Faubert on strike? One wonders what his motivation may be?

JULIEN FAUBERT went on strike yesterday as Bordeaux refused to sell him to Rangers for £4million.

The French club booted out the Ibrox club's opening offer for the 23-year-old midfielder, just hours after Faubert went AWOL from Bordeaux's training camp.

Within minutes the bid was kicked out, leaving Faubert considering further strike action until Bordeaux agree to release him from his water-tight four-year deal. Despite agreeing a new contract last season on the back of earning his first cap for France, Faubert has his heart set on a move to Scotland and a proposed four-year contract offer from Ibrox.

But with stubborn Bordeaux president Jean Louis Triaud refusing to budge on his demands for almost double that £4m offer, Rangers may have to wait until they finally get their man.

Faubert's agent Philippe Sol said: "We have had more talks with the directors at Bordeaux and they offered Julien a new contract.

"But Julien isn't interested in a new deal and refused it straight off. He made it clear his only intention is to leave and he wants Bordeaux to do a deal with Rangers.

Bordeaux are refusing to do a deal at the moment so Julien has taken the decision not to train to make his feelings clear.

"He didn't turn up for training on Wednesday and won't train until there is some sort of resolution in this matter.

He wants to move to Rangers and wants the matter to be resolved quickly so he can move on with his career."

As it stands Faubert's career with Laurent Blanc's side remains in limbo, with Rangers refusing to be held to auction and Bordeaux determined to hang on to their star man.

Triaud, who played down Faubert's strike action, said: "We received an offer from Rangers, as expected, but the figures mentioned in the offer aren't acceptable because they don't meet the valuation of a talented, young French international who is very important to us.

"They also aren't acceptable because we simply don't want to sell Julien. I wasn't the slightest bit moved or excited by their offer. It was substantially short of what we expect.

"In my opinion he will be a Bordeaux player come the start of the season because nothing that has happened in the last few days has changed my mind.

"Yes, Julien didn't turn up for training but that's not serious. I'm not a footballer and sometimes it's difficult to tell what goes on in their minds.

"It's his choice not to train, no one else's, but I do think ultimately he will understand we simply want to keep him because he's a very good player.

"He has a contract until 2011. We have offered him a new one and the new coach sees him as an important player and so do I."

Faubert has attracted interest from Roma and Valencia, with Tottenham also believed to be keen, but Ibrox is his favoured destination.

Sol added: "The fact that Jean-Claude Darcheville is already at Rangers helping convince Julien that is where he should play his football.

"Rangers have been very active and are showing the biggest interest and their determination pleases Julien."

CELTIC aim to hammer home their advantage in the race to sign NAC Breda striker Maceo Rigters.

Having stolen a march on the other clubs trailing the 23-year-old by opening dialogue with his Dutch club, the Parkhead side hope to establish as quickly as possible how much it would take to land the player.

Their record in tying up deals before the opposition can get out of the blocks has been impressive of late, and chief executive Peter Lawwell has been working hard behind the scenes to land boss Gordon Strachan his fifth signing of the summer.

Rigters and his trio of agents have cleared the way by establishing his contract allows him to speak to Celtic or any other interested parties.

The money Breda want - and the player's personal terms - is now what Celtic are trying to nail down.

Between £350,000 and £500,000 has been mentioned as a fee for the player, who has two years of his current contract to run.

But, with the likes Newcastle and Bolton showing an interest, the danger is Breda - and Rigters' agents - might be able to kick start an auction. Celtic hope that by striking first they can avoid this.

One of Rigters' agents, Tom Smit, confirmed: "There's interest from two clubs in England, but Celtic are the only club to have made contact with NAC.

"Now we're seeking a meeting with the club to get permission to enter negotiations with Celtic.

"Maceo is very interested in a move to Glasgow. He spoke with Evander Sno on Tuesday, and moving to Glasgow is now a big possibility for him."

Another of Rigters' agents who has helped smooth the path for a departure from NAC, Claus Vink, is equally confident a deal can be done, and said: "There are now no obstacles in the way of a transfer."

Breda's technical director, Earnie Stewart, confirmed the contract dispute between Rigters and the club which threatened to delay any possible move has now been resolved, and added: "Celtic sent us a fax to tell us they were interested in Maceo and we'll see what happens.

"It's up to Celtic to make the next move and push forward with any negotiations.

"We want to keep Maceo, but if he wants to speak to Celtic there's nothing we can do about it because it has all been done by the book."

Rigters is not the only target Celtic are trying to secure before the squad heads to Switzerland for the first of their pre-season games a week today.

Liverpool striker Anthony le Tallec is the latest name to be linked, while Lyn Oslo's 21-year-old Nigerian hitman, Chinedu Ogbuke also remains on the radar, though he would require a work permit if this interest was pursued.

The same would be true for Sochaux's Senegalese defender-cum-midfielder, Guiranne N'Daw.