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      EFL clubs threaten to withhold taxes in desperate attempt to secure Government bailout after coronavirus hell

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      EFL clubs are threatening to refuse to pay their taxes this week — unless the Government bails them out.
      The revolutionary plan to get emergency financial aid was discussed at a meeting between hard-up teams.

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      EFL clubs are threatening to refuse to pay their taxes this week unless the Government bails them outCredit: PA:Press Association

      A monthly PAYE tax payment is due by each of the EFL’s 72 clubs to HMRC on Thursday but there is a plot for ALL owners to band together and refuse.
      It has been brewing for weeks and was on the table at a ring-round of executives and chairmen last week.
      A hardcore band of Championship chiefs are behind the idea, however many clubs in League One and League Two are happy to join in.
      It will need teams to stick together — but the mood within the ranks is that they are now simply desperate for cash.

      The ultimate punishment for clubs who do not pay tax is a winding-up order.
      One leading mover in the plot said: “It is the nuclear option but we are at this stage if there is no help from the Government or Premier League.
      “If we all do not pay, the Government can dish out winding-up orders on each of us — and shut the industry if they want.“But that would not be a good look.”
      The EFL is enduring the biggest crisis in its history, with supporters banned from grounds due to Covid-19. Yet players and staff have been back on full salaries and the tax is due.

      Many clubs were using the furlough scheme to help — however now the game is up and running that has gone.
      Many are struggling to pay HMRC anyway, but others think this is a chance to make a stand and bring the Government back to the table.
      The Premier League were told to help out, yet offers so far have fallen well below the request for £250million.
      There is anger among the clubs and that was shown when League One and League Two rejected an immediate grant worth around £400,000 each last week.
      The solidarity shown with that decision — due to Championship teams being offered nothing — is now set to carry on to the looming showdown with the tax man.

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      Man Utd eye Federico Valverde transfer as Real Madrid midfielder starts to fulfil potential

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      MANCHESTER UNITED have put Real Madrid’s Uruguay superstar Federico Valverde on their hit-list.
      The midfield magician has pushed his way into the Spanish side’s team this season and started to justify his big reputation.

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      Man Utd have put Real Madrid’s Uruguay superstar Federico Valverde on their wish listCredit: Getty Images – Getty

      Valverde, 22, has been tipped for the top for years but is slowly proving his quality in LaLiga — and long-term admirers United are on red alert.
      And with Paul Pogba openly admitting he likes the idea of a move to Real Madrid in the future, United are keeping an eye on Valverde in case a swap becomes possible.
      Valverde has a £640MILLION buyout clause, which shows how much Real think of him.
      It would be unusual for United to sign a player from a major European rival at his age but Pogba could be a very intriguing pawn in the game.

      Old Trafford boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had confirmed the club triggered the one-year extension in Pogba’s contract.
      His deal was up at the end of this season with no announcement that the club had taken up the opportunity to extend it by a further year.
      Solskjaer said: “Paul’s our player, he’s going to be here for another two years and sure he’s focused on doing his best for us and we want to see the best from Paul and I’m sure in the next couple of years we’ll get the best out of him.”
      Just last week the Frenchman once again flirted with Real, who he said it would be a ‘dream’ to play for.

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      Paul Pogba said it would be a ‘dream’ to play for Real Madrid Credit: EPA

      Pogba said: “Yes, all footballers would like to play for Real Madrid.
      “Maybe it is a dream. It is a dream for me, why not one day? As I have said, I am at Manchester United and I like my club.
      “I am performing at Manchester United, I am enjoying myself and I want to do everything I can to get the club back to where it deserves to be.
      “I am going to give my maximum, like my teammates. I prefer to concentrate on football and on returning to fitness.”

