Gareth Southgate has been talking about is faith in striker Alfonso Alves, even though the player has failed to find a run of good form at the club.

Alves moved to the Riverside Stadium in January from Dutch side Heerenveen. The 27 year old moved for a club record £12 Million fee but has not become a prolific scorer in the Premier League.

However following Alves’ second goal of the season at Blackburn Rovers last weekend, Southgate is confident that the Brazilian can deliver. He said “Afonso has not been scoring, but he has remained focused…He has maintained the belief in his ability, and you could see that from his finish at Blackburn. It was fantastic”.

Alves has so far played 20 times for Middlesbrough and scored 8 times.