JUNINHO has issued a 'come and get me' plea to Scottish champions Celtic after admitting that his first-team chances at Middlesbrough are likely to be limited next season.

The diminutive Brazilian, who is currently in his third spell with the Teessiders, made 38 appearances in a Boro shirt last season.

But most of those came in a withdrawn role as boss Steve McClaren opted to play with just one striker up front.

That policy looks set to change next season following the capture of both Mark Viduka and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

And Juninho has all but accepted that he will have to leave the Riverside if he is not to spent large chunks of the campaign on the bench.

Celtic have been monitoring the 31-year-old's situation after Swedish hotshot Henrik Larsson moved to Barcelona last month.

The Glasgow outfit are poised to make a formal offer later this week, and Juninho's agent has paved the way for a move north.

"The player loves Boro but he has to be playing football," explained Jonathan Hassel. "With the players they have signed it looks like he'll have to leave.

"He would consider joining Celtic. He would not be out of their range and his wage demands would not be beyond them."

But, while Juninho's financial demands are unlikely to scupper the deal, Middlesbrough's could.

Boro shelled out £6m for the Brazilian's services in August 2002 and, with two years of his current deal still to run, the Teessiders would be unwilling to let him leave for anything less than £3m.

Jonathan Greening is another player poised to leave the club, with West Brom close to agreeing a £1.9m fee for the former Manchester United midfielder.

Baggies boss Gary Megson is desperate to strengthen after winning promotion to the Premiership last season and sees Greening's versatility as a key asset.

Last week saw a flurry of transfer activity at Boro's Rockliffe Park training ground, but the club aren't finished yet.

Bolo Zenden is expected to complete another loan move from Chelsea later this week, while McClaren could make a double swoop on Stamford Bridge in order to capture Geremi.

The experienced midfielder spent a year on loan at the Riverside two seasons ago, before joining Chelsea from Real Madrid.

New Blues boss Jose Mourinho has hinted that Geremi does not fall into his plans, and McClaren is ready to explore the possibility of another loan deal.

Bolton are also tracking the Cameroon international, but the promise of European football gives Boro a massive advantage as they look to lure him back to the North-East.