Source: Northern_Echo
No fire sale at Middlesbrough, warns Mowbray
TONY Mowbray witnessed Middlesbrough head in to the new year on the back of a much-needed win before insisting there will be no fire sale during next month's transfer window.[LNB] Clubs from across the country were represented at Deepdale yesterday when David Wheater, attracting interest from a number of Premier League outfits, followed up birthday boy Leroy Lita's double with a fine header.[LNB] The goals at Preston secured Middlesbrough's second victory in seven Championship matches, keeping them above the relegation zone ahead of the New Year's Day trip to Leeds United.[LNB] But Mowbray accepts he is likely to be faced with a testing month, in which every member of his playing staff could be sold if suitable offers arrive on the table.[LNB] Wheater, Gary O'Neil, Kris Boyd and Seb Hines are the most likely candidates to depart, although the manager claims no one will leave if the deal does not suit Boro.[LNB] One or two clubs have made their initial contact for players,[LNB] said a realistic Mowbray.[LNB] The bottom line is that we are in a situation where we have to see what develops.[LNB] We have valuations of players, you don't jump at the first tentative offer that comes your way. I have to keep the place focused and make sure the players forget about everything that is going on.[LNB] It's important that we have valuations and we try to keep to them, that's what the chairman thinks and I think.[LNB] We do understand financially where we are, but it's not a need to fire-sale people out. We do need stability here.[LNB] We need to get salaries back at this club that is manageable with the resources we have.[LNB] There's no Premier League money coming in, parachute payments are close to expiring.[LNB] We have merchandising and gate money, we need this club to operate within its means.[LNB] Mowbray was, once again, full of admiration for the way Wheater performed. The 23- year-old was solid defensively and headed in the third in a 3-1 win at Preston.[LNB] Such a display arrived at a time when the centre-back knows he could be leaving the club he has graduated through the ranks within weeks, with the likes of Wolves, Everton, Birmingham, Newcastle and Sunderland among those interested.[LNB] In the ten games I have been here, I can't point the finger and say he has not applied himself,[LNB] said Mowbray, who took over in October.[LNB] He has been a credit to the club and his family. I wish him well, he is a good lad. The fans showed their appreciation and we would all be trying to give him a contract that keeps him here a long time if we were in a financial position where we could. We are not.[LNB] We are at the wrong end of the Championship, we just have to see what January brings.[LNB] Wheater's situation is mirrored through the squad, with Mowbray accepting that 2011 will be a year of change under his management.[LNB] The fans deserve more than we have been producing, he said. Hopefully that is the start, I have said that before, but hopefully we follow that up with another good performance at Leeds.[LNB] It's in our own hands still.[LNB] We have to get away from the bottom. We have decent players here who have under achieved hugely. We have to build their belief.[LNB] January is around the corner, someone may stick a big pin in the bubble, we might lose some key players. My job is to replace them with manageable players we can afford.[LNB] At this stage Mowbray's preferred striker option is Lita, who celebrated his 26th birthday with a clinical double at Preston.[LNB] The striker, keeping out Scott McDonald and Boyd, now has four for the season and three of those have arrived under Mowbray.[LNB] And the Boro boss said: The days I leave Leroy out he is not happy, of course. He does not cause problems for us. He gets on with it and waits for his chance.[LNB] He wants to learn and get better. Can he be frustrating[LNB] Yes. When he scored he still made some poor decisions, like shooting instead of playing it square to Scott. He was never going to pass, he was on a hattrick.[LNB] I'm not going to criticise him.[LNB] Woodgate link played down MIDDLESBROUGH boss Tony Mowbray has played down speculation linking him with a loan move for Tottenham defender Jonathan Woodgate.[LNB] Reports have suggested the 30- year-old could be on his way back to the Riverside Stadium after Spurs manager Harry Redknapp revealed he would let him go out on loan to regain match-fitness.[LNB] It's news to me we will wait and see what January brings,[LNB] Mowbray said.[LNB] Anybody who takes Woodgate would expect him to play and whilst (David) Wheater and (Matthew) Bates are here it would be difficult for me to bring in a loan player and disappoint one of our own players. Loans are always difficult.[LNB] It's not something at the moment that I'm working on but I know Woodgate was a big success as a player here.[LNB] Woodgate would be seen as an ideal replacement for David Wheater, who added to his growing stock with the third goal in Boro's 3-1 victory at bottom club Preston yesterday.[LNB] The 23-year-old will be out of contract at the end of the season and Mowbray did little to quash reports of a January move away from the club.[LNB] Mowbray added: Wheater is too valuable an asset for us to let him walk away on a free in summer. We are in a situation which isn't ideal because you can see the connection he has with our supporters.[LNB]
