United plan RVP sale

• Manchester United are planning for life without Robin van Persie and look certain to part company with the Dutch striker in the summer with a year remaining on his current contract.
• Chelsea are close to agreeing a deal for Croatian forward Andrej Kramaric, according to one of the Italian clubs chasing him.
• Arsene Wenger insists Danny Welbeck has nothing to prove against his former club despite Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal implying he was not good enough to remain at Old Trafford.
• Tottenham face yet another defensive reshuffle at Hull on Sunday as Mauricio Pochettino will be without his three best full-backs.
• Representatives of the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters Trust held a "positive" meeting with Spurs chairman Daniel Levy and other club officials last night.

• Manchester City are set to intensify their efforts to extend Frank Lampard's loan after Yaya Toure's New Year absence was confirmed.
• Fresh doubts have emerged over the future of Yaya Toure after the Ivorian's latest comments about Paris Saint-Germain.
• Wayne Rooney believes Danny Welbeck made the right decision to leave Manchester United in the summer.
• Manchester United striker Radamel Falcao is out for another two weeks and is "disappointed" to miss the Premier League trip to Arsenal, says Louis van Gaal.
• Manchester City skipper Vincent Kompany has an outside chance of facing Swansea after returning to training on Thursday.

• Mario Balotelli insists he will soon hit a scoring streak as he shrugged off criticism about the slow start he's made to his Liverpool career.

• Joey Barton admits the mere thought of his time in a black and white shirt brings an "overwhelming smile" to his face.

• Sunderland will make contingency plans to sign a new left-back in January - in case Patrick van Aanholt's rehabilitation encounters any obstacles.
• Sunderland's crowded striker options led Gus Poyet to rule out a summer reunion with Leonardo Ulloa.

• Modest Birmingham City signing Guy Moussi played down his generosity after it emerged he will give every penny he earns at his new club to charity.

• West Brom boss Alan Irvine today told Jose Mourinho "we are no Mickey Mouse club" as the Baggies prepare to take on Chelsea.
• Wolves will hit the transfer market to cover the absence of Bakary Sako and Nouha Dicko to the African Cup of Nations.
• Wolves boss Kenny Jackett admits Nottingham Forest's £5m striker Britt Assombalonga was too expensive to pursue.

• The Football Association has charged Stoke City chairman Peter Coates with misconduct.

• Jay Rodriguez is set for a New Year return to the Saints side after having to undergo a second operation on his injured knee.

• Tom Huddlestone has received the full support of captain Curtis Davies, who insists the midfielder is still Hull City's main man.

• Sam Vokes is back in training with the Clarets first team as he nears a return from the knee injury which has kept him sidelined for eight months.
• Sean Dyche believes the international break has given his side a good rest 'mentally' after spending the previous month fielding questions on when they would end their winless start to the season.
• Blackburn Rovers boss Gary Bowyer believes promotion to the Premier League has become even harder after Wigan Athletic's appointment of title-winning manager Malky Mackay.

• Matt Upson could step up his return from injury with a run-out in Leicester City's under-21 side.
• Ipswich striker David McGoldrick has admitted he was interested in moving to Leicester City during the summer.

• Garry Monk will go in search of a striker in the January transfer window after Wilfried Bony's Ivory Coast reached the African Cup of Nations.

• Huddersfield Town manager Chris Powell has given a clear hint that Steve Thompson is in line to become Neil Redfearn's assistant at Leeds United, saying Thompson's switch to Elland Road "could happen."

• Nottingham Forest boss Stuart Pearce is hoping for a happy Christmas - as he looks to secure a deal to keep Jack Hunt and also hopes to see two key figures return, over the festive period.

• Neil Adams remains adamant that he did not sever his ties with Mark Robson as a result of Norwich City's tumble down the Championship table.

• Joe Mason will be returning to Cardiff City in January, says manager Russell Slade.

• Bolton have blown the door wide open for a new striker after sending star man Jermaine Beckford packing to Preston North End.
• Mark Davies has been told he requires knee surgery which will rule him out of action for four months.

• A contrite Dave Whelan last night strenuously denied he was either anti-Semitic or racist, and issued a heartfelt apology for any recent comments 'that may have caused offence'.

• Blackpool are hoping to add at least two new faces ahead of tomorrow's game against Bolton.
• Lee Clark has added two new faces to his coaching staff at Bloomfield Road.

• Brighton have agreed to let on-loan keeper Ali Al-Habsi stay put in Saudia Arabia on Gulf Cup duty with Oman.

• Ipswich Town boss Mick McCarthy has a message for the queue of Premier League big guns that are closely monitoring rising star Tyrone Mings - "good luck".

• Sheffield United have withdrawn their offer to allow former player Ched Evans to train with the club following his release from prison.
• Stuart Gray claims Sheffield Wednesday beat off strong competition to land Watford midfielder Lewis McGugan.

• Scott Brown last night signed a four-year contract extension with Celtic - and signalled he's poised to end his career at Parkhead.
• Sandy Easdale wanted a guarantee that he and his brother would keep their power base at Rangers if Dave King's consortium won control of the club.