Arsenal and City to fight for Lewandowski: Borussia Dortmund's Polish star Robert Lewandowski had reportedly agreed a move to Bayern Munich next summer, but that turns out not to be the case - and has sparked huge Premier League interest, according to the Sunday Mirror. "City have been alerted by Lewendowski's claim that his proposed move to Bayern Munich when his contract expires next summer is not a done deal," the paper reports. "Etihad boss Manuel Pellegrini may even be prepared to sacrifice Edin Dzeko in a swap deal for the 25-year-old Pole if City are given further encouragement by the player. Arsenal remain cash rich and keen to sign a world class striker. The Gunners are prepared to pay £25 million to land Lewandowski in the January window before he becomes a free agent next summer."
Paper Round says: Hard to see why City need Lewandowski given their wealth of talent up front, but Arsenal are a different matter. Arsene Wenger's side are flying at the moment, but are still in great need of a top-of-the-line striker - and Lewandowski would be a snip at £25 million in January, even though his contract is up in June.
Crunch time for United and Rooney: "Manchester United are running the risk of Wayne Rooney leaving Old Trafford for a cut-price fee next summer after it was revealed they have yet to make any contact with his representatives," reports the Mail on Sunday. Rooney has finally found some good form after nearly two years in the doldrums, but the paper warns that United "will need to start negotiations within weeks" since the 27-year-old has just 20 months left on his contract. But there's a warning: "Any negotiations could be scuppered this week by the launch of Sir Alex Ferguson's autobiography, which may well reopen the well-chronicled rift between them."
Paper Round says: This summer Rooney gave the impression that he was keen on leaving Manchester United to try something new and different in the last few years of his career. Hard to see why anything would have changed on that score; it's about time he did something different.
'Civil War' at the FA as chief Grey Dyke fighting to keep his job: He's only held the position for a few months, but FA chief executive Greg Dyke is already "under attack" for the manner in which he's put together the commission looking at improving football, according to the Mail on Sunday. "There is open boardroom dissent," the paper claims. "Questions have arisen over Dyke's management style concerning a lack of accountability… unless there is some radical reform in the coming days, it looks like Dyke's attempt to seize the initiative will go the same way as those of his predecessors who ended their days at the FA unhappily."
The Sunday Telegraph runs a similar report, calling the disputes "civil war".
Paper Round says: This whole FA commission thing is utter nonsense. The idea that anything the FA does could make the slightest difference to football in England is, frankly, laughable. They've been outmanoeuvred by the Premier League, UEFA and Sky for years, to the point that what was once the undisputed highlight of the season - the FA Cup final - has become an embarrassing afterthought that has to be squeezed in around what many now see as the only proper matches, in the Premier League and Champions League.
On top of that, this commission is looking to fix something that's probably not broken. Sure, England have not won the World Cup in nearly half a century. But why on earth should England win the World Cup? Argentina haven't won it for nearly 30 years now, and they've got far more talent in their ranks. The idea that tournament success can be created by a bunch of old men on the FA gravy train chatting away in a boardroom is a bad joke.
Zaha desperate to leave United: The 18-year-old left Crystal Palace for Manchester United in a blaze of publicity in January (despite being loaned straight back to spearhead Palace's successful promotion push) but he now wants to do a U-turn as England future hangs in the balance. The Mail on Sunday reports that United chiefs now want to bet the farm on Adnan Januzaj, leaving Zaha as a benchwarmer who has lost his spot in the England pecking order to Raheen Sterling and Andros Townsend. "Zaha's now feels he is best going out on loan from United and may even have to consider a long-term future elsewhere," report the paper.
Paper Round says: It's baffling that Zaha was given plenty of pre-season time on the pitch, did very well, and yet has not had even a sniff of a chance with the champions during this campaign. Internet conspiracy theorists have suggested off-pitch shenanigans are the only possible explanation, but that seems unlikely. Instead, Zaha seems to be a player that Alex Ferguson liked the look of, but whom Moyes doesn't fancy at all. David Moyes, that is.
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