Paper Round: Pep Guardiola rubbishes Kylian Mbappe move, Arsenal line up Aaron Ramsey replacement

Pep Guardiola has ruled out the prospect of Manchester City moving for PSG forward Kylian Mbappe. A host of British papers have picked up on the City boss’ pre-Champions League quotes, where he strongly denied the Premier League champions would be a £200m move for the French striker. Guardiola said:

Paper Round’s view: In a world where Neymar is worth £200m, how much would PSG actually value 19-year-old, World Cup winning, future Ballon d’Or winner Mbappe? In this instance, Guardiola is right – even City would hesitate on splashing out the money Mbappe’s service could well demand. Should the moment somehow arrive in the coming years, there is no doubt it would shatter the transfer record.

***

Arsenal have sounded out Piotr Zielinski as a replacement for Aaron Ramsey, the Mirror reports. Ramsey looks set to leave the Emirates at the end of the season after his latest contract renewal talks broke down, and Arsenal head coach Unai Emery reportedly wants to move for 24-year-old Napoli and Poland midfielder Zielinski, a player Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is said to admire.

Paper Round’s view: Losing Ramsey would be a loss for Arsenal, but the 27-year-old is far from irreplaceable. Zielinski has been an integral member of Napoli’s squad since joining two seasons ago, and a crucial member of the Poland side too. The reports may well be false, but this would be an exciting prospect.

***

Reported Manchester United target Sergej Milinkovic-Savic has signed a new five-year contract at Lazio. The midfielder – who featured for Serbia at the World Cup – had been mooted as a potential replacement for Paul Pogba, should he leave for Barcelona, but Milinkovic-Savic has gone on to commit his future to the Serie A outfit, along with striker Ciro Immobile.

Paper Round’s view: The ‘five-year’ deal. It essentially ensures said club can hold out for a tasty amount when they sell the player in one or two years’ time. See: Wilfried Zaha, Jack Grealish. It’s a move which makes sense for both club and player. Bumper contract, bumper fee.

***

Steve Bruce has two games to save his job as Aston Villa manager, according to the Daily Telegraph. A sluggish start to the season has seen Villa take just 14 points from 10 league games, and with the club sitting 15th in the Sky Bet Championship table, Bruce reportedly must impress at home to Preston and away to Millwall on Saturday, or else he faces the prospect of being ditched before the next international break.

Paper Round’s view: Should Bruce go, who could come in at Villa? The usual suspects will circle, but there seems no obvious replacement for the club as they look to avoid becoming the next ‘sleeping giant’ that hangs around in the second tier. Leeds could be about the end their slumber, but Villa are in danger of joining Nottingham Forest in mid-table obscurity unless there is a drastic turnaround in fortunes. Whether that’s with or without Bruce remains to be seen.