Celtic finally capitulated yesterday in the battle to keep their Portuguese striker Jorge Cadete at the club. Their general manager Jock Brown admitted that Cadete is now available for transfer. The player has not been in Glasgow since the end of last season, when he went back to Lisbon. A succession of medical certificates from Lisbon have testified that he is suffering from stress.

Most of the problems stem from his wife's reluctance to live in Britain, and Celtic will seek a buyer somewhere on the continent.

Colin Todd, the Bolton manager, had made a serious inquiry about Cadete, but lost interest when he learned that the player did not want to be in Scotland or England. Cadete was Celtic's leading scorer last season, but his troubles in the last few months will ensure that prospective buyers can expect a discount on the £5 million he is valued at.

Wim Jansen, Celtic's head coach, confirmed that his first priority is a goalscorer. "Scoring goals is the most important part of football and we haven't been doing that easily," said Jansen on the eve of today's Premier Division match at St Johnstone.

It was by only an extra-time penalty kick that Celtic beat the Perth side in the League Cup last Tuesday. The forwards they bought in the summer, Darren Jackson and Henrik Larsson, could not be described as predators.

Jansen is at least able to restore full back Jackie McNamara and midfielder Regi Blinker to the side this afternoon. Both have recovered from injury.

Rangers have a demanding home match against Dundee United in advance of their European trial against Gothenburg next Wednesday. Paul Gascoigne, suspended for the first three domestic fixtures, is free to make his league debut for the season.

Because of international commitments, Rangers' second league game was postponed and manager Walter Smith believes his players are still in need of today's match practice.

Guardian Service