Football rumours from today's newspapers

• Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has flown to South Africa to try to secure the signing of Liverpool and Spain striker Fernando Torres for a British record £50m.
  (Daily Telegraph)


• The Blues have opened the bidding with a £35m offer for the 28-year-old, who is also a target of Manchester City.
  (Daily Express)


• New Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson wants to sign Joe Cole. The 28-year-old midfielder, who was released by Chelsea at the end of last season, has been linked with a move to Tottenham.
  (The Sun)


• Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola has made a secret visit to Spain's World Cup base to try to seal the signing of Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas.
  (Daily Star)


• Atletico Madrid striker Diego Forlan has declared that he would never return to play in England. The 31-year-old scored 17 goals for Manchester United in 37 starts, with 58 appearances from the bench from 2002-04.
  (Daily Express)


• Meanwhile, Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has ruled out making a move for Forlan as he believes the Uruguay star is out of Spurs' price range.
  (The Sun)


• New Inter Milan boss Rafael Benitez is hoping to sign either Tottenham defender Gareth Bale or Liverpool full-back Glen Johnson as a replacement for the Real Madrid-bound Maicon.
  (Daily Mail )


• Manchester United are plotting a £25m-move for Inter Milan and Netherlands playmaker Wesley Sneijder, who has excelled at the World Cup in South Africa.
  (The Mirror)


• Chelsea are leading the chase for Germany playmaker Sami Khedira. Stuttgart are reportedly ready to sell the 23-year-old for £12m now, rather than lose him on a free transfer when his contract expires next year.
  (The Sun)


• Bayern Munich have warned off Chelsea and other Premier League teams who want to sign their World Cup stars. The Blues are interested in midfielders Bastian Schweinsteiger and Thomas Mueller, while Manchester United want full-back Phillipp Lahm.
  (The Sun)


• West Ham have launched a £5m bid for 23-year-old Mexico winger Pablo Barrera, who plays for Pumas.
  (The Sun)


• Newcastle United want to take Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley on loan for next season. Cleverley impressed during a loan spell with Watford last season.
  (The Mirror)


• Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce is keen on Rapid Vienna's £4m-rated Croatian striker Nikica Jelavic, but may have to wait for a potential takeover of Rovers to happen before bidding.
  (The Mirror)


• Manchester City have offered forward Robinho to Valencia on a season-long loan as the Eastlands club look to save on at least part of his £150,000-a-week wages.
  (The Mirror)


• Former Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant is being offered to West Ham and Wigan by his Spanish club Real Zaragoza. However, Wolves have rejected the chance to sign the player.
  (Daily Mail )

• Manchester United defender Gary Neville reckons England are stuck with the players who flopped at the World Cup in South Africa for another two years because there simply aren't any youngsters good enough to replace them.
  (The Sun)


• Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti says he will give the club's young English players a chance to establish themselves in the first-team squad and maybe stake a claim for the national team.
  (The Mirror)


• Manchester City's new midfield signing Yaya Toure says that one day he would like to return to Barcelona, the club he just left to join City on a reported £200,000-a-week contract.
  (The Mirror)


• West Ham's pursuit of 18-year-old Santos forward Neymar has got the thumbs up from the player's father. "He would adapt there for a while and would later reach a big team in a short space of time," said Neymar Silva.
  (Daily Mail )


• Swansea want Exeter manager Paul Tisdale to replace Paulo Sousa, who resigned as boss of the Swans on Monday and is expected to take the Leicester job.
  (Daily Mail )


• Social networking website Facebook is in talks with the Football Association about becoming the new sponsor of the England team.
  (Daily Mail )

• Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini greeted his players for pre-season training sporting a new haircut. Gone are the long locks and in comes the cropped look sported by Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho.
  (The Mirror)