Riggott ready for final push

Defender Chris Riggott will complete a remarkable journey if he gets his hands on a UEFA Cup winner’s medal tonight.

The 25-year-old was in the Middlesbrough side thrashed 7-0 at Arsenal in the Barclays Premiership on January 14, a few weeks before manager Steve McClaren faced an angry backlash from supporters after a 4-0 drubbing by Aston Villa at the Riverside.

But three months on both men stand on the brink of European glory after playing their parts in a memorable fightback.

“It’s been an unbelievable turnaround,” said Riggott. “That (Arsenal) was probably the lowest I’ve felt in football.

“To come from that and to have a chance like this at the end of the season, it’s a tremendous turnaround, and one which we have to make the most of.”

Riggott will hope to line up alongside skipper Gareth Southgate – the 35-year-old has been battling a hamstring injury since the FA Cup semi-final - and provide the foundation for Boro’s big push against Sevilla.

The Teessiders head into the game with McClaren insisting they are underdogs, a status they have enjoyed against Stuttgart, Roma, Basle and Steaua Bucharest in this year’s competition.

“We know we can’t give them a 2-0 start,” said Riggott, who played in the stunning comebacks against Basle and Steaua in the previous two rounds.

“We know it’s going to be a tough game with the quality of their players going forward.

“We need to make sure we are at the top of our game, keep a clean sheet, and with the quality of the players we have up front, we fancy them to score.

“It sounds obvious; we have got to try to keep it tight and if our big-name players can produce, we have got a good chance.

“We have seen Sevilla throughout the season progress in this cup, and you don’t win a UEFA competition without playing difficult teams.

“If you are going to win the cup, you have got to beat top teams, and that’s what we have got to do.”

Simply running out for the game will be a dream come true for Riggott who, along with luckless team-mate Malcolm Christie, left Derby in January 2003 to further his career.

He has had to be patient, but this season has displaced Ugo Ehiogu as Southgate’s first-choice partner and is relishing the challenge of the biggest game in the club’s history.

“When we signed, this was the sort of thing we came for,” he said. “But a few years down the line I wouldn’t have expected to be playing in the UEFA Cup final.

“But the quality of players we had at the club when we signed, we knew we were coming to a great club, and that’s one of the reasons we signed.

“I’ve enjoyed the last few years, and hopefully there are many more to come.”