United warned off Everton star

Everybody loves Rafael, for he is entirely loveable. Everybody loves Rafael, that is, except Louis van Gaal, who probably quite likes him but must also, for professional reasons, take account of his extensive injury record and occasional moments of hilarious idiocy. Must be rubbish, being a football manager. No room for love.

As such, there is a vacancy at Old Trafford for a right back who attacks with verve, defends with solidity and stays fit for longer than twenty minutes at a time. Somebody like Everton's 26-year-old Seamus Coleman, perhaps. At least, that's what the papers say. His manager Roberto Martinez, however, has dismissed the notion. As quoted in the Irish Independent ...

For me, it's nothing to comment on. I haven't seen that, I've no recollection of that, not at all no. As you can imagine, what we want at the club is to build something to make us stronger and the last thing we want is to lose important players.

TBB wonders if the mooted £25m fee might improve his memory. It would certainly improve his chairman's ...