Paper Round: Manchester United made ‘sensational’ bid for Bayern Munich's Thomas Muller

‘United made huge offer for Muller’ – Manchester United landed Anthony Martial only after having an enormous club record bid for Thomas Muller was turned down, according to a report in The Sun. United signed Martial in a deal that could end up costing a whopping £57.6m with add-ons, but United are understood to have already offered £60m for the more proven goalscoring skills of Bayern Munich’s German World Cup-winner Muller. The paper reports that after Louis van Gaal helped with 25-year-old Muller’s development when he was in charge at Bayern, he was desperate to sign the German for any price.

Paper Round’s view: It is certainly true that Muller would have been a much safer signing for United given that he is an established star and World Cup winner. Given they signed Martial for only slightly less than £60m if the reported ‘add-ons’ are included, it would not have been much more of a step to sign Muller. But it seems Bayern were not remotely interested. The Sun’s report comes off the back of quotes from Bayern president Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in which he said: “I’m talking about figures which were very high. If I were a bank manager I’d have had to accept it, but as a club we allowed ourselves to close the door on it.”

‘Lloris almost left Spurs for United’ – Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris very nearly left the club to join Manchester United in the transfer window, according to a report in the Daily Mail. Despite signing a new five-year contract in July 2014, the France number one was one of several keepers touted as a possible replacement for David de Gea who seemed destined to leave for Real Madrid. De Gea's proposed move to the Bernabeu eventually collapsed on transfer deadline day amid accusations of incompetence from both sides - with the Spaniard staying seemingly having direct implications on Lloris’s move. The paper reports that Lloris was poised to move to Old Trafford, but for the last-gasp failure of De Gea’s move to Real Madrid.

Paper Round’s view: It was widely reported that either Lloris or Jasper Cillessen of Ajax were being lined up as a replacement for De Gea if United ended up having to sell the Spaniard so this is not much of a surprise. The report in the Daily Mail follows quotes from Lloris in which he said ahead of France’s international with Portugal, “a lot of things were said and written – there could have been a development there but the desired movement didn’t happen”. As far as hints go, it certainly does sound as though he believed that he was not far off making a switch to Old Trafford, but Daniel Levy would probably have a different perspective on that.

‘Arsenal’s Debuchy eyeing move’ – Mathieu Debuchy is considered leaving Arsenal after losing his place to Hector Bellerin this season, that’s according to the Daily Express. He has featured only once this season in the Gunners' 2-0 loss to West Ham in their first League match of the campaign, with the impressive 20-year-old Bellerin keeping him out of the side, and now the paper reports that he would like to leave the club in order to get first-team football elsewhere.

Paper Round’s view: It’s an interesting story, only the transfer window has already shut. It seems unlikely that Wenger would allow him to leave on loan given that he is part of a squad that will need rotating through the season, but Debuchy has said in the last week that “it is difficult” playing behind Bellerin. He injured his ankle ligaments and dislocated a shoulder after his £12 million move last season but still has the ability to challenge Bellerin if he focuses on regaining his place in the team.

‘Everton had bid for star blocked by Real’ - Everton made a loan move for Real Madrid misfit Denis Cheryshev before the transfer window shut, only to see it blocked by the club at the last moment, according to a report in the Daily Star. Roberto Martinez wanted a number 10 signed and turned to Cheryshev after missing out on Andriy Yarmolenko, but while Cheryshev has been loaned out to Sevilla and Villarreal in the past, Real blocked a proposed switch to Goodison Park.

Paper Round’s view: The 24-year-old, a Russian international who can also play as a winger, reportedly has a £147m buy-out clause in his contract which is clearly an absurd figure. He was also linked with moves to Arsenal and Liverpool over the summer, but a move failed to materialise probably given the ridiculous price that is apparently on his head. But it is very understandable that Real wouldn’t want to risk seeing him have an underwhelming stay at Everton if they are keen to sell him on a permanent deal. While getting him in the Premier League shop window would be one thing, the risk of him struggling to adapt and losing value as a result would not be good for the Spanish giants at all.