Middlesbrough spent much of the campaign ahead of all the teams facing the drop, yet it was not until the penultimate game of the season and their win over Portsmouth that manager Gareth Southgate could really breathe easy.

With the amount of investment put in by Steve Gibson, Boro should be challenging for Europe. After all, West Ham were relegated in 2003 with the same number of points (42) as Boro picked up this season.

There were some real high points - in early December they defeated the then league leaders, Arsenal, who had not tasted defeat and in truth played the Gunners off the park. Southgate’s men were also a thorn in Arsenal's side at the Emirates, where they 1-1.

'A third campaign of mediocrity could bring calls for Southgate's head but with a nucleus of class players there is much to build on'


Similarly the home performances against Liverpool and Manchester United ensured well-deserved draws and Boro were supremely unlucky not get anything from their 1-0 defeat at Chelsea.

They proved against the Big Four that they have enough quality about them to live with any team in the Premier League but it was their away form that really cost them. Winning just three games on their travels (at Fulham, Derby and Portsmouth) is lamentable, especially as the last win on the road in the league came on December 29.

However, the defeat that most sticks in the throats of Boro fans is the spineless quarter-final home reverse to Cardiff. Many fans will sit down and watch the FA Cup final this week and feel that their team should have been there. But one can’t help feeling that Middlesbrough passed up a huge chance to return to another cup final and perhaps ensure themselves a UEFA Cup campaign.

Nevertheless, Southgate and his players deserve enormous credit for bouncing back from their FA Cup exit and putting together a good run of form to ensure their survival in the Premier League. Of course, the 8-1 final-day victory over Manchester City was the icing on the cake and should bring a huge amount of belief going into the 2008/9 campaign.

All in all it has been an erratic campaign and much of this may be down to installing such a young boss. The signs are there that Southgate could yet become a world-class manager; he stood up to Sir Alex Ferguson in the 2-2 draw with United at the Riverside and finishes of 12th and 13th in two seasons in charge are respectable enough, especially as he was shorn of Mark Viduka and Yakubu last summer.

Southgate’s signings have been mixed. Mido has been afflicted with injuries and Lee Dong Gook ridiculed as one of the worst players ever to perform in the English top-flight. Yet Tuncay, a freebie from Fenerbahce, has been a revelation and Brazilian striker Alfonso Alves has done enough to suggest he knows where the goal is and should provide a return on the large investment slapped on him.

There is enough quality in the Boro squad to be hopeful for next season. Jeremie Aliadiere was another astute signing, David Wheater had an excellent season and Stewart Downing again underlined his value to the club.

Southgate will have to box clever in the transfer market this summer, the priorities being a new goalkeeper with Mark Schwarzer out of contract and a central midfielder of real class.

Next season will be the one where Southgate is judged. A third campaign of mediocrity could bring calls for his head but with a nucleus of class players (Wheater, Downing, Alves etc.) there is much to build on and stability should breed success.

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