Paper Round: Chelsea, United and City battle for Gareth Bale

Chelsea, United, City to battle for Bale - Gareth Bale will be a target for Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City this summer. Sources tell The Mail that the three clubs are going to fight for Bale, who would cost £75 million. Bale wants to stay at Real Madrid and the club want to keep him, but that may not be enough. The Merengues may be forced to sell him to fund another buy or two, potentially for Marco Reus, and the club want to make sure they have room for Isco next season.

Paper Round's view - There has been no indication to this point that Real Madrid are going to sell Bale. This appears to be more guessing than anything else, with the three richest clubs automatically linked to a player who would cost a pretty penny if sold. But the odds are still in favour of Bale staying at Real Madrid for at least one more season. These three clubs could end up in a bidding war come 2016, though.

Jovetic could go to Inter on loan - Inter Milan have offered Manchester City a deal that would see them take Stevan Jovetic on loan with a guaranteed £12m buy kicking in after the season, according to The Mail. City want to get their money for Jovetic up front, which could complicate the deal. But Jovetic is on the way out at City and wants to leave so the Citizens look set to sell and may end up returning to Inter's offer.

Paper Round's view - The problem for City is that as much as they want to sell several players, it's going to be tough to find clubs that can afford the wages the Citizens have those players on. Jovetic is one of those so while some teams may be interested in him, they probably can't afford him. That requires them to get creative, like a loan with a guaranteed buy. It's what City did with Alvaro Negredo and they may have to do it with Jovetic too.

Spurs plotting bid for Thauvin - The Mirror expect Tottenham to bid for Marseille's Florian Thauvin this summer. Spurs inquired about the player in January, but Marseille turned them away. However, things could be different this summer with the French club needing to raise cash and Spurs have continued to monitor the 22-year-old.

Paper Round's view - Spurs' interest in Thauvin is not a secret. They quite like him and Mauricio Pochettino wants to add a winger so there is a good fit there. He also fits the club's desire to sign young players who cost no more than £15m. All in all, Thauvin appears to be a good fit for Spurs. The question is whether Thauvin thinks Spurs are a good fit for him.

Chelsea to bid big for Imbula - Jose Mourinho has his eyes on Marseille's Giannelli Imbula and Chelsea are ready to bid £20m for the Frenchman, according to The Sun. The Blues had scouts watch Imbula as they get ready to make a move for the 22-year-old this summer, hoping to pair him with Nemanja Matic in midfield. The problem is that Real Madrid are also interested so the competition will be tough.

Paper Round's view - Whoever signs Imbula will only do so after a tough battle. While Chelsea and Real Madrid are the two teams in for him now, several more will join and the price could top £20m. Chelsea tried to buy him a few years ago, but Imbula rejected it because the Blues then wanted to loan him out. That could work against them, or it could work in their favour if Imbula doesn't harbour any ill will because they do have a prior relationship. A Matic/Imbula partnership would be frighteningly good.

Watford could lose manager - Watford clinched promotion to the Premier League, but they may have to play in the top flight without the manager who got them there. The Sun claim that Slavisa Jokanovic has refused to discuss an extension to his contract, which expires in June. So with Watford set for the top flight, the club have no idea if Jokanovic wants to be their boss there and are beginning to worry that he may choose not to return despite their desire to keep him.

Paper Round's view - Jokanovic is an interesting guy so it's tough to predict what he will do. Everyone around him says he's entirely carefree, focused on his job, but not consumed by it and a free spirit so if anyone was going to walk away from the Premier League, it'd be him. But it's tough to imagine that even he would pass on the offer to lead the club next season. He may not want to discuss a new deal yet, but the odds are always that a manager will take the good job being offered to him. That is unless a bigger club come calling.