Transfer rumours: Messi, Haaland, Sancho, Pogba, De Bruyne, Saliba

Manchester City will be in a position to move for Barcelona’s Argentine playmaker Lionel Messi, 33, next summer if the opportunity arises, chief operating officer Omar Berrada says. (Manchester Evening News)

Real Madrid have ruled out signing Manchester United and France midfielder Paul Pogba, 27, after he said it was his dream to play for the club one day. (AS – in Spanish)

Belgium midfielder Kevin de Bruyne, 29, is closing in on a two-year £300,000-a-week contract extension at Manchester City. (Sun)

Arsenal’s £27m French defender William Saliba, yet to play for the club, looks set to join a Championship side on loan, with Brentford interested in the 19-year-old. (Goal)

Wales forward Gareth Bale, 31, is set to make the first appearance of his second spell at Tottenham against West Ham next weekend. (Telegraph)

Chelsea and France forward Olivier Giroud, 34, says he was close to a move to Serie A, both in January and in the summer. (RMC Sport, via Football London)

Aston Villa are planning to clear space on their wage bill by selling squad players as they plot a fresh swoop for Bournemouth’s Norway striker Josh King, 28, who is also wanted by West Ham. (Football Insider)

Villa are ready to offload Dutch winger Anwar El Ghazi, 25, French defender Frederic Guilbert, 25, and English midfielder Henri Lansbury, 29, before the domestic window ends on 16 October. (Football Insider)

Manchester City are hopeful Pep Guardiola will sign a new contract but will start looking for a successor if the manager was to signal a desire to leave. (Telegraph)

Spain midfielder Dani Ceballos, 24, says he was determined to return on loan to Arsenal despite Real Madrid asking him to wait a month. (Marca)

English midfielder Jack Wilshere, 28, wants to join a La Liga or Serie A club following his release by West Ham. (Talksport)

French winger Allan Saint-Maximin, 23, says he would be happy to stay at Newcastle long-term – if the Magpies can match his ambitions. (Newcastle Chronicle)

Manchester City never made a serious attempt to sign Senegal defender Kalidou Koulibaly, 29, from Napoli. (The Athletic, via Inside Futbol)

Manchester United’s Aaron Wan-Bissaka, 22, has dropped the England flag on his Instagram bio and replaced it with a Democratic Republic of Congo flag. The Croydon-born right-back is eligible for the two countries at senior level, having represented both at youth level. (Goal)

Leicester’s Algerian striker Islam Slimani, 32, who has spent the last two seasons on loan and looked set to leave the club, has hinted that he could be part of Brendan Rodgers’ plans for the current season. (Leicester Mercury)

Denmark international Christian Eriksen, 28, the former Tottenham midfielder, says he is frustrated at starting this season largely on the bench for Inter Milan. (Independent)

Tottenham have had plans approved to build an amphitheatre at their Hotspur Way training complex in Enfield which is designed to help with first team and academy bonding. (Football London)

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp paid tribute to John Lennon on what would have been The Beatles star’s 80th birthday by singing a selection of tunes penned by the iconic songwriter. (Liverpool Echo)

Former Arsenal and Denmark forward Nicklas Bendtner admits he became “too fond of the lifestyle that came with the money” as a professional footballer. (Guardian)