Alves impresses Southgate
28 Feb 2008 - 07:56:48
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- Alves impresses Southgate
Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate was delighted with record signing Afonso Alves' full debut in the narrow 1-0 FA Cup fifth round replay victory at home to Sheffield United.
The 27-year-old Brazilian lasted 73 minutes of the Riverside encounter, which was eventually decided by Paddy Kenny's cruel own goal, with Southgate impressed by his recent recruit's efforts.
He said: "He was bright, he showed a few flashes of what is going to come. It was good to give him a start.
"There was one free-kick that we were standing behind and we thought 'he is not going to hit this' and it moved all over the place.
"It was obviously not the most popular decision to take him off, but we were very conscious that it was his first game and with Reading on Saturday as well, we had to have an eye on both things."
Meanwhile, Southgate added of his side's overall performance: "We were very good in the first half and had enough chances to have been comfortably ahead.
"But of course, the longer it went on, the prize that was at stake started to take its toll on the game and the more and more it looked like it was going to be one goal that decided it.
"They pushed us all the way and it was a scrappy, quite fortuitous goal that won it for us. But in the end, I felt it was our character and guts that saw us through."