Paper Round: Liverpool eye 'sensational' offer for Milan star

‘Liverpool eyeing big move for Milan star’ – Liverpool, along with Arsenal, have now been told they must table a “sensational” offer if they are to land AC Milan forward Stephan El Shaarawy in January, and they are considering taking the plunge – that’s according to the Daily Express. His agent, Manuel El Shaarawy, is quoted as insisting any potential suitors must cough up a considerable sum to tempt Milan to sell. “Stephan will not leave Milan in January unless there is a sensational offer,” he said, with the paper reporting that both Arsenal and Liverpool are keen on a move for the winger, along with interest from Borussia Dortmund and Roma.

Paper Round’s view: Brendan Rodgers could be excused feeling a little desperate at the moment with his side struggling for goals and creativity in the final third of the field. El Shaarawy certainly has quality in attacking areas and the Italy international has been heavily linked with a January move away from AC Milan. It’s no surprise that clubs like Arsenal and Liverpool are being linked with him, but quite whether Rodgers would be able to get a ‘sensational’ offer from the club’s American owners for a panic buy in January would be very tough, even if he could potentially help turn their underwhelming campaign around.

‘Tottenham fear Arsenal move for their target’ - Tottenham fear north London rivals Arsenal will gazump any new bid to sign Southampton midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin, that’s according to the Daily Telegraph. Mauricio Pochettino has been keen to link up with Schneiderlin at White Hart Lane since taking over as Tottenham head coach at the end of May. There is major concern within White Hart Lane, however, that Arsenal will bid for Schneiderlin if they are given any encouragement that the 25-year-old will be allowed to leave.

Paper Round’s view: Southampton turned down a £10million offer from Spurs for Schneiderlin in the summer and have insisted the Frenchman is not for sale in January. But Schneiderlin is still reported to be keen on a move away from St Mary’s and, with Nabil Bentaleb set to miss around a month because of his involvement in the African Cup of Nations with Algeria, it’s obvious why Tottenham remain interested. Quite why they appear paranoid regarding Arsenal’s movements is unclear, though, and seems pretty unfounded. There’s no doubt that he would be a good signing for both north London clubs, given his quality playing in front of the back four.

‘QPR want to bring in England winger’ - Harry Redknapp is hoping to capitalise on Andros Townsend's frustration at Tottenham to sign him on loan for QPR next month, that’s according to the London Evening Standard. Redknapp is understood to be a huge admirer of the England international and is now looking to bring in the out of favour winger to bolster his attacking options for the second half of the season. He is being encouraged to acquire players on loan and Townsend's pace on the break is seen as an asset that can improve Rangers in attack.

Paper Round’s view: Townsend seems to have fallen out of favour at White Hart Lane having started just one League game under new manager Mauricio Pochettino. So it makes sense for Redknapp to attempt to step in and bring him to Loftus Road. The QPR boss brought him to Loftus Road from Spurs for the second half of the 2012-13 season and, while he couldn't help the club avoid relegation from the top flight back then, the winger impressed. Townsend would be an excellent signing for QPR.

‘Southampton to snap up Dutch winger’ - Ronald Koeman is poised to make his first Dutch signing for Southampton, that’s according to the Daily Mirror. Winger Eljero Elia is set to join the Saints from Werder Bremen when the January transfer market opens, reports the paper. The 27-year-old will apparently cost around £4 million and has often been Arjen Robben’s international understudy. Southampton are understood to want to act quickly in wrapping up this deal.

Paper Round’s view: Elia has reportedly turned down previous opportunities to move to the Premier League with Liverpool and Everton both interested in signing him before he joined Juventus in August 2011. Regardless of what happened back then, Koeman has already shown that he knows which players to bring in from abroad to help bolster his Southampton squad, so fans can be fairly confident that he knows what he’s doing in this case too. Elia could be just the fresh burst of energy that the squad needs after a lethargic spell following their very strong start to the season.