REAL Sociedad have emerged as surprise candidates in the race to sign Craig Moore, Rangers' deposed captain.
The Spanish club secured the signing of Mikel Arteta from Ibrox this week for (pounds) 3.3m and have renewed their interest in the Australian.
Moore first caught their attention two years ago and they were alerted to his availability during negotiations with Martin Bain, Rangers' director of football, over Arteta deal.
An amicable conclusion to those negotiations prompted Bain to recommend Moore to Jose Luis Astiazaran, Real Sociedad's president, yesterday.
Bain added intriguingly: ''Hopefully we can maintain a close relationship with them on all fronts in the future.''
They may resume correspondence quicker than even Bain had anticipated but Real Sociedad have yet to make a formal approach to Rangers, though they are undeterred by the (pounds) 1m asking price for a
player who will be available for free next season.
The Spanish club's interest was confirmed last night by John Viola, Moore's agent, and reported in The Melbourne Age newspaper in Australia, Moore's homeland.
They join Aston Villa, Everton, and Norwich City in the running after Alex McLeish, the Rangers manager, placed Moore on the transfer list for refusing to abandon plans to play for Australia in the Olympic Games.
Arteta insisted yesterday that his career would not suffer as a result of his decision to quit Rangers for Real Sociedad.
He said: ''This is not a step back in my professional career. Real Sociedad are one of the great clubs in Spain and it is a unique opportunity.''
Meanwhile, Celtic have withdrawn their interest in Marek Heinz, the Czech Republic internationalist, according to his club Banik Ostrava.
Dalibor Zaruba, spokesman for Banik, said last night: ''We have received a fax from Celtic saying they are not interested in signing the player.''
Juninho, the Middlesbrough midfielder, has also distanced himself from recent speculation linking him with Celtic as Martin O'Neill's search for a creative midfielder continues.
The Brazilian playmaker said: ''There is no truth in the rumours that Celtic have contacted me or that I am seeking a move. Everybody knows I want to play for Middlesbrough.''
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