There are no planned talks this week between Alan Shearer and Newcastle United.

The Evening Chronicle says Shearer will arrive back on Tyneside from a short break in Portugal with his future at St James's Park shrouded in doubt.

And there is no meeting in place with either Mike Ashley or managing-director Derek Llambias as talks over the manager's post have ground to a standstill.

Mike Ashley today slapped a £100m price tag on the ailing Magpies - but it is unclear whether any potential bidders will have to get to grips with debts or an overdraft understood to be £40m.

While an astronomical wage bill that stood at £74m at the end of the season is also a major cause for concern.