Thursday's photos of the day

The arrival of new owner Roman Abramovich has changed Chelsea from a club that was trying to sell Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink to appease their creditors, to club that can sell him because he isn't good enough anymore.

No day has passed this last month without fresh headlines of star players the Russian billionaire has brought, or intends to bring, to Stamford Bridge.

And this week has seen Roman's legions swell ominously.

But not content with adding Joe Cole and Juan Sebastian Veron in the last 24 hours, the Daily Mirror and The Independent are confidently predicting that Inter Milan striker Christian Vieri will be Chelski's by noon - there is nothing like a Champions League deadline to concentrate minds.

Consumption this conspicuous is bound to attract some negative attention, but Chelsea pair Frank Lampard and John Terry - always sensitive to public opinion - are unmoved.

In almost identical stories in the Daily Express, Daily Star and The Sun, Lampard says "a lot of my mates support Arsenal, Tottenham and West Ham - I know they want us to fail. As soon as you get a bit of money ploughed into a club, you get a bit of jealousy."

THE HEADLINES Daily Telegraph: Ferguson gifted more buying power The Times: Ferguson left frustrated as he discounts profits of doom The Sun: Juan in the eye for Fergie The Guardian: Blues take Cole into Europe Daily Express: You are all just jealous Daily Star: You lot are just jealous Daily Mirror: Be afraid..be Vieri, Vieri afraid Daily Mail: Defoe is next The Independent: Vieri joins Chelsea revolution for �20m

Terry calms the blood boiling in many non-Chelsea veins by adding, "Everyone is waiting for us to get turned over - we are the talk of the town. But if we can perform well we can stop the talking."

One man who will have observed the Chelspree effect with more jealousy than most is Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson.

Particularly after Veron's parting shot, as reported in The Sun, that Fergie's belief in the Argentine faded away after a good start - "there were times when I felt he preferred some of my team-mates".

Despite the Daily Mail's assertion that the Premiership champions are set to pick up �10m-rated Jermain Defoe from the West Ham clearance sale, others are wondering just how happy Ferguson is with all that Beckham/Veron money burning a hole in his pocket while Chelsea build a fantasy football squad.

The Times' Matt Dickinson writes: "Ferguson should be enjoying all the clout in the transfer market more recently associated with Abramovich. The trouble is that the United manager is not enjoying it all."

Having missed out on first choices like Ronaldinho and Harry Kewell, Ferguson is now running out of time to bring some class to his squad - not easy when every club in the world knows you are sitting on a war chest of at least �30m.

The Independent talks about a "muddled summer" for United, and blames chief executive Peter Kenyon for playing a poor hand in the close-season market.

Away from the comings and goings at Stamford Bridge and Old Trafford, there is one non-football story that gets a good show in nearly all the papers.

Glamorgan fast bowler Simon Jones' first game back since suffering a serious injury on England duty shares top billing with the football in The Times and The Daily Telegraph.

Even The Sun gives Jones' comeback a reasonable amount of space, saying "crock Jones comes roaring back with bumper barrage".

But perhaps the most interesting reading on Thursday can be found in The Guardian, which has a pair of sporting morality tales from the US.

News that 1970s tennis hero Roscoe Tanner is broke and facing prison is depressing, while the revelation that golfing bad boy John Daly has been outdone by a wife indicted for drug dealing is almost amusing.