MIDDLESBROUGH are ready to join Sunderland in a four-club chase for flamboyant France forward Christophe Dugarry.

Boro manager Steve McClaren is set to switch his sights to Bordeaux star Dugarry after being stung by his failure to secure South African Benni McCarthy.

McClaren last night admitted he was "hugely disappointed'' that Boro had been knocked back in their appeal against a Home Office refusal to grant McCarthy a work permit.

Northern Echo Sport exclusively revealed three weeks ago that McClaren wanted McCarthy to bolster his attacking resources.

Boro had agreed a loan deal to the end of the season with Spanish side Celta Vigo, who were happy to off-load the 23-year-old striker with a view to a permanent £5m move.

But Boro, who saw their application for a work permit turned down last week, yesterday received confirmation that former Aston Villa target McCarthy did not meet the strict criteria governing the influx of non-EU nationals.

McClaren said: "I'm hugely disappointed and very surprised that our appeal has been turned down. I strongly believe Benni would have been a very worthy addition to the Premier League and would have been a real asset to Middlesbrough.

"Although he hadn't played the required 75 per cent of competitive internationals over the past two years, we felt he had a very good case.

"We received a strong letter from the South African FA explaining that he would have played for them on many more occasions but 'retired from the national team' for a spell and was concentrating on his club career.''

A Home Office spokesman confirmed: "The review panel met to consider the evidence presented by Middlesbrough Football Club.

"The panel recommended that the appeal is refused. The panel was not satisfied that the player was of sufficient calibre to make a real difference to the future development of the English game at the highest level.

" That is expected to be the end of the matter."

With no other avenue seemingly open over McCarthy, McClaren is now looking at the possibility of a move for 29-year-old Dugarry, who is also attracting attention from Premiership rivals Sunderland, Tottenham and Ipswich.

The colourful Dugarry, rated in a similar price bracket to McCarthy, is currently out of favour with Bordeaux and was omitted from the side that drew 0-0 at home to Monaco on Sunday.

Comfortable on either flank or through the middle, Dugarry rejoined the Girondins almost two years ago following spells with AC Milan, Barcelona and Marseille.

While with Marseille, he was banned for six matches for brawling and was also the victim of an assault by fans.

Meanwhile, Boro centre-back Steve Vickers has agreed a month's loan to First Division Crystal Palace.

Vickers, who pulled out of a proposed £450,000 move to Selhurst Park last month, said: "It's a chance to play football.

"I wasn't even on the bench the other night at Leicester and I think the manager is making things clear to me.''

Read more about the Boro here.