24 hours ahead of one of the biggest North east derbies in years, Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate talked up his sides chances of beating the drop.

 

With both Boro and Newcastle in the bottom three and with only nine points to play for until the end of the season, neither team can afford to lose at St James’ Park on Monday night. Defeat will almost certainly mean relegation and with tough matches to follow the encounter should provide plenty of action. However, with a win offering the possibility of salvation given Hull’s poor form, Southgate remains optimistic on the chances of Premier League football being played on Teesside next season.

"As we sit here today, one win can take you out of the bottom three, which is remarkable given the run we have had” he said. “We are lucky that we still have a chance of getting out of it, and we have got to take advantage of that. We are probably closer to survival than we were eight weeks ago because the tally needed to stay up seems to reduce every week."