Today's newspaper gossip: Mourinho denies Man United deal; Man City target Vardy

Louis van Gaal: Staying or going?
The Sun report on Louis van Gaal's future at Manchester United

Jose Mourinho's agent denies a deal has been agreed for the former Chelsea boss to replace Louis van Gaal at Manchester United. (Globoesporte - in Portuguese)  

Van Gaal is getting closer to the sack, with executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward spending Tuesday in a meeting at the club's London headquarters. (Sun)  

Ex-Norway striker and German television pundit Jan Age Fjortoft believes Van Gaal will be sacked and replaced by assistant Ryan Giggs in the next few days, possibly even before Christmas. (BBC Radio 5 live)

United are considering Paris St-Germain boss Laurent Blanc as a potential replacement for Van Gaal, should they fail to land outgoing Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola. (Buzzsport - in French,   via Metro)  

Man City target Vardy and Chelsea want Mancini
Leicester striker Jamie Vardy, 28, has been the subject of a tentative inquiry from Manchester City, but Chelsea's interest is more solid. (Daily Telegraph)  

Everton are set to be taken over by an American-led consortium within the next six weeks. (Times - subscription required)  

Chelsea are looking to make Inter Milan and former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini their next permanent manager. (FcInterNews via Daily Star)  

Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph say Chelsea and Manchester City will fight for the signing of Leicester's Jamie Vardy

Meanwhile, the Blues have agreed to sign £30m-rated Brazilian midfielder Alex Teixeira, 25, from Shakhtar Donetsk. (Daily Star)  

Arsenal are hoping 27-year-old attacking midfielder Mesut Ozil will commit to a long-term deal, which will surpass his current £140,000-a-week contract which runs until 2018. (Daily Mail)  

But French midfielder Mathieu Flamini, 31, is set to leave the Emirates when his deal expires in the summer despite having never lost a league game at home. (Mirror)  

Former England, Chelsea and Arsenal left-back Ashley Cole is set to join LA Galaxy. The 35-year-old is a free agent after being released by Roma. (Sun)  

Defender Joel Matip, 24, is closing in on a move to Liverpool after rejecting a contract offer from Schalke. (Bild - in German)  

Bournemouth look set to beat Watford to the signing of 22-year-old Roma forward Juan Iturbe. (Bournemouth Echo)  

Midfielder Steve Sidwell, 33, is expected to leave Stoke in January after falling out of favour under manager Mark Hughes. (Talksport)  

Best of social media

Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo invited fans to take a look around his Madrid mansion

Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo, 30, has given his Twitter followers   a look around his £4.8m mansion, which has seven bedrooms, a swimming pool and mini football pitch.

Ronaldo's Madrid team-mate James Rodriguez, 24, is off enjoying La Liga's winter break and posed for a photograph on Instagram   with a chimpanzee in a red hooded sweater.

Southampton tweeted a picture   of goalkeeper Fraser Forster, 27, on his return to full training after nine months out with a knee injury.

And finally

Omar Gonzalez dressed as Darth Vader

"Omar, you are my new signing."
The force was strong at Mexican side CF Pachuca after they unveiled their new signing, 6ft 5in defender Omar Gonzalez, in a Darth Vader costume. The 27-year-old - signed from LA Galaxy, far, far away - was complete with lightsaber. (101 great goals)