The top stories making Friday’s back pages in the UK…
The Sun: Gary Neville admits he could never have held his head up in football if he had rejected Valencia.
Also: Manchester United could lose Marcos Rojo for the rest of the year after he suffered a dislocated shoulder.
And: Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini was once Manuel Pelle-croon-i to try to stay in harmony with his players.
Daily Mirror: Steve McClaren is fighting to save his job as Newcastle boss.
Also: Jurgen Klopp delivered a verdict on Liverpool’s six-goal supershow at Southampton that will have Premier League rivals shuddering – “It was good, but we’ve still got an awful long way to go.”
And: Manchester United have been hit by a major injury blow after defender Marcos Rojo suffered a serious shoulder injury in training on Wednesday.
Daily Star: Under-fire Newcastle boss Steve McClaren has admitted he is in the dark about his future at St James’ Park.
Also: Mauricio Pochettino reckons Saido Berahino is the perfect fit for Tottenham.
And: Gary Neville insists he would have lost his credibility if he had not taken the plunge with Valencia.
Daily Mail: Manchester United are facing competition from Bayern Munich in the race to land Sadio Mane.
Also: The biggest problem Gary Neville could foresee upon becoming the new head coach of Valencia was finding a Spanish teacher with the same harsh sleeping patterns as his own.
Daily Express: Gary Neville insists he would have lost all credibility if he had not put his money where his pundit’s mouth is and taken the plunge with Valencia.
Also: Manchester United appear to have started succession planning as their former captain Gary Neville took his first steps into management.
And: Bastian Schweinsteiger has coined the nickname “Mr Calm” by his Manchester United team-mates.
Metro: With Francis Coquelin and Santi Cazorla both ruled out for up to three months with injuries, speculation is building that Arsenal will buy a defensive midfielder in the January transfer window.
Daily Telegraph: Arsenal are again interested in Portugal international William Carvalho as they try to solve their central midfield injury crisis but the difficulty of making a major signing in January means they are also focussed on the available loan options.
The Times: Manchester United are preparing an audacious £8 million bid to sign Reece Oxford from West Ham United in the January transfer window.
The Guardian: Chelsea are confident of welcoming their first-choice goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, back into the starting lineup against Bournemouth on Saturday after almost three months in rehabilitation following knee surgery.
Also: A day that began with a fresh round of dawn raids on the Baur Au Lac hotel in Zurich ended with 16 football officials being indicted on corruption charges in the US, including five current or former members of Fifa’s executive committee.
