Paper Round: ‘We will not sell Dele Alli… even for £150m’, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy insists

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has reportedly issued a warning to rival teams, who The Sun claim to have been “sniffing around” midfielder Dele Alli. According to the paper, Barcelona and Manchester City have been told that the 21-year-old would not be for sale even for £150 million. The report comes as the newspaper also claimed on Wednesday that Chelsea had offered £50m for wayward defender Danny Rose.

Paper Round’s view: Hmmm, Kyle Walker wasn’t even a permanent fixture in boss Mauricio Pochettino’s starting XI and let’s face it, Rose is replaceable. But Dele Alli is something else and we’re quite sure Levy would have stern words for any club looking to poach him. We don’t think Levy has anything to worry about, just yet, but another year without a trophy could be bad news for Spurs' player retention hopes.

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Though it may have been a dry transfer season for several Premier League clubs thus far, one team not afraid of flashing the cash is Everton. If you thought the club’s record transfer fee of £45m for Swansea midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson, which was announced on Wednesday, might signal the end of Everton’s spree, Thursday’s papers urge you to think again. Positively ballin’ club manager Ronald Koeman says his £145m (or £130m if you believe the Guardian's assessment) transfer bill is yet to grow, with the Dutchman still looking to add a striker and a centre-back to his side, according to The Mirror.

Paper Round’s view: Centre-back, you say? We wonder if Virgil van Dijk’s ears are burning. After all, the 26-year-old did previously play for Koeman during his compatriot’s days as Southampton manager. And what a way for the Saints to stick the knife in at Liverpool as payback for those alleged illegal advances at the beginning of the transfer window. As for strikers, Koeman would apparently consider taking on Chelsea striker Diego Costa on loan. Well, he must be a glutton for punishment.

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But don’t get too excited, Evertonians, as Southampton chairman Ralph Krueger has only just reiterated the club’s sentiment that Van Dijk is not for sale, which Thursday’s Mirror leads with alongside a report that Arsene Wenger will refuse to part with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Krueger told the BBC on Wednesday that his stance is “not a personal situation,” and that continuity was important in a club.

Paper Round’s view: We can understand Krueger’s point about continuity, and we can understand Southampton wanting to keep hold of a player of Van Dijk’s calibre, but this is an increasingly messy situation. With Van Dijk having now been left out of the Netherlands squad for impending World Cup qualifiers, we wonder who will be first to budge.

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A number of Thursday’s back pages report interest by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola in West Bromwich Albion and Northern Ireland defender Jonny Evans. According to reports, an approach has already been made by City, to the tune of £18m, which was rejected as well as an offer of £10m by Leicester City.

Paper Round’s view: Evans made the best part of 200 appearances for City rivals Manchester United before being packed off to West Brom under Louis van Gaal, and certainly West Brom appear to be keen to keep hold of the 29-year-old. It seems a slightly left-field choice by City, but they have some work yet to do on strengthening defensive options.

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