Source: SKY_Sports
Southgate behind his captain
Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate insists he is fully behind captain Emanuel Pogatetz, who suggested he will leave the club if they go down.[LNB] Pogatetz has played down the comments, which angered a number of fans, given he is the skipper of the relegation-threatened club.[LNB]But Southgate insists that Pogatetz was misquoted and will very much remain his captain. [LNB]"He phoned me on the day the stories appeared and he was very upset," said Southgate. [LNB]"As always, when players go on international duty they have a lot of media commitments and from a 45-minute interview you can take bits and pieces and come up with a story that's a lot more damning than the actual interview. [LNB]"I've been through that myself as a player and I know the way it works.[LNB]"He's totally committed to trying to keep us in this division. Everyone knows his passion for the team and the way that he plays.[LNB]"He was particularly concerned that supporters will view it in the way people will when a story like that comes out.[LNB]"I've got no questions about his loyalty to the club so it wasn't an issue for me because I know the way these things come out. [LNB]"We were both conscious that the way the story was reported didn't look good and that's why Emanuel wanted to very quickly address that situation."[LNB]
