West Ham 2 Middlesbrough 1

Middlesbrough winger Stewart Downing faces months on the sidelines as his home-town club attempt to stage an unlikely escape from relegation.

David Wheater will be back for Middlesbrough’s must-win meeting with Aston Villa tomorrow.

MARK VIDUKA is hoping Alan Shearer can launch a long career as Newcastle manager by sparing the club from relegation.

Middlesbrough’s hopes of escaping relegation were dealt a blow today when it was confirmed record signing Afonso Alves will not play again this season.

Newcastle United 3 Middlesbrough 1

Newcastle 3 Middlesbrough 1

Newcastle manager Alan Shearer restored Michael Owen to the starting line-up for tonight’s must-win derby clash with Middlesbrough.

Middlesbrough 0 Manchester United 2

Middlesbrough 0 Fulham 0

MIDDLESBROUGH are reaching the point of no return.

Stoke 1 Middlesbrough 0

DAVID JAMES has seen almost everything during his long and colourful career, but the England goalkeeper still considers himself a novice when it comes to relegation battles.

Middlesbrough 1 Portsmouth 1

Middlesbrough defender Justin Hoyte is doubtful for tomorrow’s crucial Barclays Premier League clash against Portsmouth at the Riverside Stadium.

Middlesbrough 0 Wigan 0

West Ham 1 Middlesbrough 1

THERE must be a sadomasochistic streak buried deep within Shay Given. Having finally extricated himself from the Newcastle United madhouse, booking into the loony bin that is Manchester City seems akin to a particularly extreme form of self-flagellation.

Republic of Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni is backing Shay Given to emulate the feats of legendary compatriot Dino Zoff.

Manchester City 1 Middlesbrough 0

Middlesbrough 0 Blackburn 0

Striker Marlon King is poised to make his home Middlesbrough debut in tomorrow’s crucial Barclays Premier League basement battle with Blackburn.

Chelsea 2 Middlesbrough 0

Wolves 1 Middlesbrough 2

IF Gareth Southgate really does possess the most bomb-proof job in the Premier League, the Middlesbrough manager doesn’t know it.

West Brom 3 Middlesbrough 0

OVER half the Premier League has been struck by an identity crisis.

Middlesbrough 1 Sunderland 1

Arsenal are under pressure for fourth place and Champions League qualification aa they took the game to a defensive Bolton side in the first half at the Emirates Stadium.

Middlesbrough 2 Barrow 1

Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate has told his club’s wantaway stars he will not tolerate anything less than total commitment as he bids to arrest an alarming slide down the Barclays Premier League table.

Defender David Wheater is set to return to the Middlesbrough starting line-up for Monday’s daunting trip to Old Trafford after sitting through his side’s defeat to Everton on the bench.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger brought back his big guns after his side’s dismal midweek Champions League defeat in Porto for today’s crucial early kick-off against Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.

IT is always best to expect the unexpected at Newcastle United, so perhaps the notion of the club being hauled onto an even keel by Joe Kinnear — frozen out of football for four years, with question marks over his health and whose methods appeared to belong in football’s stone age — is not so surprising.

Middlesbrough 0 Newcastle 0

Striker Mido is back in contention for Middlesbrough’s Premier League derby against Newcastle at the Riverside Stadium tomorrow.

IT is proof positive of the Premier League’s febrile environment that, a month after Gary Megson was wondering whether he would still have a job in the new year, he is now making bold demands for funds for a January spending spree.

Middlesbrough 1 Bolton 3

Emanuel Pogatetz and Mido have both been passed fit for Middlesbrough’s Barclays Premier League clash with Bolton at the Riverside tomorrow.

Everton 0 Middlesbrough 1

Middlesbrough manager Gareth Southgate will choose between record signing Afonso Alves and top scorer Mido for Sunday’s Barclays Premier League match at Aston Villa.

GARETH SOUTHGATE might dream of turning Middlesbrough into the Arsenal of the north — all flowing football played by bright-eyed tyros — but not every game lends itself to such fantasy football.

Middlesbrough 2 Manchester City 0

PAUL INCE is looking forward to the return of a fully fit and firing Benni McCarthy after the South Africa striker finally showed flashes of his old form.