WITH his hopes of retaining Mark Viduka receding fast, Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate is ready to step up his interest in both Jeremie Aliadiere and Diomansy Kamara.

Viduka's future is expected to be resolved at the start of next week and, while Southgate will make a final attempt to persuade the out-of-contract Australian to remain at the Riverside this weekend, he is also working on a contingency plan in case last season's leading scorer opts to join Newcastle.

With Malcolm Christie having been released at the end of last season, that contingency plan involves the capture of two centre-forwards, and Aliadiere and Kamara are understood to be at the top of the Boro boss' list.

Both players attracted Southgate's interest in January but, while neither was the subject of a formal offer at the time, Viduka's likely departure has led to a renewed approach to the duo.

Aliadiere should be the easier player to recruit, as the Arsenal striker has been told that his future lies away from the Emirates Stadium and Gunners officials are understood to have given Southgate permission to speak to the player next week.

Despite being with his north London employers for eight years, the 24-year-old has consistently failed to force his way into Arsene Wenger's first team.

With Thierry Henry injured, he made a number of senior appearances at the end of last season, but sources in London suggest Wenger has told him that he will be listening to offers for his services this summer.

Rumoured interest from La Liga has failed to materialise, and Southgate is unlikely to face much competition when he pursues his interest in the Frenchman next week, although persuading Aliadiere to uproot to the North-East could prove more problematic.

Kamara's situation is different, as the West Brom forward is wanted by a number of clubs in the Premiership.

Despite Tony Mowbray's insistence that he will not overseeing a fire sale of his leading assets following last weekend's play-off final defeat to Derby, Kamara is almost certain to leave the Hawthorns this summer.

Boro are just one of a number of clubs to be tracking the Senegal international and, even with Viduka's wages off the books, it remains to be seen whether Southgate will possess the funds to capture arguably the most highly-rated striker outside of the top-flight.

The Middlesbrough manager was forced to withdraw his interest in David Nugent in January when the Preston striker's valuation moved out of his price range and, while chairman Steve Gibson has promised him to money to spend this summer, Kamara's valuation of around £8m could prove difficult to match.

Meanwhile, former Boro defender Stuart Parnaby yesterday completed a free transfer to Birmingham City.

The 24-year-old, who was released at the end of last season, has signed a three-year contract at St Andrew's, with an option for a further 12 months.

"The time had come for me to make a fresh start at a new club and I decided to join Birmingham after meeting Steve Bruce," said Parnaby, who made 21 senior appearances for Boro last season. "He spoke really highly of all the lads and what a big club it is.

"I'd been at Boro since I was a ten-year-old so I thought it was a good time for me to make a new start and hopefully I can prove to the Birmingham fans what sort of player I am. I know what it takes after playing with Boro in Europe and the Premiership, so hopefully I can bring that bit of experience to the younger players in the team and we can push on and stay in the Premiership."