Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton hopes to be part of Manchester United takeover – Paper Round

Hamilton wants to buy United

Lewis Hamilton has said that he wants to be part of any consortium involved in buying Manchester United by Jim Ratcliff. The Ineos owner is rumoured to be keen, and the Mirror reports that Hamilton said: “I haven’t had a call from him asking if I want to be involved in that just yet. But I do want to get more and more involved in teams because I really do believe in black ownership, there is a lack of it in sports. And black equity, again, there is a real lack of that.”

Paper Round’s view: Hamilton was part of the team that looked like it was going to buy Chelsea at one point, and while it was not suggested he would have any direct involvement, the seven-time world champion would be able to offer United’s players advice on committing to excellence, something they have failed to do in recent years.

Blackburn line up Brereton Diaz replacement

Everton thought they had offered enough for Chris Brereton Diaz at the end of the transfer window when they offered £12 million plus a further £8m in add-ons, only for Blackburn to reject the offer for the 23-year-old. However the club have now identified a replacement in Sunderland’s 26-year-old Ross Stewart, who is out of contract next summer, reports The Sun.

Paper Round’s view: If Sunderland are struggling to stay up in January then that would make it unlikely that they could keep hold of Stewart and they would then be forced to sell him rather than lose him for nothing. Chilean international Brereton Diaz looks to be improving rapidly and it feels inevitable he will move up to the Premier League in the near future.

World Cup venues won’t sell beer during matches

The Mail reports that FIFA has decided that beer will not be sold during games at the World Cup in Qatar. Organisers will allow access to alcoholic drinks before and after matches, but while games are going on, the nearest fans will get to a beer will be non-alcoholic versions. Qatar is essentially a dry country so regulations are being eased with tourists in mind.

Paper Round’s view: While it might be a little bit of a culture shock for visitors to not have access to alcohol during a game, it’s only a couple of hours to make do. There are plenty of reasons to be against Qatar having the tournament this year – their human rights abuses – but accommodating the fact that it is a predominantly Muslim country should not be a problem.

Real fail to sign striker

Spanish newspaper Marca explains why Real Madrid were quiet in the market. After missing out on Kylian Mbappe they looked for a new striker, but it became clear that Gabriel Jesus would not be available. With Mariano Diaz not leaving, and Eden Hazard, Alvaro Odriozola, and Marco Asensio all staying, the club decided to stay calm.

Paper Round’s view: Real Madrid still have plenty of highly-paid performers on the books who will not get much time on the pitch, so unless they leave it made sense to sell Casemiro now after the arrival of Aurelien Tchouameni. They can spend the next year identifying targets, as they are unlikely to be rejected as they were by Mbappe again.