Football Update

RANGERS have had a second offer of #3.25m for Fernando Ricksen turned down by AZ Alkmaar.

The Ibrox club have been told by Alkmaar that they will not land the 23-year-old midfielder unless they make a third offer of #5m. Now, there must be serious doubts about the deal going through, unless Rangers can persuade AZ to lower their asking price.

Alkmaar's president, Dirk Scheringa, said: ''I can confirm that Rangers have made a second bid of #3.25m, which the board has rejected.

''Our asking price remains #5m, because we do not want to sell him, and we haven't given up hope of getting Fernando to stay for another season.''

The rejection has prompted Rangers officials to cancel a proposed visit to Holland this week to finalise the transfer, and that has infuriated the player.

Ricksen said: ''I am very unhappy about this. This is a great opportunity for me to play football abroad and the club are blocking the move.

''I will not play for AZ for one more year. I have told them that I am leaving at the end of the season and will keep my word.

''Hopefully, Rangers can come to some sort of agreement.''

Now, manager Dick Advocaat and chairman David Murray must decide if Ricksen is worth the new asking price after having bids of #2.5m and #3.25m rejected.

Ricksen is one of Holland's outstanding hopes for the future and has also reportedly courted interest from both Liverpool and Fiorentina after rejecting offers from both Ajax and Feyenoord.

He moved from his first club, Fortuna Sittard, to AZ in 1997 and has been an automatic choice, with a series of impressive displays attracting the attention of a string of top clubs.

Meanwhile, Rangers' Romanian defender Daniel Prodan has returned to his home team, Steaua Bucharest, on a year's loan.

qABERDEEN look certain to request an extra 3000 tickets for the CIS Insurance Cup final after Pittodrie was flooded with requests.

The Dons have received an initial 15,000 tickets for the March 19 Hampden showpiece against Celtic. However, league officials have promised to increase their allocation if they sell out, which is guaranteed after a remarkable early response.

Aberdeen chief executive Gordon Bennett said: ''We've had an absolute avalanche of applications for Hampden tickets from season ticket-holders and shareholders. We'll need to work through the weekend to sort out those two priority groups.

''Aberdeen will be like a ghost town that Sunday. The team's recent success and the opportunity to support the Dons in a Hampden final has sparked incredible interest.''

All remaining Aberdeen tickets for the final will go on public sale from next Thursday.

qMOTHERWELL'S woes deepened last night when manager Billy Davies received the dreaded news that his brother, John, will be out of action for several weeks after suffering concussion and whiplash during Wednesday's 1-0 home defeat by Hearts, writes Darryl Broadfoot.

The former Ayr United playmaker spent the night in Law Hospital after landing on team-mate Paul Harvey's knee on his descent from an aerial challenge. Davies was detained for checks yesterday and examined from head to toe to ensure no further damage was caused.

He has been given a neck brace to support the strained muscles in the back of his neck, and his loss is compounded by injuries to Kevin Twaddle, who damaged ankle ligaments against Ayr United on Saturday, and John Spencer, while Ged Brannan is unavailable after he opted, against the wishes of his employers, to launch his international career with the Cayman Islands.

''It is a blow to us, because in the last few games he has played for us, he has done very, very well,'' said Davies yesterday, still suffering from the hangover caused by his side's fourth straight defeat.

The manager has taken 19-year-old French defender Hakin Sar on trial.

qFIRST division leaders St Mirren are easing their midweek fixture programme.

Now that Clydebank are out of the Scottish Cup, the league match between the pair has been switched from a midweek date later this month until a week tomorrow - Scottish Cup Saturday. Although no first-division matches were scheduled originally for that date, it has now become an important day in the promotion race, with Livingston and Raith Rovers also meeting.

Meanwhile, the Scottish League have arranged another busy programme for next Tuesday:

First division - Ayr v Inverness, Clydebank v Raith Rovers. Second division - Alloa v Stenhousemuir, Ross County v Clyde, Stranraer v Partick Thistle. Third division - Albion Rovers v Montrose, Brechin v East Stirlingshire, Dumbarton v East Fife, Forfar v Berwick.

qPAUL Gascoigne has been banned for three matches and fined #5000 by the English FA following a disciplinary hearing into his elbow on Aston Villa's George Boateng last month.

Gascoigne, who broke an arm in the incident during Middlesbrough's 4-0 defeat on February 14, must serve the ban from March 20, hitting his planned comeback.