Source: SKY_Sports
Southgate - Nothing to lose
Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate insists taking anything from a clash with Manchester United this weekend would be a bonus.
Boro face the reigning Premier League champions at The Riverside Stadium on Saturday in a game which can be seen live on Sky Sports 1 & HD1.
They are currently battling for their Premier League status, sitting three points adrift of safety with four games of the season remaining.
It is therefore imperative that they start accumulating points as soon as possible if they are to beat the drop, starting against United.
Southgate, though, is being realistic and accepts that Boro's fate this term is likely to rest on how they fare in their other three fixtures, against Newcastle, Aston Villa and West Ham, rather than how they get on against the Red Devils.
"We have got results against Arsenal and Liverpool here this season already, so that fills us with confidence," he said.
"There's nothing to lose because nobody would expect us to get anything from the game - and if we do, that's a huge boost for us."
Southgate also believes that the battle to avoid slipping out of the top flight has been whittled down to just five teams, with the former England international of the opinion that 37 points will be enough for survival this season.
"Realistically, I don't see any of them (the teams in the bottom three) winning all their remaining matches, so the teams on 37 points might have enough now," he said.
"Everybody when they are further up the table, as we were last year, you always think, 'We need another win'. But certainly those on 39, I would think, have got enough.
"Not everybody is going to pick up those points between now and the end of the season."
