Football: Klos is top of Ibrox wish list

DICK ADVOCAAT, the Rangers' manager looks set to strengthen his squad following Tuesday's Uefa Cup defeat by Parma. Stefan Klos, the Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper, and Neil McCann, the Hearts' winger, could both be heading for Ibrox.

However, Rangers will face a fight with Liverpool to secure the services of Klos. The Anfield side, also knocked out of the Uefa Cup last night, are believed to have tabled an offer and Klos is a friend of the Liverpool striker Karl Heinz Riedle, a former team-mate.

Dortmund have indicated they are prepared to release Klos during the winter break in two weeks, but only if they get in a replacement. It is complete change of heart by the club following a court battle in the summer with Klos.

The court ruled that he would have to see out his contract until 30 June and that seemed to have ended his hopes of joining Rangers. Instead, Advocaat signed the Frenchman Lionel Charbonnier, who has been ruled out for the rest of the season. Advocaat is still pursuing Klos and Rangers were holding talks with him yesterday. Dortmund insist Klos be released until they find someone of similar quality - Milan's Jens Lehmann is their target.

Advocaat has been impressed by the progress of McCann, one of the old school of Scottish wingers. He could pose a threat to Andrei Kanchelskis, who has been a big disappointment since arriving for a club record pounds 5.5m in the summer from Fiorentina. Kanchelskis was omitted from the side that lost 3-1 to Parma (4-1 on aggregate), with Advocaat saying the Russian winger had a cold.

Hearts were last night insisting that McCann was still a Tynecastle player, despite reports suggesting he had already completed a medical with Rangers. The Ibrox club failed with an initial reported pounds 600,000 bid, but are believed to have increased their offer substantially to activate the get-out clause in McCann's contract.

Douglas Dalglish, a Hearts spokesman, said: "There have been further approaches from Rangers and we have received a further bid, we can't deny that It has been discussed but nothing has been agreed as yet. As things stand, he is still a Hearts player." McCann was declared unfit for Hearts' Premier League game at St Johnstone tonight with a stomach virus.

Rangers meet their title rivals, Kilmarnock, at Ibrox on Saturday still bitter after the defeat in Parma in a game which swung away from them following the sending-off of Sergio Porrini. Porrini was still fuming over the incident, which involved Enrico Chiesa, the Parma striker. Porrini was dismissed for lunging at Juan Sebastian Veron, Parma's brilliant Argentinian midfielder.

Chiesa said: "Sergio thought I had elbowed him. It was just a collision and perhaps because of this he got the second yellow card. We certainly made good use of the extra man."