      Man Utd star Paul Pogba confirms he’d like Real Madrid transfer ‘one day’ but insists he’s happy at Old Trafford More

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      Former Man Utd boss David Moyes reveals he had a HELICOPTER waiting to complete Gareth Bale transfer in 2013 before snub

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      DAVID MOYES has revealed he had a HELICOPTER ready to sign Gareth Bale – only for the ace to snub Manchester United and join Real Madrid instead.
      Bale is likely to come up against Moyes’ West Ham tomorrow on his second debut for Tottenham, but had the Scottish boss had his way he would have been managing the Welsh star at Old Trafford in 2013.

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      David Moyes flopped as Manchester United managerCredit: Getty Images – Getty

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      Gareth Bale turned down a move to Manchester United, picking Real Madrid insteadCredit: Action Images – Reuters

      The Hammers boss said: “Gareth Bale was probably the first name I thought of when I got the job. I thought Gareth Bale was a Manchester United player. He was the right type.
      “I wanted Gareth Bale to be my first signing at Manchester United. But it was already down the road a bit with Real Madrid. I tried to hijack it. I tried to get him.
      “Manchester United offered more money than Real Madrid. They offered more money to the player.

      “We did everything we could to try and get the player. We even had a helicopter at the training ground to take him and bring him back. We thought we had a chance.

      “But he chose Real Madrid and he made a brilliant decision because he went on to win four Champions Leagues. He’s had a brilliant career.”
      Bale could well line up on the right wing after Jose Mourinho revealed his ‘favourite position’.
      Moyes is back in the West Ham dugout for the first time after recovering from Covid-19 – and he revealed the two wins against Wolves and Leicester in his absence had him dancing round his living room.
      He added: “My TV was I think a minute behind the game, so Pearcey was ringing and saying ‘we’ve scored again’ and I’m going ‘you beauty’ and I haven’t even seen the goal going in on the telly.

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      “He was telling me the goalscorer before I’d got it through.
      “But to be fair the lads were great, the staff were great, if anyone didn’t think Alan Irvine was a good coach and organiser, or if they didn’t think Stuart Pearce was a great motivator, Nolan learning his trade, Paul Nevin, they were all brilliant at their jobs.
      “The good thing is having the cameras at the training ground so in the morning I would watch training and go in afterwards if I didn’t like something. It gave me a chance to be involved as much as I can.”

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      Declan Rice should fight off Chelsea transfer interest and become West Ham’s own ‘Captain, Leader, Legend’, says Pearce

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      DECLAN RICE has been urged to stick around and become West Ham’s very own ‘Captain, Leader, Legend’.
      The Hammers held on to their best all-rounder in the transfer window despite growing interest from other clubs.

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      Declan Rice has been urged to become a legend at West Ham like current captain Mark NobleCredit: Getty Images – Getty

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      Hammers coach Stuart Pearce reckons the England star can become a hero at the IronsCredit: EPA

      And first-team coach Stuart Pearce reckons the lure of short-term glory at one of England’s big-spending elite is not the only factor to consider in your career.
      Pearce was captain of Nottingham Forest for 11 years and won 78 caps for England.
      Two League Cups and an old Division One trophy accounts for his haul of silverware — but the wholehearted left-back is remembered as a lion of the English game.

      Pearce, 58, believes in following your heart and not always your head to get the best out of your time as a player.
      He said: “Put it this way, I’m probably testament to that. I played my football where I enjoyed playing football and turned money down to stay where I was happy.
      “My biggest driver was probably playing for the national team. I get the same impression now with Dec — he is intensely proud of representing England.
      “He’ll make his own decisions but we are lucky at West Ham to have a current captain called Mark Noble who has been here for a number of years and has shown great loyalty to the club.

      “I like to think Dec will be at West Ham for years to come, leading the club on to success.”

      Chelsea were the top spenders in the Premier League this summer

      The Eastenders picked up Rice when he was released by Chelsea aged 14 and he is now the cornerstone of the team — earmarked as a future captain for club and country.
      ‘Captain, Leader, Legend’ is the slogan synonymous with Chelsea’s formidable former skipper John Terry, whose career will be tough to emulate.
      Rice, 21, has stepped in for West Ham’s one-club man Noble at times but is earmarked for the job full-time eventually — and he should take the armband again at Tottenham tomorrow.
      Pearce said: “To be a captain, what you need in abundance is unselfishness.
      “You have to understand when it is good for the team, even when it hurts your pride.
      “Declan is an unselfish individual who puts the team before himself. That says it all at such a young age.
      “He is prepared to do jobs for the team as most leaders are and that will benefit the team.

