Middlesbrough join Ricketts chase

Middlesbrough have made a £3m bid for Bolton Wanderers' transfer-seeking striker Michael Ricketts, threatening to wreck Tottenham's hopes of a deal.

Bolton are likely to accept, as their manager Sam Allardyce has plans to bring in two or three players before Friday's transfer deadline.

Spurs had hoped to sign Ricketts without making too big an offer, and had a £1.5m plus Gary Doherty bid turned down a fortnight ago. Bolton said yesterday that they had had no new offer from White Hart Lane. Allardyce, meanwhile, is looking for the money to sign Valencia's Spanish international striker, Salva Ballesta.

Allardyce is trying to recruit one proven goalscorer before Friday but a £250,000 loan fee demanded by the La Liga side has put the move in doubt.

The Middlesbrough manager Steve McClaren hopes that his quest to buy the Leeds United midfielder Seth Johnson may not be over.

McClaren confirmed yesterday that negotiations over a move for the £4m-rated England international had broken down after the club's medical team had voiced concerns over Johnson's knee injury. But the Boro manager added that he would monitor the 23-year-old's situation with a view to reopening talks in the summer.

Football was yesterday urged to tackle the problem of its "unduly mercenary and uncaring" image in the Independent Football Commission's first annual report – which believes the game should move "rapidly and decisively" to improve its relationship with supporters.

While backing the introduction of club charters by the Premier League and the Football League, the report claimed that the complaints' procedure needs to be streamlined. Among 22 recommendations, it expressed concerns over poor communications within the football community, unsatisfactory response times to complaints and delays in receiving information from the football authorities.