Paper Round: United line up Modric as Fabregas stays put

Fabregas is going nowhere: Manchester United boss David Moyes's pursuit of Barcelona's former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas appears to be over, claim The Sun. The Spain midfield star has told friends he wants to stay and fight for his place at Barcelona. Manchester United have had two offers rejected and are mulling over making a club record £35 million bid.

Paper Round's view: Much has been made of just how 'important' it is that the new Old Trafford chief marks his territory by making one huge acquisition in the first transfer window of his reign. While such an offer no doubt grabbed Cesc's attention, it comes as no surprise that he would regard Barcelona as where his future lies. With the ageing Xavi on borrowed time as a world-class midfielder, a transfer now could be poorly-timed for the Spaniard.

Modric next up for United? If The Times are right, Moyes's contingency plan after failing to lure Cesc back to England is a big one. They suggest Manchester United are planning a £25m bid to sign Luka Modric from Real Madrid after coming to the reluctant realisation that they are unlikely to secure any of their primary transfer targets.

Paper Round's view: It's hard to fathom Modric as anyone's back-up plan, and at £10m less than what The Sun report would/could be United's final bid for Fabregas - not to mention for a player less settled at his current club, thus adding considerable leverage - it's actually somewhat surprising that Moyes was not targeting the ex-Spurs man sooner. He would certainly tick the 'marquee signing' box..

Valencia target Chicharito: It isn't just incoming deals Moyes has to deal with in the short-term, claim The Mirror. They report Valencia are searching for a replacement for Tottenham-bound Roberto Soldado, and have United's Javier Hernandez top of their shopping list as the Mexican wants more first-team football. With Wayne Rooney still tipped for a switch to Chelsea, it looks like Moyes may have a double transfer headache up top.

Paper Round's view: Not that this isn't a viable possibility, but the Mirror also suggest Valencia will be hoping for a cut-price deal on Hernandez, despite being on the verge of making £25m on the Soldado sale. A move for Hernandez surely would come with plenty of resistance from United, who as mentioned above are looking to reiterate their standing in the transfer pecking order after the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson. Well, at least until they like the figure offered, anyway.

Spurs set to wave white flag on Bale: If you're a Tottenham fan, you may want to turn back to the home page now. The Daily Star are reporting that Andre Villas-Boas and Daniel Levy's stubborn resistance to Real Madrid's interest in Gareth Bale is finally wavering, with chairman Levy's stance changing from 'no sale under any circumstances' to making sure the club get as much from the deal as possible.

Paper Round's view: While there are plenty of reasons why Bale staying at Spurs makes sense for him, even without Champions League football for another season, mounting reports that the Welshman is demanding the chance to speak to the Liga giants, who apparently could happily meet a valuation of anything between £80-100m, are making this one look increasingly likely. We may be edging closer to a staggering nine-figure fee for a footballer.

Newcastle shift focus as Gomis hunt ends: Next up for Alan Pardew (or should that be Joe Kinnear?) in the hunt for a new goal source at Newcastle is either Aston Villa's Darren Bent or QPR's Loic Remy, write The Telegraph. Newcastle are the only Premier League club not to sign a first-team player this summer and have made the mistake of failing to strengthen their squad in the past, a failing that was fully exposed by their involvement in the Europa League last season.

Paper Round's view: Neither forward is exactly a fresh target for United, and both appear likely to suffer from the same problem which ended negotiations with Lyon over Bafetimbi Gomis: money. The Toon apparently went as far as £7m for Gomis. Villa want eight for Bent. And despite QPR's drop to the Championship, they will be keen on getting as much of a return on Remy as possible. Both men are also on the kind of salary that will deter Newcastle even more, to boot.