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      How the PL’s best transfer XI for this summer could look
      “I wouldn’t say it stifles his game but he is prepared to do that for the greater good. In the position he plays in especially, we ask for restraint from him.
      “All the excitement and all the glamour is at the front end of the pitch in the main.
      “All the hard jobs and the clean sheets and the dirty work is at the back end of the team and that is the way the game is.
      “We know he has more goals in him than his record suggests.
      “But we’re asking him to do a job for the team, which is to sit in front of the backline and knit our play together and break up play.
      “He does it not just for West Ham but for England, too, and that tells you everything. That he does it at the age he is. He is still a very, very young man in footballing terms.
      “I don’t think it was in doubt that our football club wouldn’t sell him.
      “He’s a fantastic young prospect at the club and is integral to everything David Moyes wants to achieve here.

      “His value can only go up, it can’t go down.”
      Pearce has just written his second book — ‘Never Stop Dreaming’ — a personalised account of the run-up to and through the emotive 1996 European Championship.
      He is as famous for slamming a penalty past Spain in the quarter-final shootout as he is for missing from the spot against Germany at the World Cup in Italy six years earlier.
      Pearce is revered for being uncompromising with words and actions on the pitch but admits current players have no idea of his memorable former life.
      He said: “Most players I coach now have no clue who I am or what I did — and rightly so.
      “My job now is man-management skills and having a good way with the players.
      “You have to be open-minded to do that. If you come in as a coach and say, ‘I did this and did that’ it won’t help.”

       LIKELY LINE-UPS – Spurs vs West Ham – Sunday 4:30pm kick-off
      WEST HAM: Fabianski, Coufal, Balbuena, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Masuaka, Soucek, Rice, Bowen, Fornals, Antonio.
       SPURS: Lloris, Doherty, Dier, Sanchez, Reguilon, Winks, Ndombele, Bale, Bergwijn, Son, Kane.

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      Klopp slams Kop flops for not listening in Liverpool’s 7-2 drubbing at Villa and fires warning ahead of Merseyside derby

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      JURGEN KLOPP has broadcast a warning to his stars loud and clear: Listen to your master’s voice.
      The Liverpool boss goes into the lunchtime Merseyside derby revealing how unhappy he was with some players during the 7-2 humiliation by Aston Villa.

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      Klopp has slammed his players for not listening to him during the 7-2 loss at VillaCredit: AP:Associated Press

      And he has had a word in the ear of several of those he condemns for not paying attention to his instructions a fortnight ago.
      Even the hard of hearing would normally be able to get the message from the German famous for barking orders from the touchline.
      More so now that there is no background noise in stadiums due to the coronavirus fan ban.
      Klopp said: “No crowds helps us communicate more but football is not a sport where you commentate on every situation.

      “All the work we do is on the training pitch and with no crowds it is easier – one of the very, very few advantages.”
      Which is why he was so furious that some of his players cocked a deaf ’un at Villa Park and would not respond to what he was trying to tell them.
      Klopp rarely, if ever, criticises his players in public – but, clearly annoyed, he revealed: “The conversation with the team at Villa was going in the wrong direction.
      “When I tried to make things clear the boys wouldn’t look at me.

