Wednesday's gossip: Van Gaal, Mourinho, Vardy, Matip
Last updated on .From the section Football
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Louis van Gaal: Staying or going?
Jose Mourinho's agent denies a deal has been agreed for the former Chelsea boss to replace Louis van Gaal at Manchester United. (Globoesporte - in Portuguese)
Van Gaal is getting closer to the sack, with executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward spending Tuesday in a meeting at the club's London headquarters. (Sun)
Ex-Norway striker and German television pundit Jan Age Fjortoft believes Van Gaal will be sacked and replaced by assistant Ryan Giggs in the next few days, possibly even before Christmas. (BBC Radio 5 live)
Former QPR manager Neil Warnock says United must make Jose Mourinho their new manager before the former Chelsea boss is employed again, but doubts the club's owners have the 'bottle' to dismiss Van Gaal. and overlook assistant Ryan Giggs. (BBC Radio 5 live)
United are considering Paris St-Germain boss Laurent Blanc as a potential replacement for Van Gaal, should they fail to land outgoing Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola.(Buzzsport - in French, via Metro)
Other gossip
Leicester striker Jamie Vardy, 28, has been the subject of a tentative enquiry from Manchester City, but Chelsea's interest is more solid. (Telegraph)
Chelsea are looking to make Inter Milan and former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini their next permanent manager.(FcInterNews via Daily Star)
Meanwhile, the Blues have agreed to sign £30m-rated Brazilian midfielder Alex Teixeira, 25, from Shakhtar Donetsk.(Daily Star)
Everton are set to be taken over by an American-led consortium within the next six weeks. (Times - subscription required)
Arsenal are hoping 27-year-old Germany midfielder Mesut Ozil will commit to a long-term deal, which will surpass his current £140,000-a-week contract due to run until 2018. (Daily Mail)
But French midfielder Mathieu Flamini, 31, is set to leave the Gunners when his deal expires in the summer despite having never lost a league game at home. (Mirror)
Former England, Chelsea and Arsenal left-back Ashley Cole is set to join LA Galaxy. The 35-year-old is a free agent after being released by Roma. (Sun)
Cameroon defender Joel Matip, 24, is closing in on a move to Liverpool after rejecting a contract offer from Schalke. (Bild - in German)
Bournemouth look set to beat Watford to the signing of 22-year-old Roma forward Juan Iturbe. (Bournemouth Echo)
Midfielder Steve Sidwell, 33, is expected to leave Stoke in January after falling out of favour under manager Mark Hughes. (Talksport)
Sampdoria want to sign Leicester's 28-year-old French defender Yohan Benalouane in the January transfer window. (Gazzetta World)
Celtic captain Scott Brown has criticised the organisers of a petition who are calling for manager Ronny Deila to be sacked. (Daily Record)
Kenwyne Jones' ongoing contract saga at Cardiff City is not causing the 31-year-old striker to lose his focus on the pitch. (Wales Online)
Manchester City striker Wilfried Bony, 27, says he was "disappointed" he was dropped for Sergio Aguero by manager Manuel Pellegrini for Monday's match against Arsenal. (Independent)
Real Madrid are interested in 17-year-old Monaco striker Kylian Mbappe. (Marca, via Le Journal de Dimanche)
Former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan, 36, is interested in playing in the MLS. (L'Equipe)
Neil Warnock reveals how he tried to poach striker Troy Deeney, 27, from Watford when he was boss of Crystal Palace.(Radio 5 live)
Best of social media
Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo, 30, has given his Twitter followers a look around his £4.8m mansion, which has seven bedrooms, a swimming pool and mini football pitch.
Ronaldo's Madrid team-mate James Rodriguez, 24, is off enjoying La Liga's winter break and posed for a photograph on Instagram with a chimpanzee in a red hooded sweater.
Southampton tweeted a picture of goalkeeper Fraser Forster, 27, on his return to full training after nine months out with a knee injury.
And finally
The force was strong at Mexican side CF Pachuca after they unveiled their new signing, 6ft 5in defender Omar Gonzalez, in a Darth Vader costume. The 27-year-old - signed from LA Galaxy, far, far away - was complete with lightsaber. (101 great goals)
