MIDDLESBROUGH boss Steve McClaren will make a concerted effort to sign Bayern Munich midfielder Owen Hargreaves this week as he attempts to plug the gap left by Dutch deserter Bolo Zenden.

Zenden will sign on the dotted line at Anfield this morning, before being officially unveiled as a Liverpool player at a press conference this afternoon.

The former Chelsea winger passed a medical on Merseyside on Saturday after turning down Boro's offer of an improved two-year deal at the Riverside.

Zenden's departure has left McClaren short of numbers in midfield as he attempts to assemble a squad able to compete on both domestic and European fronts this season.

Brazilian Doriva is expected to sign a new one-year deal later this week but, with Juventus refusing to budge on their £4m valuation of Ghana international Stephen Appiah, McClaren is ready to turn his attentions to Hargreaves.

The Boro boss is already well acquainted with the Canada-born midfielder after spending a considerable amount of time with him in his role as Sven-Goran Eriksson's number two.

And, despite Bayern's insistence that Hargreaves is not for sale this summer, he hopes to convince the 23-year-old that a move to Boro would be in his best long-term interests.

Hargreaves is desperate to make the England squad for next summer's World Cup and, while Eriksson is an avowed admirer of his versatility, the Swede is also known to harbour concerns about the limited opportunities open to him at the Olympic Stadium.

The last of Hargreaves' 26 England caps came as a substitute during March's 4-0 win over Northern Ireland and, with the likes of Jermaine Jenas, Michael Carrick and Kieron Richardson all having forced their way into the international picture since then, McClaren is hoping the lure of regular first-team football could prove hard to resist.

The midfielder has been linked with Boro before - McClaren inquired about his availability last summer - and has previously stated that a Premiership club would be his only port of call if he were to leave the German champions.

His versatility makes him particularly appealing to the Boro boss as, in Zenden, he has lost a player able to fill a variety of midfield berths as well as slot in at left back if required.

Hargreaves is similarly adaptable and McClaren is expected to make a formal approach to the Bayern board later this week.

The Germans have previously refused to discuss a possible price for his services but the Teessiders are likely to test the water with an initial approach of around £4m.

Meanwhile, Boro officials are confident of smoothing out last week's disagreement with Stewart Downing despite the youngster expressing his unease at the club's contract offer.

Downing's agent, Ian Elliott, claimed his client was "very disappointed" with the club's initial attempts to renegotiate the three years left on his current deal at the Riverside.

But, after turning down a £7m bid from Tottenham at the end of last week, the Boro board are adamant the 20-year-old will not be going anywhere this summer.

The Teessiders, who have made it clear they will not be upping their current offer, are willing to bide their time before scheduling further talks with the winger.

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