Papers: Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich turned down offer from Middle East consortium

All the top stories and transfer rumours from the back pages of Thursday's national newspapers...

DAILY TELEGRAPH

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has turned down an offer from a consortium based in the Middle East to buy the club, as he holds out for at least £3bn.

George Ford is expected to make a dramatic return to the England starting XV and be reunited with Owen Farrell in the backline to face New Zealand in the World Cup semi-final on Saturday.

Leicester midfielder James Maddison has been passed fit to face Southampton at St Mary's on Friday after suffering an ankle injury prior to the international break.

THE SUN

Arsenal will make a cut-price move for France and RB Leipzig £40m centre-back Dayot Upamecano to boost Unai Emery's defensive worries.

Alexis Sanchez pocketed an incredible £5m in bonuses from Manchester United last year - despite scoring just five goals.

Mesut Ozil appeared to have a tense talk with Unai Emery at the training ground after he was dropped for the defeat to Sheffield United.

Piet de Visser, an adviser to Roman Abramovich at Chelsea, says Maurizio Sarri was ordered to play Callum Hudson-Odoi last season.

Newcastle's Dwight Gayle is wanted back at West Brom to help enhance their Premier League promotion push.

Manchester United youngster James Garner is a loan target for Preston and Wigan in the Championship.

Andy Carroll is training just two days a week as Steve Bruce attempts to manage his fitness.

DAILY MAIL

Jose Mourinho is being lined up by Borussia Dortmund to take over as their new manager, and the club are in 'regular contact' with him, according to reports in Germany.

Partizan Belgrade head coach Savo Milosevic is confident the Europa League match against Manchester United will be a 'celebration of football' after the hosts completed a two-match stadium sanction for racist behaviour.

Former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit says he cannot figure out why Granit Xhaka is captain of the Gunners.

Wolves and West Ham have been linked with a move for AC Milan forward Suso, who has a release clause £36m.

The British and Irish Lions have suffered a setback in planning for the 2021 tour of South Africa, with top-flight clubs refusing a request to bring forward the Premiership final by a week.

Watford striker Danny Welbeck could be out for months, rather than weeks, after his latest injury setback.

THE GUARDIAN

Manchester City are stepping up their pursuit of Napoli's Fabian Ruiz and sent a scout to the Champions League game against Salzburg on Wednesday to watch the midfielder in action.

Bayern Munich are considering Ralf Rangnick as an option should performances not improve under Niko Kovac, with Manchester United also monitoring the situation.

Spain's women footballers have voted to go on strike after negotiations over a collective agreement with the clubs broke down over minimum salary and part-time contracts.

THE TIMES

Cardiff City have admitted to the existence of an "unacceptable coaching environment" at their academy after an investigation into allegations of bullying.

Tottenham Hotspur could be fined by UEFA after hundreds of Red Star Belgrade supporters attended the Champions League group match on Tuesday despite being banned.

Marcus Rashford and Harry Maguire led a team talk on racism to prepare their Manchester United team-mates for what they could face in their Europa League group match against Partizan Belgrade.

DAILY MIRROR

Manchester United have reportedly reached an agreement over the signing of Spanish wonderkid Mateo Mejia for a €150k (£130k) fee.

Edwin van der Sar has dismissed suggestions he is set to return to Manchester United as sporting director.

Brighton playmaker Leandro Trossard is ready to make his comeback against Everton on Saturday, following two months out with a groin injury.

DAILY STAR

Matt Ritchie has handed Newcastle manager Steve Bruce a major boost by declaring himself fit ahead of Sunday's home game against Wolves.

AFC Wimbledon have made Glyn Hodges their new permanent manager after taking over on a temporary basis following Wally Downes' suspension for breaking FA betting rules.

DAILY RECORD

Rangers have warned fans to behave in Porto this week as the club bids to guard against another UEFA charge.