate, the only thing he will be adding in the next few weeks will be the amount of compensation he is entitled to.

Meanwhile, Blades boss Bryan Robson is hoping new signing Gary Speed can persuade former Bolton colleague Ivan Campo to join him at Bramall Lane (The Sun). Now that's a mouth-watering proposition for any half-decent player, go to murky Sheffield to join a team going nowhere fast.

Tottenham striker Darren Bent is keen to link up with his former Charlton boss Alan Curbishley at West Ham (Daily Star). This one seems to me to be as close to reality as a rumour can get. Bent will surely find his true level in the Championship.

And finally, Portsmouth keeper David James has accused former England manager Steve McClaren of offering him nothing but a cheese roll during his 18 months in charge (The Times). Dare I suggest that the former England keeper's salad days are over?