Paper Round: Louis van Gaal could quit Manchester United in the summer

Louis van Gaal's Manchester United contract doesn't expire until 2017, but he may not make it that far, and it may not be the Red Devils' choice. The Mirror understand that the Dutchman is considering quitting the club this summer. Those close to Van Gaal are concerned about the pressure he has been under at Old Trafford and even the manager isn't thrilled with the situation so he may step down a year before his contract ends. If Van Gaal does resign, Jose Mourinho would be in line to replace him. Ryan Giggs will not get serious cnsideration.

Paper Round's view - Being the Manchester United manager comes with plenty of pressure, and Van Gaal's struggles have only made it worse for the Dutchman. It wouldn't be entirely out of character if Van Gaal quit considering he has done it at other clubs before and the Red Devils probably wouldn't put up a huge fight. Man United might even be willing to pay him a decent severance to get him out and clear the way for Mourinho or someone else to come in without much fuss.

Everton have told Manchester United that they will have to pay £65 million if they want Romelu Lukaku, according to The Sun. Lukaku is being watched by Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City, as well as Man United, and Everton are doing all they can to keep him. Their latest tactic is to quote the Red Devils a giant fee, well above any valuation of him, with the hope that scares teams off. Lukaku still has three-and-a-half years left on his contract and the Toffees intend to stand firm on their refusal to sell in the summer as well.

Paper Round's view - Everton have already shown that they will do whatever they can to hold onto their best young players so it's no surprise they want to keep Lukaku. He has been brilliant and the team is miles better with him. The Toffees threw a fat price tag on John Stones in the summer, so quoting Manchester United £65m for Lukaku is out of the same playbook. Chelsea reportedly met Everton's valuation and the Toffees rejected their bid anyway, so simply demanding a huge fee for Lukaku isn't all they will do, but it's the first step.

Newcastle are still trying for the double swoop of Saido Berahino and Andros Townsend, per The Chronicle. The Magpies know that both West Brom and Tottenham will make things difficult, but they are continuing talks and will not stop trying for the duo. Spurs have already rejected a loan bid for Townsend, and a permanent bid, as they continue to demand £14m for the winger. Newcastle believe they will eventually get a deal done on a loan with an obligation to buy if Townsend makes enough appearances. Meanwhile, the Magpies are willing to set a new transfer record to buy Berahino.

Paper Round's view - Newcastle are being incredibly ambitious for a club in a relegation fight. It's one thing to buy reinforcements in a bid to stay up, it's another to talk about spending over £30m on two players, one of whom is an England international and the other of whom was one of the hottest commodities in the country just five months ago. Odds are, Newcastle won't land both Berahino and Townsend. Be it price, or either's reluctance to join a team that might go down, but they have a chance at one and with an impact player, plus a couple other buys, they may avoid relegation.

Chelsea could look to Watford for their next striker. The Mirror believe that the Blues are watching Odion Ighalo and could move for the Nigerian in the summer. Chelsea have a long list of short-term striker options that they could buy this summer, but with Radamel Falcao and Loic Remy likely to be gone by next season, the Blues know they need some possibilities for the long-term. Ighalo is one of those and the Blues will continue tracking him for the remainder of the season.

Paper Round's view - Ighalo is seemingly every big club's favourite target right now, and it's no surprise. Every season there is a player or two that comes out of nowhere to score a load of goals and when the January transfer window opens, clubs are clamouring to sign them. This year, Ighalo is one of those men. Whether that interest proves to be real will depend on how he finishes the season. If he continues bagging goals, Chelsea will probably be chasing him, along with Arsenal and maybe another club or two. If not, he'll stay at Watford, much to the delight of the Hornets.

Cheick Tiote may not be going to China after all. The Guardian claim that the Ivorian's proposed deal to join Shanghai Shenhua is now in doubt because Tiote asked for an increase in his £60,000-per-week wages. Newcastle and Shanghai agreed to an £8m transfer fee and Tiote underwent a medical, but Shanghai were not expecting him to ask for a raise. Now that he has, everything could fall apart. The Chinese are increasingly pessimistic about their ability to get a deal done, especially with Tiote favouring a move to the Middle East.

Paper Round's view - Tiote is looking to cash in by leaving Newcastle for a smaller league so it's no wonder that he has steep wage demands. That this wouldn't become an issue until after the fee was agreed to and Tiote took a medical is odd, but here we are. Now Steve McClaren may have a problem if the deal falls through and they can't get £8m from another club. He is trying to rebuild the squad and reinvesting the money from Tiote's sale is key to that.

Aston Villa may have found their goalkeeper in Lovre Kalinic. The Sun report that Remi Garde's side are close to a deal with Hajduk Split for the keeper and it is expected to be finalised in the next 48 hours. The £5m transfer would mark Aston Villa's first move of the January window. Brad Guzan has struggled for the Villans, leading Mark Bunn to take his place, but Garde wants to sign a goalkeeper that can potentially bypass both and the club believe Kalinic could be the man to do just that.

Paper Round's view - Aston Villa most definitely need a new goalkeeper. Guzan has been abysmal and Bunn isn't good enough to start for a Premier League team. If the Villans are going to mount a fight and potentially stay in the top flight, they'll need better goalkeeping than they have gotten so far. Kalinic is well-regarded and has proven himself to be a quality shot-stopper. Whether he can adjust to the Premier League and develop a relationship with the Villa defence could determine how much help he actually proves to be in the relegation battle.