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      Liverpool were thumped 7-2 in their most-recent game against Aston VillaCredit: Alamy Live News

      “It’s not that I am a radio commentator, but we have these discussions after the game with one or two of the boys.”
      Klopp goes into his 12th meeting with his rivals from across Stanley Park having won seven and drawn the other four he has managed.
      The Kop boss complained bitterly before the break with most of his team headed off on international duty.
      He was deeply concerned he might lose some of them for a derby that looks far more dangerous to his team than the previous 11.
      For once Everton go into the clash at the top of the Premier League and with a three-point lead over their neighbours.
      Liverpool were so worried about the livelihood of their players – not just through injury but also over exposure to Covid – that they created their own ‘Air Anfield’ to get them home safe and sound.
      Klopp added: “There was an extra challenge because this time we had a triple-header of international games, something we have never seen and I hope not again.
      “The FAs of different countries have every reason to want to keep the players safe and they obviously trust their specific plans.
      “We know most of the boys are very careful and that they were training in a closed environment and most of the FAs were serious on testing programmes.
      “Still, we brought back most of the boys in private planes and we await results of more tests, but we expect them all to be negative.”

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      Klopp has been full of praise for Ancelotti ahead of the Merseyside derbyCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      New Reds signing Thiago Alcantara and Sadio Mane tested positive before the international break but both are now available.
      It is TEN YEARS to the day since Everton last beat their local rivals but Klopp is wary of Toffees chief Carlo Ancelotti and his team.
      He said: “They have a sensational manager. This is going to be a proper challenge and my derby record is not something I even think about.
      “It is ten years since Everton won and for my part long may it continue.
      “But Calvert-Lewin, I really expected him to make big steps in the next few years and he did.
      “He has everything you need in a top striker. He has size, mobility, speed and desire – technically he’s really, really good, in the air, finishing with his head, both feet.

      “Now it all works together – both wings have top-class players with James and Richarlison.
      “Midfield, Allan plus whoever plays there, if it’s Sigurdsson or whoever.
      “So it’s a really, really good team and the last line works better because in a good team it’s easier to defend.”

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      Maguire’s ‘injury’ paves way for Solskjaer to remove him from the firing line as Newcastle boss Bruce urges him to play

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      FOR a manager who plays his cards close to his chest, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was surprisingly forthcoming about Harry Maguire having a knock.
      In fact, he volunteered the information TWICE.

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      Maguire’s ‘injury’ has given Solskjaer the perfect excuse to drop himCredit: EPA

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      Solskjaer twice volunteered the information that Maguire was injured but keen to playCredit: AFP or licensors

      So if the under-fire Manchester United captain does not appear for Saturday’s match against Newcastle we all know why.
      To be fair, Maguire did tweak a muscle leading to his heavy touch before a second booking – and red card – for England against Denmark on Wednesday night.
      The defender has, according to Solskjaer, told him he is ready and available to play today.
      But if ever a player needed a rest it is Maguire.

      Central to United’s awful start to the season, arrested on holiday in Mykonos and now sent off for England in a 1-0 Wembley defeat.
      Solskjaer was in full defensive mode when asked whether his skipper needed a break – something Rio Ferdinand said would be a good idea.
      The Norwegian revealed: “He’s adamant he’s ready to play.
      “He’s a lad who doesn’t want to hide behind a red card or a bad performance, he wants to go out there and prove himself.

      “I don’t doubt his resilience in that respect.
      “He’s very professional, so he wants to make himself ready for selection and then it’s up to me to choose him or not – and if I want to take him out of the firing line.
      “I haven’t considered that, without him coming to knock on my door. I speak to him regularly and he’s been very positive in his communication.”
      Indeed, Solskjaer insists in Maguire United have a captain with the strength to bounce back from the heavy flak coming his way.
      The Red Devils boss said: “I’m not sure how you deal with criticism? I’m always the one that wants to bounce back and prove myself.
      “What you do with individuals is you speak to them and you sit down and look them in the eye and see where we go from here.
      “Harry is a leader, he’s a captain for us and it’s still early in the season.
      “He missed the first internationals, he’s not had the pre-season he had last season.
      “I’m sure he’ll bounce back, he’s got great resilience and great personality.
      “For me, I just hope he can play because he picked up that knock just before the red card. I’m not sure he’s going to be available yet.”

