All the latest football rumours from today's newspapers.

• Manchester City are leading the race to sign Dinamo Zagreb midfielder Luka Modric. The Croatia star is set to cost Sven-Goran Eriksson £20m (Daily Express)
  
  
• But Chelsea are also desperate to sign Modric to help ease their growing injury list, that now includes Frank Lampard. (Guardian)
  
  
• Avram Grant could also move for Daniel Alves, Maicon Douglas and Nicolas Anelka in a sensational £50m spending spree. (Independent)
  
  
• Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is in pole position to sign Barnsley keeper Heinz Muller for £1m. (Various)
  
  
• Muller's arrival would pave the way for out-of-favour Jens Lehmann to leave Arsenal and rejoin Borussia Dortmund. (Various)
  
  
• Sunderland have held talks with Blackburn midfielder Robbie Savage about a possible move to the Stadium of Light. Savage would cost Roy Keane around £1.5m. (Daily Mail)
  
  
• Bolton are keen on Portsmouth midfielder Matt Taylor but could be put off by the £5m price tag the south coast outfit are placing on his head. (Daily Mail)
  
  
• Everton boss David Moyes has placed a £25m price tag on Mikel Arteta to scare off Spanish giants Valencia. (Daily Mirror)
  
  
• Celtic are negotiating with Everton about the transfer of James McFadden and hope to sign the striker in time to face Rangers on 2 January. (The Sun)
  
  
• Sevilla have pulled the plug on Andreas Hinkel's move to Borussia Dortmund after Celtic lodged an improved offer for the right-back. (Daily Record)
  
  
• Celtic will lose out on Andreas Hinkel despite an improved bid because the defender wants to join Borussia Dortmund. (Daily Mail)
  
  
• Bobo Balde will hold showdown talks with Celtic to find out if he has a future at the club or should join Birmingham or Sunderland during January. (Daily Express)
  
  
• Bobo Balde wants his future sorted out before the African Nations Cup starts on 6 January and the defender hopes to remain with Celtic. (The Herald)
  
  
• Celtic have offered out-of-favour striker Maciej Zurawski to Maccabi Tel-Aviv. (various)
  
  
• Rangers are hoping to sign England Under-21 striker Luke Moore, but Aston Villa would prefer a permanent transfer to a loan deal. (The Sun)
  
  
• Midfielder John Rankin has been told he can leave Inverness and hopes to move in January despite a recent return to the first-team. (The Sun)
  
  
• Reading manager Steve Coppell is set to land Nigerian striker Udo Nwoko from Portuguese club Leixoes for £1.25m. (Daily Mirror)
  
  
• Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate will add Sheffield United's Rob Hulse to his squad for around £2.2m (Daily Mirror)
  
  
• Cesc Fabregas' agent has said there is "no chance" the young Arsenal star will move to Real Madrid despite interest from the Spanish giants. (The Sun)
  
  
• Chelsea are eyeing up a move for Barcelona's 16-year-old starlet Thiago Alcantara, who has yet to sign a pro deal at the Nou Camp. (The Sun)
  
  
• Bryan Robson is hoping new signing Gary Speed can persuade former Bolton colleague Ivan Campo to join him at Bramall Lane. (The Sun)
  
  
• Tottenham striker Darren Bent is keen to link up with his former Charlton boss Alan Curbishley at West Ham. (Daily Star)
  
  
• Dundee United hope to secure Leicester striker Eric Odhiambo on loan until the end of the season. (Daily Express)
  
  
• Gretna will be paid £20,000 by Dundee United for left-back Danny Grainger, who will sign a two-and-a-half year contract. (Daily Express)
  
  
• St Mirren are close to securing New England Revolution midfielder Andrew Dorman on an 18-month contract. (various)

• Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce is on the brink of being sacked, with Alan Shearer waiting in the wings to replace him. (Various)
  
  
• Portsmouth keeper David James has accused former England manager Steve McClaren of offering him nothing but a cheese roll during his 18 months in charge. (The Times)
  
  
• Hearts players have demanded changes to training methods after they met privately to discuss their recent poor form. (Daily Record)

• Aberdeen youngster Chris Maguire faces a major rap after posting an abusive outburst on his official website about Rangers stars Barry Ferguson and Alan Hutton. (Daily Record)