The top stories making Friday’s back pages in the UK…
The Sun: Real Madrid will trigger a £30million release clause next summer to land David De Gea.
Also: Wayne Rooney admits he faces “a huge challenge” to keep his England place — after being axed for tonight’s friendly in Spain.
And: Manchester United are confident that Cristiano Ronaldo would snub Chelsea to return to Old Trafford. The Red Devils have been alerted by reports that Stamford Bridge owner Roman Abramovich has made Ronaldo his No1 target for next summer.
Daily Mirror: Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema could leave Real Madrid this summer in a major shake-up for the Spanish giants.
Also: Didier Drogba has warned that Jose Mourinho’s reign at Chelsea could again be blighted by a return of the third year blues.
And: Cristiano Ronaldo believes he will miss out on a third consecutive Ballon D’Or in January – despite having “the best season of my career.”
Daily Star: Manchester City want Carlo Ancelotti to become their next boss if Pep Guardiola snubs them.
Also: Karim Benzema is reportedly set to be sold by Real Madrid next summer.
Daily Mail: David de Gea has revealed he is now ‘very happy’ at Manchester United where he ‘feels loved’ by the fans despite coming close to leaving for Real Madrid in the summer.
Daily Express: Diego Costa has been ordered by national team manager Vicente Del Bosque to “smooth out” his disciplinary problems after meeting up with him for the first time since his ban following his clash with Arsenal’s Gabriel.
Also: Roy Hodgson has failed to get England organised enough to become a great team, according to two-times major tournament winner Vicente Del Bosque.
And: Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea has questioned Louis van Gaal’s decision to sell striker Javier Hernandez to Bayer Leverkusen in the summer.
Metro: Chelsea have been made the surprising favourites to complete the transfer of Manchester United star Wayne Rooney.
Also: Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic has identified Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech as the best goalkeeper he’s ever worked with.
Daily Telegraph: The Football Association chairman Greg Dyke and his new chief executive Martin Glenn have been asked not to stay at the England squad hotel ahead of Friday’s friendly against Spain in Alicante, under a new strategy drawn up by the FA’s head of performance services Dave Reddin to keep the players in isolation.
The Times: Wayne Rooney has admitted that he faces a “huge challenge” to remain an England regular as he prepares to sit out this evening’s Euro 2016 warm-up match against Spain on the Costa Blanca.
Also: Marton Fulop, the former Sunderland, Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper, has died from cancer, aged 32.
The Guardian: Wayne Rooney has admitted he faces a huge challenge to convince Roy Hodgson he still deserves to be England’s main striker after being left out of the friendly against Spain so the team’s management can experiment with a new frontline that will feature Ross Barkley just behind Harry Kane.
Also: The much anticipated World Cup qualifier between old rivals Argentina and Brazil has been postponed due to heavy rain in Buenos Aires.
