Boro veterans going for glory
Gareth Southgate admits Middlesbrough’s veterans are driven by the desire for one last shot at glory as they battle a packed fixture schedule to contend cup competitions at home and in Europe.
Boro take on Charlton at the Riverside Stadium tomorrow night in an FA Cup quarter-final replay, with the winners facing West Ham to contest a place in the final against Chelsea or Liverpool.
They are also in the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup against Romanian side Steaua Bucharest next week after a heroic second-leg win over Basle.
Thirty-five-year-old Boro captain Southgate admits the experience of such games, and the fact there may not be many more to come for the older players, adds extra motivation for the likes of himself, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Ugo Ehiogu, Mark Schwarzer and Colin Cooper.
“That’s what is fantastic for a few of us in the dressing room here,” he said.
“To still be in two cup competitions at this stage, you realise it possibly won’t happen again.”