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      Bruce has urged Maguire, his former player at Hull, to play through his dodgy patch of formCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      Meanwhile, Maguire’s old boss Steve Bruce reckons the defender will only come through this horror spell by playing.
      The Newcastle manager and ex-Manchester United skipper signed the England defender for Hull in 2014.
      While Maguire is a doubt to face Toon today, Bruce urged Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to keep putting him on the pitch.
      He said: “He’s your captain. The only way you get out of these situations, when things are against you, is to play.
      “We can all get sent off. But the one thing you need to do is encourage him and keep playing him.
      “That way he can play out of it. The only thing you can do is go back to basics and be quiet for a few weeks.
      “Batten down the hatches, get on with it and come through it. He will, that’s for sure.

      “He’s a genuinely good pro, he’s a level-headed lad and mature enough to handle it.
      “The one thing you never lose is your ability and he’s had a wonderful rise, from Hull to Leicester to captain of Manchester United.
      “It’s his first blip and the sending off could happen to anyone. He’s borne the brunt.”

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      Frank Lampard slams Reece James, Ben Chilwell and Tammy Abraham on return to Chelsea following idiotic England antics

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      FRANK LAMPARD welcomed his England stars back to Chelsea with a dressing down.
      Three Lions rookie Reece James got a talking to for tarnishing his full debut with a sending off after the final whistle against Denmark.

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      James was sent-off after the final whistle on his full England debutCredit: AP:Associated Press

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      Abraham and Chilwell were both seen at a party of around 20 people

      And Tammy Abraham and Ben Chilwell were reminded of their responsibilities after flouting coronavirus rules at the start of the international break.
      Defender James, 20, won rave reviews for his performance in the 1-0 defeat at Wembley on Wednesday.
      But he soured the night with a dismissal for dissent having confronted referee Jesus Gil Manzano at the end.
      Chelsea boss Lampard, who won 106 caps for England, said: “I did have a word with him about what happened at the end and the fact he got involved with the referee.

      “We are all human, I have been there, done it, did it as a player, maybe even as a manager – none of us are saints.
      “It will definitely be one for him to learn from – that when you have a performance at that level, playing for your country, you will get a lot of plaudits, so there was no need for him to get involved with the referee after.
      “It was a pretty simple conversation and something he will definitely take on board.
      “Otherwise his performance was very good but I expected that, because I expect a lot from Reece.

      “He showed it when he came on against Belgium, how comfortable he was – it looked like he had been playing for a long time. The performance was really good.”
      Abraham and Chilwell, both 23, apologised for breaking social-distancing rules when they were caught at a birthday party prior to reporting for England.
      Chelsea’s players are tested for Covid-19 twice a week and the club does their utmost to avoid cross-contamination.
      Lampard, 42, said: “We’ve lived in this bubble for quite a long time now and have to make sure we stay on point.
      “The players also have a responsibility, as do the public, to follow the rules that we are being told, albeit there isn’t always massive clarity in them but that’s not an excuse for the lads.
      “They’ve made mistakes, I’ve reminded them of their responsibilities and from the conversation, they were innocent mistakes. We move on and I expect it won’t happen again.”

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      Lampard has given the trio a dressing down on their return to ChelseaCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      Chilwell returns to action after withdrawing from England duty with illness.
      Lampard at last has 27-year-old winger Hakim Ziyech fit to make his Premier League debut following a troublesome knee injury picked up in a pre-season friendly at Brighton.
      New £24million keeper Edouard Mendy is out, though, with a thigh problem.
      Lampard will leave it late to decide whether to replace him with Kepa Arrizabalaga or Willy Caballero.
      The £36.7m Ziyech was the Blues’ first acquisition of this year’s spending spree but is the final piece to fit into place.
      Lamps added: “It feels like a long time since we brought Hakim here.
      “He hasn’t played a competitive game since the Dutch league finished during lockdown.
      “I’m excited to get him in and to bring what we brought him to the club for, which is to create chances and be the talented player he is and we saw at Ajax.”

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