Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Football rumours: Celtic target Ipswich starlet, Aberdeen increase May bid, Lafferty snubs Lennon, Manchester City favourites to sign Arsenal striker

Kundai Benyu (Aldershot Town / YouTube)
Kundai Benyu (Aldershot Town / YouTube)

CELTIC are closing in on highly-rated youngster Kundai Benyu, according to the Scottish Sun.

The 19-year-old Ipswich midfielder spent last season on loan at Aldershot and has reportedly been targeted by a number of Premier League sides, as well as the Scottish champions.


Brendan Rodgers has no intention of signing his son Anton for Celtic.

The Hoops boss fielded the 24-year-old as a trialist in a 1-0 win over BW Linz in a friendly yesterday after his release from Swindon.

But Rodgers senior says his son is only with the Hoops to train ahead of finding a new club.(Evening Times)


Aberdeen have tabled an improved bid for Preston striker Stevie May.

Stevie May (PA)
Stevie May (PA)

 

According to the Evening Express, the Dons have increased their offer to £300,000 for the former St Johnstone star.


Kyle Lafferty has completed his move to Hearts – leaving Hibs less than impressed.

The Sun reports that the striker had been scheduled to meet Easter Road boss Neil Lennon, with his adviser waiting at Hibs’ training ground.

Lafferty, however, didn’t show.


Scott Allan will give Dundee a much-needed X-Factor, according to captain Darren O’Dea.

The defender says he’s been impressed by Allan since his arrival on loan from Celtic. (The Courier)


The prospect of Europa League football was a big factor in moving back north, says St Johnstone new boy Stefan Scougall.

The midfielder is preparing to make his debut against FK Trakai tonight. (The Courier)


Niall McGinn could be heading for South Korea.

The striker, who left Aberdeen at the end of last season, is wanted by K-League side Gwangju FC.

Aberdeen's Niall McGinn (Jeff Holmes / PA Wire)
Niall McGinn (Jeff Holmes / PA Wire)

The Daily Record reports that the Northern Ireland international has held talks with the club president, who is the father of former Celtic star Ki Sung-yeung.


Down south

The Daily Mirror says Manchester City have become the favourites to sign Alexis Sanchez after Bayern Munich were put off by the Arsenal forward’s wage demands.

Sanchez wants in excess of £350,000-a-week to leave the Gunners, who will ask for around £50million for the Chilean even though his contract expires in 12 months, and the astronomical figures seem to have cooled Bayern’s interest.

While Arsenal would be loath to allow Sanchez to join a Premier League rival, they fear they are fighting a losing battle to keep the frontman, who has a fan in City boss Pep Guardiola.


Arsenal are already lining up a replacement for Sanchez, with Monaco winger Thomas Lemar top of their list, according to the Sun.

Thomas Lemar is apparently top of Arsenal's wish-list (Adam Davy/EMPICS Sport)
Thomas Lemar is apparently top of Arsenal’s wish-list (Adam Davy/EMPICS Sport)

The Ligue 1 champions have already rejected an opening bid of £28million for one of their star players but are taking an improved £35million offer into consideration.

The 21-year-old France international, who scored 14 goals and provided 17 assists for Monaco last season, has been on compatriot Arsene Wenger’s wishlist for some time but with Sanchez potentially on the way out, the Arsenal boss has decided now is the time to act on his interest.


Moving across London and the Daily Telegraph claims Chelsea could make a last-ditch attempt to swipe defender Kostas Manolas from under the noses of Zenit St Petersburg.

Kostas Manolas's move to Zenit St Petersburg looks to have stalled (Nick Potts/EMPICS Sport)
Kostas Manolas’s move to Zenit St Petersburg looks to have stalled (Nick Potts/EMPICS Sport)

The Greek centre-half was due to complete a £26million move from Roma to the Russian club on Wednesday but a dispute over his wages has put the deal in jeopardy and alerted Chelsea.

The Blues will release long-serving captain John Terry this weekend and are preparing to sell Nathan Ake to Bournemouth, so may opt to shore up their defensive options – even though manager Antonio Conte has his heart set on signing either Virgil van Dijk or Leonardo Bonucci this summer.

Elsewhere, Everton midfielder Gerard Deulofeu is attracting the attentions of Serie A giants AC Milan and Juventus after turning down the chance of rejoining Barcelona, writes the Daily Mail.

The Catalan giants triggered a buy-back clause in Deulofeu’s contract but the winger, a product of the La Masia academy, wants regular first-team football and is unlikely to get that at the Nou Camp, while he is not part of Toffees boss Ronald Koeman’s long-term plans either.

Is Gerard Deulofeu heading for Serie A? (Paul Harding/PA)
Is Gerard Deulofeu heading for Serie A? (Paul Harding/PA)

He impressed in a loan spell with Milan during the second half of last season and his performances for the Rossoneri have led to Juventus making their interest clear.

Finally, Manchester United look set to lose out in the chase for Monaco’s versatile midfielder Fabinho, who is closing in on a move to Paris St Germain, reports the Daily Record.

While Fabinho, who can also play at full-back, has expressed an interest in working with United boss Jose Mourinho, PSG are the favourites to seal his signature as they bid to prise a key asset away from their biggest domestic rival.